The kick-off between India and St. Kitts and Nevis kicks-off at the Mumbai Football Arena at 8 pm tomorrow (August 24, 2017) and tickets are available on www.bookmyshow.com and at the Box Office at the stadium.

Lavishing huge praise on All India Football Federation for organising the Hero Tri-Nation Football Series 2017 for inviting the Caribbean nation to ply their trade in it, Passy said: “First of all, I want to thank AIFF from bottom of my heart for organising this tournament. They were kind enough to invite us and so we’re here. It’s a great gesture from them and on behalf of St. Kitts & Nevis contingent, would like to thank them,” Passy expressed ahead.

“When a country thinks beyond the geographical borders and shows the zeal to play against countries from the other continents, it shows the spirit of the Federation. India have the right potential to reach a greater height in the coming days given that they continue the process,” Passy added.

“The Indian National Team has improved dramatically in the last two years,” he stressed, repeating “dramatically” twice. The two strikers are very sharp and though possession is not India’s forte, I feel they have the right philosophy simply because in this era, possession is irrelevant. Rather what is relevant is a style of India and India has it,” he certified.

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The eloquent coach went on to say that he believes in ‘no-excuse’ logic on being asked whether the tight schedule of his team will dent his dream of beating India at their home.

“I’m a person who believes in ‘no-excuse’. We were aware of the fixtures before touching down and now we can’t complain about the fixture. Whatever ammunition we have, I believe we can put up a strong fight against India. Moreover, I can guarantee you that even if we lose, the tight schedule won’t be mentioned even once by us,” Passy explained.

On being asked whether the absence of Sunil Chhetri and Gurpreet Singh Sandhu will release some pressure from his team, he dismissed it completely.

“Definitely not! At the end of the day, it’s a team game and we have to face the Indian Team. Sunil has scored 54 goals in 94 games but the current bunch of players is really thriving to go and the spirit they showed against Mauritius was really inexplicable,” Passy mentioned.

Meanwhile, St. Kitts & Nevis made a strong comeback to salvage a 1-1 draw against Mauritius the other night (August 22, 2017).

The post WE’RE GOING TO PLAY A POTENTIAL FINAL TOMORROW, SAYS ST. KITTS & NEVIS COACH JACQUES PASSY appeared first on Football Counter.

Xaxa’s brace gives India a 2-0 win over Malaysians

After a goalless first half, Substitute Pyari Xaxa came up with two late goals as dominant India brush aside Malaysian Challenge in an International women’s football friendly at the MP Selayang Stadium in Kuala Lumpur.

Coach Maymol Rocky, in her very first game in charge, chose to go in with an attacking attitude. India started to dominant right from the word go, with the first big chance coming in the very fourth minute. However Grace’s attempt went straight to Malaysian keeper Nurul Azurin. In the 24^th minute, Kamal Devi’s goal bound header was thwarted by Nurul, diving full length to keep the score 0-0. The host keeper was instrumental in keeping the game goalless for the first half pulling off some brave saves.

Also Read: Indian Women’s Team wants payback

Second half began in a slight reverse fashion, as Malaysian looked to take the game to visitors, keeping possession, playing in gaps. They were almost rewarded for their patience in the 70^th minute when Malini hit the post, but soon India responded and took control over the game. In the 79^th minute, a poor long pass from Nurul gave India back possession for a quick attack as a headed through ball found Pyari get past her marker and score past the Keeper to make it 1-0.

India soon began to get stronger, in the 83^rd minute; Captain Bala Devi almost made it 2-0, when she rose highest among all to connect to Dalima’s cross but the ball rebounded off the post to deny India a goal. Two minutes later, an onrushing Pyari made no mistake in a similar situation as she headed home the second for the day. The game ended with India comfortably winning the game 2-0.

International women’s Friendly                           

India Women 2 (Pyari Xaxa 79’, 85’) – 0 Malaysia women

The post Pyari Xaxa scores brace as India beat Malaysia 2-0 appeared first on Football Counter.

As a part of preparations for their respective AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers, India and Nepal face each other in an international friendly on Tuesday. After Lebanon opted out due to visa issues, AIFF brought in Nepal as an immediate replacement. Although there are huge difference in ranking between them, Nepal has always proven to be an able opponent for Indians.

India will miss the service of Sunil Chhetri as Coach Stephen Constantine doesn’t want to risk his star player ahead of an important game against Kyrgyz Republic in a week’s time for the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers. Constantine added about India’s highest goal scorer, “Sunil is a very good player and has been for a long time. I hope he has many more years to give for India. I would like Chhetri to be leading the team in the AFC Asian Cup in 2019, if we qualify. The day he hangs his boots, it will be huge loss for Indian Football.”

India, who are already missing the service of Udanta Singh, will also miss CK Vineeth as the striker has picked up an injury to his ankle. Gurpreet Singh looks the likely option to lead the side while also defending the post, behind Sandesh Jhingan and Anas in central defence. Pritam Kotal will start on right while the left back option could be filled by either Nishu, Jerry or Narayan Das. Eugeneson Lyngdoh will man the midfield alongside Rowlin Borges with Jackichand and Bikash Jairu starting on the wings. Jeje and Robin Singh could start up top in the attack.

Also Read: Know your Opponents: Nepal, Players to watch out for

At the other end, Nepal Coach Koji Gyotoku has declared that they are not intimidated by India’s ranking and that they will go for the win. Nepal have dropped their experienced striker Anil Gurung but still have a horde of young talents in the striking department. 19 year old Bimal Magar and Nawayug Shrestha could start upfront; both the players are in form in the scoring department and could keep the Indian defence on toes. Biraj Maharjan will lead the side and the defence alongside Kamal Shrestha, Ananta Tamang and Aditya Chaudhary with Sujal Shrestha and Rohit Chandat at the heart of midfield.

India will look for an outright victory as anything less than a win will hurt them majorly in FIFA ranking points tally and while ranked 100^th, a loss against a team 69 places below will only discourage the morale of team ahead of the Asian cup qualifiers. Although Nepal have failed to beat India in their last 5 attempts one can never write off the visitors.

The post India vs Nepal Preview: Sunil Chhetri to miss out the game appeared first on Football Counter.

Despite sharing no animosity politically or geographically, both nations definitely share a strong rivalry on the football field. Nepal in recent years has been boosted with number of young talents that are making waves in the country.

The friendly will serve a much need match preparation for either side in AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers on June 13. Nepal agreed to play India at short notice after Lebanon pulled out of a scheduled friendly with the Blue Tigers after facing Visa issue with their players. Ranked 169^th in the current FIFA ranking, Nepal doesn’t offer much in the points department for India but just like the host,Nepal football team has been in some good form over the last 12 months.

Barring the 4-1 loss to Philippines in the opening game of AFC Asian Cup qualifiers where they played most of the game down with 10 men, the Nepal football team was on an unbeaten streak from last year till then, winning the AFC Solidarity cup (formerly AFC Challenge Cup) and the BangaBandhu Cup in the mean time.

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Nepal have been dealt with a blow by the absence of defensive duo Rabin Shrestha and Rajin Dhimal on injuries while their most experienced striker Anil Gurung has been dropped from team.

The complete Nepal squad:

GK: Bikesh Kuthu, Kiran Kumar Limbu, Bishal Shrestha

DEF: Biraj Maharjan, Ananta Tamang, Aditya Chaudhary, Kamal Shrestha, Devendra Tamang, Jitendra Karki, Bimal Basnet

MID: Rohit Chand, Bishal Rai, Heman Gurung, Anjan Bista, Sujal Shrestha, Suman Lama, Hemant Thapa Magar

FWD: Bharat Khawas, Bimal Gharti Magar, Nawayug Shrestha

Also Read: Why India vs Nepal friendly fixture is important?

Three Nepal players to look out for:

3. Rohit Chand

The 25 year old defender-midfielder has been a regular in Nepal team up until 2015 having already notched up more than 40 appearances by then. Plying his trade for Indonesian club Persija Jakarta, Rohit Chand has been in good form lately which has resulted in his recent call up for the national side. While defender by rank, Chand’s versatility meant him playing in midfield for his club, which could be well exploited by Nepal coach  Koji.

2. Nawayug Shrestha

The Nepal Army Club striker has been in some amazing form lately for his national side, notching up 11 goals in just 11 games. Scoring 3 hat tricks in 2016, 1 against Bhutan in South Asian games and 2 against Maldives in SAFF championship and South Asian games, Nawayug has been in striking hot form and has knack of chipping in important games.

1. Bimal Magar

One of the most exciting player for Gorkhalis, the 19 year old has already played 19 games for his country scoring 5 goals. The youngster has plyed his trade for various European clubs like FC Twente from Dutch, RSC Anderlecht, KRC Genk and Club Brugge KV of Belgium.  Despite impressing everyone, Magar has failed to attract long term contracts due to FIFA Employments laws and regulations on youth transfer. His technical and off the ball abilities has made him a threat for any opposition.

The post Know your Opponents: Nepal, Players to watch out for appeared first on Football Counter.

Indian football team will face off against neighbors Nepal at the Andheri Sports Complex in Mumbai on June 06. The friendly will be benefiting for both the teams as they are preparing for the second matches of their respective AFC Asian Cup 2019 qualifiers. Nepal are playing against Yemen at home on June 13 while India face groups strongest contender Kyrgyz Republic on the same day in Bengaluru.

India has been ascending in the FiFA ranking since last 12 months. With the important win against then higher ranked Puerto Rico and with losses in the 2018 world Cup qualifiers reduced in the Ranking equation, India gained sufficient points to jump into the top 100 teams. However after the win against Puerto Rico India went seven months without a friendly and since last September have played just two games in nine months. This will seriously affect the rankings once September comes and points gained in Puerto Rico game lose value. So the two games in June become very important for India to continue it’s ascend.

While Lebanon are comparatively higher ranked and stronger team then Nepal standing at 137 to Nepal’s 170th. A game against know opponent will definitely benefit the Indians in their preparations against Kyrgyzstan while also increasing their chances of win and subsequently gaining points.

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Importance of this friendly was not ignored by India coach Stephen Constantine, who commended AIFF for arranging the replacement while also thanking Nepal Football Association.  “With Lebanon pulling out at the 11th hour, our preparations had suffered a jolt. It was disappointing but at the same time the situation was beyond our control. It was just so hard to find a replacement as all other Teams had already finalised their schedule. But thanks to my colleagues in the AIFF, we managed to rope in a team at such a short notice and that’s highly commendable,”

“I need to thank the Nepal FA for accepting our request. Personally, I have huge respect for Nepalese people and we look forward to a great match,” Constantine added.

The last time the two sides met each other, India had beaten Nepal 4-1 in a South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship fixture in December 2015. Since then both sides have improved a lot, while India has won few friendlies and the opening game against Maldives, Nepal played about 13 games in the mean time some official some unofficial. Apart from the recent loss against Philippines, Nepal were unbeaten for 12 games winning seven and drawing five while also winning two tournaments in AFC Solidarity cup and Bangabandhu cup during the same period.

India vs Nepal has always gained some rivalry among the fans of either side, so when India take on Nepal in June 6 it won’t be just to brushen up match practice but also to make sure the team gets in its winning momentum to improve the rankings.

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