Back to 1997, Derrick Pereira and Venkatesh Shanmugam had been two of the pivotal members of the Salgaocar FC squad who won the Federation Cup overpowering East Bengal at their den, Salt Lake Stadium.

Fast forward 8 years, the same Venkatesh, who is fondly known as Venky was playing under the stewardship of the same Derrick Pereira in the star-studded Mahindra United club who had tasted every single silverware in India during their era. In 2008, they reunited once again in Pune FC before Venkatesh hung his boots in 2014.

“Venky was someone who had always contributed to the team and I really liked his style and game reading. He was an intelligent player throughout.”

Cut to 2019, these two football masterminds have joined hands together once again, but for a different purpose, for a different cause.

As the All India Football Federation has handed Derrick Pereira the daunting task of sailing India to their first-ever AFC U-23 Championship in history, no one could have been the most suitable football mind to share his acumen than the former National skipper Venkatesh Shanmugam.

“Now that both of us are together, we feel we’ll be complementing each other. Venky brings in a huge experience of working with Stephen Constantine which has helped him evolve as a coach with time. Given the circumstances, I’m sure we’ll enjoy the journey ahead”, Pereira stated.

“I still remember the Federation Cup win for Salgaocar FC, beating East Bengal in Kolkata was not easy and we felt like being at the top of the world. We have come a long way since then and now we have reunited once again”, Venkatesh commented.

Venkatesh added further, “Derrick Sir had accomplished a lot as a coach and as far as I know him, I feel it’ll be a great opportunity for these young boys to learn from this great football mind.”

On the other hand, goalkeeping coach Gumpe Rime had also plied his trade under Pereira in Vasco for a year (2000-01).

Pereira recalled, “Gumpe was a really tough goalkeeper and he was always eager to learn. Unfortunately, an injury cut short his time in Vasco and we brought in Rogerio Ramos. It’s great to work with him once again”.

Incidentally, Rogerio Ramos happened to be the former goalkeeping coach for India National Team for the last four years (2015-19).

“It’s my second stint with National Team setup and I am privileged to get this opportunity once again. Derrick Sir is someone who I always had high regards for and I can’t wait to start working with him as well as the young promising goalies”, Rime added too.

India are pitted against hosts Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Pakistan in the AFC U-23 Championship 2020 qualifiers which is scheduled at Tashkent between March 22 and 26, 2019.

AIFF MEDIA

Also Read: Indian U-17 World Cup star to train at English Championship side Blackburn Rovers

Also Read:INDIA U-23 NATIONAL TEAM CAMP KICKS-OFF IN GOA

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In an enthralling final, Bengaluru FC came out victorious courtesy CK Vineeth’s brace, as Mariners lost the plot in the extra time to hand over a memorable victory at Cuttack for the southern eagles. A result, which seemed unlikely for blues after the below-par I-league season and the losing out captain Sunil Chhetri and midfielder Cameroon Watson due to injury and suspension respectively.

Blues started out in a 3-5-2 formation with Udanta Singh and Semilen Doungel up-top. Eugeneson partnered with Alwyn George and Lenny Rodrigues in the midfield after missing regular midfielder Cameron Watson on suspension for the tie. As for the Mariners, Sanjoy Sen started in a 4-4-2 shape with Katsumi Yusa leading the side from Kolkata. In-form Darryl Duffy and Balwant Singh started up-front while Indian international Jeje Lalpekhlua was placed on the bench.

The game began on a high pace with blues on the attack from the very start, Lyngdoh pass saw Udanta Singh from the left lobbing in a cross into the box as defender Pritam Kotal did well to clear away before any danger. An end to end affair ensued as both sides failed to make any breakthrough. However in the 20^th minute, Blues almost registered the opening goal when Eugeneson’s corner saw Udanta taking a shot on volley in an acrobatic style as the ball went into the net; however the goal was rightly called offside as replay suggested the ball deflected off Len who was in an offside position much to the dismay of Albert Roca and co.

Also Read: HISTORIC WIN FOR INDIAN FOOTBALL AS INDIA U-17s PROVE ‘TWO’ GOOD FOR ITALY U-17s

Minutes later Lenny found himself in space on the right as he cutback the ball inside the box, Udanta under pressure from defender managed a slight flick to the ball as the ball seemed to be rolling towards goals, Debjit managed a slight touch to send it out for corner as mariners seemed to live on the edge. At the other end, a Sony Norde corner was headed by Eduardo as the ball hit the bar. However the ball fell to Katsumi Yusa who sent the ball in to the box yet again, which was cleared out by an alert Sandesh Jhingan pulling off a goal-line clearance.

First half ended in a 0-0 score as blues looked a little better team despite having lesser possession but with better chances. Second half started on a quick pace just like the first half. In the 51^st minute drama ensued when a Eugeneson’s corner towards far corner found an onrushing Johnson who sent the ball inside the box which was well steered off to the net by a leaping Juanan. However the goal was disallowed for offside as Albert Roca and co. were left in disbelief with replay clearly suggesting otherwise. Soon Mariners came back with an response as Balwant’s ripper from distance brought out a diving save from Amrinder.

Few minutes later, Udanta Singh got in a brilliant run as stormed into the opposition box seeing Debjit off his line, Udanta chipped the ball over the goalkeeper but the youngster was unlucky to see his excellent effort go just wide off target.  Soon, Udanta was seen trudging out on injury prompting an immediate introduction of CK Vineeth by Roca as replacement. The game slowed a bit as players grew tired of the hot and humid condition. A late charge from Norde saw mariners awarded a crucial corners in the injury time one of which brought out a save from Amrinder, however blues defences held on as the ninety minutes ended on a stalemate.

Also Read: ‘AFC Grassroots Day’ witnesses 60% increase in participation.

Extra time began in a similar fashion with the blues going out for an attack through Cornell Glen from the onset. The former mariner almost put his team in front when his effort from a tight angle came off the post before it was cleared to safety. Nearing the end of the first half of the extra time, Vineeth had a glorious chance to put his team in front when he found himself on the left unmarked however the Indian International hit his shot wide in to the side netting.

Second half began on familiar tone, in which Vineeth made amends to his earlier miss when he did well to skip past one defender before sending in his shot from edge of the box, the ball took a slight deflection off Anas before hitting into the net. In search for a desperate equaliser, Bagan sent in mariners forward, however it was Blue that scored again. Vineeth receiving the ball near the centre line stormed in to the Bagan defence before unleashing the killer blow past Debjit.

The match soon ended with blues rejoicing in the victory as for the fourth consecutive season, Bengaluru FC are bringing home a trophy, their second federation cup after the winning the 2015 edition. The win also ensured next year’s AFC Cup Spot for Blues while they look forward to the must win final group game of this year’s AFC Cup campaign to enter the Knockout stages.

Mohun Bagan 0 – 2 Bengaluru FC (CK Vineeth 107’, 115’)

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Goals from Darryl Duffy (35’) and Balwant Singh (84’) were enough to send Mohun Bagan into the final of the Federation Cup after a 2-0 victory over arch-rivals East Bengal at the Barabati stadium in Cuttack on Sunday. Mariners will now face Bengaluru FC for the sixth time in three months.

Mariners started with Balwant Singh and Darryl Duffy up front while Anas Edathodika and Eduardo Ferreira manned the defence, playmakers Katsumi Yusa and Sony Norde started out wide. At the other end Red and gold’s had Subhasish Roy Chowdhury starting between the goal post while Willis Plaza started up top.

Game began at a quick pace with East Bengal creating better chances. In the 8^th minute, Willis Plaza failed to turn in a splendid cross from Rafique. Bikash Jairu looked in an impressive form sending in some dangerous crosses from wings.

At the other end, Mohun Bagan saw a Sony Norde freekick brought out a flying save from Chowdhury. Mohan Bagan soon began to grow in confidence and finally in the 35th minute came the opening goal. Against the run of play, Sony Norde delivered a splendid cross which Duffy duly obliged with by heading it in to the net as the East Bengal defence watched helplessly. Both sides went into the break with Bagan leading the derby encounter by a solitary goal.

Also Read: Watson’s strike and Amrinder heroic sends Blues to final

Second half began with the Red and Gold’s starting aggressively in search of an equaliser. Willis Plaza saw his shot well saved by Debjit with the rebound cleared away. East Bengal continued to look for chances and just past the hours mark, Mohammad Rafique wasted a golden chance after he blasted wide a shot with the goal at his mercy that came to him through a poor header from Anas.

East Bengal continued wasting their chances making it comfortable for Mohan Bagan. Both goalkeepers had a busy day though with their saves, Debjit Majumder had to bring out his best to prevent a Willis plaza header, while at the other end, Subasish had to produced one from the ensuing corner.

With six minutes remaining in the game, East Bengal payed for their profligacy as Mohun Bagan produced the killer blow. The Mariners’ skipper Katsumi Yusa sent in a cross into the box which was converted by a brilliant scissor kick from Balwant Singh.

The game ended with the marines winning by a two goal margin although it will be East Bengal who would rue missing the many chances that came their way.  Sanjoy Sen’s team will now face Bengaluru FC for the final of the federation cup with a chance to sign off with silverware.

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An 8th-minute penalty kick from Cameron Watson and a last minute injury time save from Amrinder ensured Albert Roca and co. seal the finals spot of the 2017 Federation Cup.

Aizawl FC lined up in their usual 4-4-2 formation with Kamo Bayi and Jayesh Rane leading the attack along with Brandon Vanlalremdika and Laldanmawia Ralte starting on the flanks. For Bengaluru, Albert Roca opted for a 5-4-1 shape with Harmanjot Khabra, Sandesh Jhingan, John Johnson, Salam Ranjan Singh and Juanan manning the backline. Injured skipper Sunil Chhetri was replaced by Eugeneson Lyngdoh in the middle while CK Vineeth started up top as the lone striker.

The game started with blues taking an early lead in the 8th minute, Alwyn George was brought down inside the Aizawl FC box by a poor challenge as the referee rightly pointed straight to the spot. Cameron Watson stepped up and slotted the ball into the left bottom corner to put the Blues in front. Minutes later Aizawl had a chance to level things up when Kamo found himself inside the box with the ball but a well-timed block by Juanan ensured kamo failed to shoot.

Also Read: National team to camp in Mumbai ahead of the Kyrgyz republic match

In order to get back in the game, Aizawl resorted to long rangers but failed to trouble Amrinder. Kamo Bayi had one more golden chance at the half hour mark when his unmarked header from laldanmawia cross went wayward. Nearing the end of first half, Cameroon Watson almost doubled the lead when his strike from outside the box was saved by the woodwork as both sides entered the tunnel with the blues leading by a solitary goal.

The second half followed the same script as both sides wasted quite a number of chances; Aizawl played a high line defence to catch blues offside. The reigning I-league champions were almost caught napping on two occasions when CK Vineeth and Alwyn George both came into a one-on-one situation. Both the time the linesman called offside to what looked a doubtful decision on replay. While Aizawl wasted their chances, Mahmoud Al-Amna, Aizawl’s Syrian import, who was given a freedom to attack by the coach, got himself booked for simulation.

But the drama was yet to finish, in the 97^th minute Sandesh Jhingan’s moment of madness almost cost blues the lead. An onrushing Kamo Bayi was brought down by Jhingan inside the box which led to a spot-kick being awarded to Aizawl FC. However, 21-year-old Lalramchullova couldn’t get the better of Amrinder Singh as the goalkeeper dived to the right side of the delivery to deny Aizawl the equaliser.

Bengaluru FC will now face the winner of the Kolkata derby on 21st May in the ultimate tie of the competition with a chance to get one silverware for this season and with a participation in the next year’s AFC competition at stake

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Mohun Bagan seemed happy to play out a 1-1 stalemate against Bengaluru FC at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack in the last encounter of Group B in the Federation Cup as both sides booked a semi final berth.

With semis place already booked, Mohun Bagan started with a series of changes as Sanjoy Sen went for a 4-3-3 formation with Jeje Lalpekhlua at front alongside Sony Norde and Kean Lewis with Katsumi Yusa manning the midfield. At the other end, Albert Roca brought back Amrinder Singh in goal while Lenny Rodrigues and Seminlen Doungel replaced Eugeneson Lyngdoh and Daniel Lalhlimpuia.

After a cautious first ten minutes, Bengaluru went into the lead in the 11th minute through Alwyn George trickery at the right end of the box managing to go past Subhasish Bose and with Kinshuk Debnath in no man’s land; the striker slotted his shot into the near post with Debjit Majumder’s dive coming too late. Blues soon grew in confidence as they created few more chances first Alwyn’s shot got deflected out for a corner before Sunil Chhetri managed to hit the post with a header from the resulting corner.

Also Read: DSK Shivajians downs Blues courtesy Quero’s brace

The Mariners slowly made their way into the game with Katsumi Yusa coming close to scoring with a header at the half hour mark that was well caught by a diving Amrinder. Minutes before halftime, Jeje volleyed a shot over the bar from the center of the box as both sides entered the tunnel with blues leading by a solitary goal.

On restart blues created the first chance when Seminlen Doungel chose to go for goal instead of playing on his fellow team-mates in space and sent it straight to a grateful Debjit. In the 50^th minute, Sony Norde brought the game back to level terms when after beating Khabra with his trickery, he beat Amrinder with a low angled shot towards the far corner. Sunil Chhetri soon trudged out uncomfortably as the the veteran player seemed to pick up a niggle, Albert Roca replaced him with young Zaula taking no chances.

Both teams looked content to sit back after the goal and played out the remaining minutes with ease, with both having ensured qualification. Mohan Bagan had a chance late in the game that could have killed the blues hopes of making into the last four when Sehnaj slammed the ball from distance and Amrinder parried it away but only as far as Katsumi who was flagged offside as he attempted to kick the loose ball much to the relief of coach Albert Roca.

Bengaluru are all set to take on I league champions Aizawl FC in the first Semi final encounter on Sunday, while East Bengal and Mohun Bagan meet for a mouth-watering ‘Kolkata Derby’ in Cuttack in the final match of the night.

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A late goal from Samuel Lalmuanpuia gave a crucial win for Thangboi Singto side as the north easterners kept themselves in semi-final hunt only to be disappointed later in the day as Bengaluru FC managed a draw against Mohan Bagan to enter semi-finals of the federation cup

DSK Head coach Dave Rogers started with six U-22 players in a 4-3-3- shape with Rohit Kumar, Jerry Mawihmingthanga and Vanlalremkima forming the midfield. While Thangboi Singto put in a 4-2-3-1 formation bringing in Alan Deory in the midfield alongside Rupert Nongrum and Redeem Tlang. Samuel Lalmuanpuia continued operating as the lone striker up-front.

In a dismal first half show, neither team managed to capitalise on their chances with DSK Shivajians coming the closest to making it 1-0. Towards the end of the first half, 19-year-old Lallianzuala Chhangte stormed into the Lajong defence before sending a lobbed ball past keeper Vishal Kieth. The ball hit the woodwork twice, once on the left then on the right on re-bounce before being eventually collected by Lajong custodian.

Also Read: Second string Aizawl holds East Bengal as both sides confirm semi final spot

After a goalless first half the second half was lit up with goals, Alan Deory’s(49’) strike early in the second half put Lajong in front, following a couple of missed one-on-one chances inside the box by Lallianzuala Chhangte, Substitute Holicharan Narzary soon made it 1-1 in the 68^th minute when he took his time to make space for himself and whacked the ball past the Lajong defence.

Minutes later Lajong were back in front when Redeem Tiang slotted one home from Alan deory cross after Subrata Paul came off his line to collect the ball and missed. Shillong were soon down to ten men when Vishal Keith was shown the red card for a poor tackle. Soon Narzary once again came to the rescue for the Pune-based side with a stunning late equaliser from the edge of the box in the 86^th minute.

As the game seemed to move towards a draw, Samuel Lalmuanpuia’s goal in the 92nd minute gave Lajong a fighting chance to make it into the semi-finals. The tie ended in a 3-2 result which meant 3 sides then having three points each in Group B, however later in the day Blues managed to sneak out a draw as both Mohan Bagan and Bengaluru FC entered the semi-finals sending both Lajong and DSK out of the competition.

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In a drab encounter with semi-final spot confirmed, Khalid Jamil fielded a second string Aizawl side against East Bengal, still managing to take out a point and top the table.

With the complete change in playing eleven, Jojo Lalrawnbangla and William Lalnufela started in attack while Albert Zohmingmawia and H. Lalmuankima provided the creative impetus to Aizawl. At the other end, East Bengal missed Gurwinder Singh and Mehtab Hossein due to suspensions and were replaced by Rowllin Borges and youngster Samad Ali Mullick, while Robin Singh, the two goal scorer hero from the previous game too found himself out of the starting lineup with only Willis Plaza upfront.

In a one sided encounter, east Bengal dominated possession but still failed to break the Aizawl defence wasting too many opportunities. Early in the first half, Willis Plaza was guilty of missing couple of opportunities before Wedson Anselme’s shot from inside the box was deflected away by an alert Lalawmpuia in the Aizawl goalpost. Bikash Jairu was impressive sending in plenty of crosses in to the Aizawl box which the red and gold strikers failed to capitalise on.

Also Read: DSK Shivajians downs Blues courtesy Quero’s brace

The story in the second half continued to be same with East Bengal dominating possession only for Plaza’s profligacy in the final third and Aizawl FC’s goalkeeper Lalawmpuia saving the day for the champions. Cavin Lobo produced couple of good chances with ball but both were wasted as Plaza failed to connect the first one while Aizawl custodian saved the second.

In the 69^th minute, East Bengal had a glorious chance to take the lead when Willies Plaza found himself in a one-on-one situation with Aizawl keeper after a quick one-two with Bikash Jairu, but once again Plaza wasted the chance as game remained goal less. In search of that elusive goal, Ranjan Chaudhari introduced Robin Singh and Lalrindika Ralte but neither managed to have any impact on the game as the match ended in a goalless draw.

With this result, the I league champions remained at the top spot in the group while East Bengal stayed second.

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Failing to penetrate DSK’s robust defence, Blues payed for their profligacy as Juan Quero penalty (71′) and a stunning free-kick (76′) ensured a win for Dave Roger’s men with a semi final spot still wide open.

DSK Shivajians started the game with the returning Subrata Paul in goal after a controversial few weeks. As many as six U22 players started in the playing XI with Kim Song-Yong in attack and Juan Quero pulling strings from midfield.

Bengaluru FC started in their usual 3-4-2-1 with Udanta Singh, Sunil Chhetri and Daniel Lalhlimpuia in the attack, Eugeneson Lyngdoh and Cameron Watson controlling the midfield alongside Nishu Kumar and Khabra manning the wings. New signing, Cornell Glen for the second game running started at the bench.

In a cagey first-half, both sides started in an expected manner with Bengaluru FC dominating possession and DSK Shivajians working on the counter. The mid-afternoon heat made it difficult for players as they tried preserving the energy which meant less action in the first half. Couple of notable chances that did came along was for Bengaluru when John Johnson’s header was saved on the line by jerry while a Nishu Kumar cutback was met by a Daniel’s first time shot that was well saved by the DSK custodian.

Also Read: Kingfisher East Bengal play out a draw against Churchill Brothers in Hero Fed Cup opener

Second half saw more action as the blues went ahead looking for an opening while DSK slowly built confidence in their counters. Blues captain Sunil Chhetri had a hard time controlling the game as he was well marked by an impressive jerry.

In the 69^th minute, DSK finally managed a successful counter when Chhangte was brought down in the box by the blues keeper Ralte. Juan Querro stepped up for the spot kick and made no mistake by sending the keeper the wrong way as he dispatched the ball in to the net. Rocked by the goal, Blues went forward again but once again on a counter Udanta in a desperate attempt to stop chhangte from getting one-on-one with keeper, fouled him at the edge of the box. But keeper Ralte’s poor wall judgement meant Querro sending in a perfect ball past the two man wall in to the net with the blues custodian stranded to his feet.

Blues poured men forward in a desperate attempt to find goals but failed to break the Shivajians defence. In the last minute of the injury time, Captain Sunil Chhetri almost scored from a free kick outside the box only to be denied by a diving Subrata.

Dave Rogers’ men now have three points, alongside Bengaluru but a better head-to-head record seeing them placed second in Group B ahead of Bengaluru FC. DSK has a good chance of making it to the semi final if they manage to win against Churchill brothers on Friday.

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IFA Shield, Durand Cup, Federation Cup, Santosh Trophy, Indian Super Cup and Subroto Cup are some of the major competitive tournaments played out in the country.

Over the years, these tournaments have lost its original glory, some of them having been ignored entirely, while some lost its star value. The 2016 edition of India’s Oldest and world third oldest tournament Durand Cup witnessed an exciting finale despite missing out star teams or established teams unlike previous edition. It proved, not for the first time that little teams can make a huge difference if given a constant opportunity. Despite few I league clubs like Dempo, DSK Shivajians, Aizawl FC participating in the tournaments, it was two first timers that reached the final which was well received by the crowd who came out in full to the stadiums.

With the future of Indian football league still filled with doubts, lack of proper time for the organizations, the survival of these historic leagues may fall on new teams. A look into some of the India’s top or the ‘once’ top tournaments:

Durand Cup  

Being one of the oldest tournaments in the world, it always had a following right from the pre-Independence days. The Tournament is named after its founder, Sir Mortimer Durand, Foreign Secretary in charge of India from 1884 to 1894.  Having become conscious of the value of sport as a means to maintain health, he decided to present a prize to encourage sporting competition in India. At first it was effectively an Army cup, and largely the preserve of the British Indian Army troops in India, but over the years it widened its appeal and opened up to civilian teams, until it became a more open and conventional sporting contest. The final major administrative change was when the Army passed on the actual running of the Tournament to a civilian administration in 2006. The Army presence is maintained by the participation of several military teams, including an Army green, which won the recent competition.

128th Durand football tournament saw Army Green come out victorious against a very spirited Neroca FC (Manipur) 6-5 in a penalty shoot-out. Both the Teams were so even that after the final ended goalless in regulation time and thirty minutes of extra time, regular five penalties also ended at 4-4 with the shoot-out then going into sudden death.

However, in the sudden death came the decisive moment when Neroca’s experienced defender Govin Singh hit the post with his attempt while Army substitute Bikram Adhikari calmly stepped up and placed the ball to the left of goalkeeper Lalit Thapa to give Army Green victory much to the delight of the jawans, who had gathered in mass at the Ambedkar stadium to cheer for them.

IFA Shield

Came into existence in 1893 and named after the Association, the IFA Shield Tournament is India’s one of the oldest football tournament and the fourth oldest Cup in the world. During the initial years, the IFA Shield was always won by British army teams. However, that changed in 1911, when Mohun Bagan Athletic Club became the first Indian team to win the IFA Shield by defeating East Yorkshire Regiment 2-1. Being the Pre-Independence era, that became a historic moment for Indian football community, as the natives beat the Englishmen at their own game.

East Bengal F.C. has won the IFA Shield 29 times, while their archrivals – Mohun Bagan have won it 22 times.

Involvement of foreign teams has been one of the USPs of IFA Shield. East Bengal’s win over Pas club was first victory of an Indian club over a foreign club since 1947. Pyong Yong City Club from North Korea, Finance and Revenue F.C., Myanmar, , Shenzhen Ruby F.C. from China, South African Santos FC are few of the big name foreign clubs that took part in the tournament.

Clubs from abroad have enjoyed considerable success in the tournament. Peñarol F.C. is the most renowned football club to have ever played in India. They defeated Shakhtar Donetsk – Soviet champions in 1983. In 1993, another all-foreigner final saw Pakhtakor Tashkent, the most successful Uzbek club, defeat Pavlodar F.C., the most successful Kazakh club after a tie-breaker. Bayern Munich reserve team, coached by the legendary Gerd Müllerr to captured the Shield in 2005.

Since 2015, The IFA decided to designed the tournament as an under-19 youth football tournament. The decision was taken due to the busy schedule of AIFF which includes Indian Super League, I-League and Fed Cup.

Subroto Cup

Named after the Indian Air Force Air Marshal Subroto Mukerjee, Subroto Cup Football Tournament is one of the famous inter-school football tournaments in India. The tournament was started in 1960, with participation of about 50 school teams with even schools from Nepal and Afghanistan participating over the years. Since 1998, the tournament is played in two age groups, sub-Junior (U14) and Junior (U17). Madhyamgram High School, WEST BENGAL is famous for winning this tournament (U17) for 7 times in total including a hatrick in year 1981-82-83

Santosh Trophy

Santosh Trophy is an annual Indian football tournament contested between states and government institutions. The first winners were Bengal, who also lead the all-time winners list with 31 titles to date.

Started in 1941, it was the premier football competition in the country before the National Football League was setup in the year 1996. The Santosh trophy as named after the late Maharaja Sir Manmatha Nath Roy Chowdhary of Santosh, who had been the President of the IFA, the football organisation of Bengal, the runners-up trophy, Kamla Gupta Trophy, was also donated by the IFA. The third place teams receive the Sampangi Cup which was presented by the Mysore Football Association (now KSFA, in the memory of Sampangi, a renowned Mysore footballer.

West Bengal has been the most successful team in the tournament leading the all-time winners list with 31 titles to date.

Indian Super Cup

Much like the community shield in England the Indian Super Cup is a one-off annual Indian club association football match contested between the I-League champions and the Fed Cup winners. If there is same winner in I-League as well as Federation Cup then the league runners-up becomes the second team. The winners of the game receive the Shield as a trophy for the year, while players receive individual winner’s medals.

Starting out in 1997, the tournament has been held 11 times, cancelled in 2000-02 and then restarting till 2011. East Bengal FC has won it 3 times while Dempo, Salgaocar and Mohun Bagan won it twice each.

According to recent future plannings for Indian football by AIFF, Indian Super Cup will be expected to become revamped version of Federation cup, where top teams from Indian Super League, League 1(I league) and League 2(I league 2^nd division) will take part.

Federation Cup

The Federation Cup is an once a year knockout style club football tournament in India. It has started in 1977. From its inception till NFL in 1996 it was the most prominent national level club football tournament in India. Winner of this tournament gets a chance to compete at Continental level in AFC Cup.

In 2015, Federation Cup was put on hold by the AIFF, so that some time for scheduling of both Indian Super League and I-League will be available. But after AFC mandated that every club must play 18 matches in the season to get in continental tournaments, AIFF decided to revive the tournament back in 2016. But again according to reports, the FED cup could be replaced by Indian Super Cup in future, to accommodate both I league and ISL clubs.

Also Read: For when “the Sleeping Giant” wakes up.

While Subroto cup, and Santosh trophy has a hassle free run since it does not depend on any clubs, the rest has either lost its sheen or the prominence. With AIFF looking to sort out Indian Calender issue with merger, let’s hope the end result benefits all these cups too.

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Khalid Jamil’s side will be all geared up to turn the tie around at the Fatorda Stadium as they will hope to improve their away record.

It is for the first time that the Federation Cup is being played over two legs. The advantage as for now is on Sporting Goa’s side who has a crucial away goal too in their bags.

However, Mumbai’s gaffer Khalid Jamil seemed positive about today’s clash against the Goan side.

“It is difficult but not impossible and we still have a chance. In the second half, we got two chances which we missed.”

“We have to take our chances if we are to win tomorrow’s fixture”, Khalid added.

Sporting are favourites going into the match but head coach Mateus Costa admitted his side must be cautious to overcome the Yellow Submarines.

“When you play this sort of a Tournament you have to be extra cautious. We got an away goal but this is a new game. We are going to put our best foot forward and we are just focusing on advancing to the next round”, Costa informed.

“We will change the squad because in two days’ time we are having a match. So definitely you will see some changes”, he added.

Khalid’s side has been playing defensive football this season, but with the team on the brink of elimination it wouldn’t be a surprise if Mumbai changes their approach towards attacking football.

“We are playing with Sporting. We don’t have to change anything and just play normally the way we play,” Jamil suggested.

The match will be underway at 4:30pm later today.

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