NEWSLETTER MAY 31, 2018 REAL KASHMIR EARN TICKET Page 3 U-16 BOYS ARE CHAMPIONS Page 3 FAVOURABLE DRAW FOR INDIA Page 2
INDIA DRAWN WITH UAE, THAILAND & BAHRAIN From the GS Desk We have been drawn along with hosts UAE, Thailand and Bahrain in the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2018. AIFF is committed in providing the best of exposure aiding the preparation and we will be continuing it. We begin our campaign against Thailand and as I understand, the match may set the tone for us. The Hero Intercontinental Cup kicking-off on June 1 is an excellent platform for us to test our strength against stronger Teams. Kenya and New Zealand comprise of players who play in major leagues in Europe and other parts of the world and Chinese Taipei are a strong side. I am looking forward to the competition. Congratulations to the U-16 National Team boys for emerging champions in the four-nation tournament in Serbia. The tournament featured Jordan and Tajikistan, both of whom have qualified for the AFC U-16 Finals and a strong Serbia. Bibiano Fernandes is doing a fantastic job with the wards. His tactical acumen has been exemplary. Congratulations also to Uvena Fernandes for getting selected to officiate in the FIFA U-20 Women s World Cup. Development of Indian Referees stays on our priority list. It s nice to see Indian Referees get International recognition. The month also saw Real Kashmir FC emerging champions in 2nd division league to earn a ticket for the next edition of the Hero I-League. Congratulations! AIFF s vision of a pan Indian league has further been substantiated. Congratulations also to Minerva Punjab FC for winning the U-13 Youth League. Warm regards, Kushal Das India have been clubbed with hosts United Arab Emirates, Thailand and Bahrain in Group A of the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019, the official draw for which was held at the Armani Hotel Ballroom at the iconic Burj Khalifa on May 4, 2018. National Team Captain Sunil Chhetri, Iranian legend Ali Daei, iconic Chinese player Sun Jihai and Philippines star Philip James Younghusband coordinated the picks for the four respective pots as they helped AFC General Secretary Dato Windsor John to conduct the draw. Besides, National Team Coach Stephen Constantine and Team Manager Shanmugam Venkatesh were present on the occasion. The top 24 Teams from all over Asia including hosts United Arab Emirates were drawn into six groups of four teams each. Teams drawn together in the group will play each other once and the top two from each group will qualify to the Round of 16 along with the best four third-placed teams. The Continental Championship will be held across eight stadia in four cities in the UAE -- Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah and Al Ain -- January 5 to February 1, 2019. India qualified to the coveted tournament by virtue of topping Group A in the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers over Kyrgyz Republic, Myanmar and Macau. India finished on 12 points after 6 matches losing just the last away group match to Kyrgyz Republic in Bishkek in March. This is India s fourth qualification to the AFC Asian Cup, the last one being in Doha in 2011. India had finished runners-up to Israel in 1964. INDIA S MATCHES January 6, 2019: India vs Thailand January 10, 2019: India vs UAE January 14, 2019: India vs Bahrain 1
With a bit of luck, India can finish among top two Legendary Indian Footballer Bhaichung Bhutia is happy about the group India have drawn in the AFC Asian Cup 2019. In an exclusive interview, Bhutia, the sole Indian Footballer till date to have played in over 100 International matches mentioned India can finish among the top two in the group and qualify to the round of 16. EXCERPTS: What do you think of India s draw in the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019? I am very happy with the group which we have drawn. I feel we have been extremely lucky as we didn t draw any Asian Superpower Iran, Japan, Australia and the Korea Republic -- in our group. Every pot had six teams and from Pot A we avoided all the teams who have qualified for the 2018 World Cup. So you feel it s an easy group? In International Football nothing is easy. But in comparison to the group in Doha 2011 where we were clubbed with the then World Cuppers Australia and the Korea Republic, this looks good, or should I say favourable. Not to forget that the other team in our group in 2011 was Bahrain, and they had played the World Cup play-offs from Asia too (for World Cup South Africa 2010). Do you think we can make it to the round of 16 this time around? I feel that we can finish among the top two from our group and qualify to the Round of 16. I understand it s not that easy but it s also not impossible. With a fair deal of hard work and a bit of luck, we can achieve it. Can you elaborate? Physically and mentally we need to prepare ourselves for our best and that always adds to the confidence. Perhaps this is the first-ever time when India are ranked 2nd among the four teams in the group. Admit or deny, it s bound to have a very significant impact on the mentality of the players. I reiterate you need to approach it with caution. But it s possible. How should the team approach it? Just putting in hard work won t always get you there. You need to have the self-belief and the vision along with it as it can do wonders. The attitude of we can do it defines great teams. In such tournaments, mere putting in your 100 percent won t work. You need to put in that extra effort which can sail you through. We can qualify to knockout stage Moments after India were drawn in Group A of the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019, National Coach Stephen Constantine stated that India can qualify to the knock-out stage of the Continental championship. I think it s a group from where we can qualify to the knock-out stage. I won t say it s an easy group but we have the ability to win against some of these teams and on our day, we can beat most of them, Constantine said. All these teams will give us different kinds of problems and we have to be prepared before facing them in the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019, he added. Speaking at the ceremony, Chhetri said: The Asian Cup is an enormous opportunity for us and we are looking forward to it. Back home in India, everyone is excited and we have the blessings of all the people and we will do our best. The tournament gives us the opportunity to rub shoulders with the best of Asia and play against players who many of whom play in many a Premier League across Europe and other parts of the world. We aim to be competitive and give our best on the pitch. 2
AIFF NEWSLETTER MAY 31, 2018 REAL KASHMIR EARN I-LEAGUE TICKET All India Football Federation congratulated Real Kashmir FC for clinching the 2017/18 Hero 2nd Division League. In the process, they became the first Club from Kashmir to have qualified for the premier league of the Country, the Hero I-League. Real Kashmir FC defeated Hindustan FC 3-2 at Bengaluru s FSV Arena today (Wednesday, May 30, 2018) to finish their final round campaign with 7 points from 3 matches, 3 ahead of Hindustan FC. AIFF President Mr. Praful Patel in his statement said: Congratulations Real Kashmir FC for becoming the first club from Kashmir to qualify for the I-League. I am sure the achievement will inspire the youth to take up the beautiful game and take our Country to higher echelons of International Football. AIFF General Secretary Mr. Kushal Das said: The I-League finds a new centre in the next edition and AIFF s vision of a pan Indian league has further been substantiated. Congratulations and good luck for the next edition. Real Kashmir took the lead in the 22nd minute when Ifham Tariq Mir scored the opening goal of the match. But the joy was a bit shoertlived as Hindustan restored parity 12 minutes later when Kushant Chauhan scored his first goal for the Delhi Club. However, Real Kashmir seized the initiative minutes before the interval. This time Danish Farooq put them in the lead in the 42nd minute as they went into the interval with a crucial 2-1 lead. Changing over, Real Kashmir scored their third goal through Nadong Bhutia in the 67th minute. Having no other option, Hindustan went all MINERVA PUNJAB FC ARE U-13 CHAMPIONS out in the final quarter. Their sporadic raids eventually bore fruit when Kushant scored his second of the match in the 80th minute. That spurred Hindustan up. In the last 10 minutes, Real Kashmir survived some anxious moments as they defended with desperation and eventually managed to hold onto the lead to become the first Club from the state to qualify for the I-League. Significantly enough, current Hero I-League champions Minerva Punjab won the Hero I-League in their second year after having qualified for the same after winning the 2nd division league earlier. Uvena Fernandes to officiate in FIFA U-20 Women s WC In another milestone for Refereeing in India, Uvena Fernandes has been selected to officiate as an Assistant Referee in the FIFA U-20 Women s World Cup slated to be held in France from August 5-24. The new feather in Uvena s cap comes after she had earlier become the first Indian Woman Assistant Referee to officiate in a FIFA World Cup including the final match when she even officiated in the FIFA U-17 Women s World Cup final match between Japan and DPR Korea. Minerva Punjab FC eased past Mohammedan Sporting Club 3-0 in the final of the U-13 Youth League at the Barasat Stadium to emerge champions. 3 She had officiated four FIFA World Cup matches in the Women s FIFA U-17 World Cup for which she was awarded with an AFC Referees Special Award in 2016. It is like another dream coming true and I cannot believe that I will be officiating in my second World Cup in less than two years. I thank AIFF for all the guidance and help, she said.
The Indian U-16 National Team were crowned champions of the Four-Nation Tournament held in Serbia from May 9-13, 2018. The Indian Colts defeated Tajikistan 4-2 in the final match of the group. In earlier matches, the Indian U-16s beat Jordan 2-1 and drew with Serbia 0-0. There is still a long way to go, stresses Head Coach Bibiano Ferandes Even as the entire Indian footballing fraternity have gone gaga over the Indian U-16 National Team emerging champions in the four-nation International tournament in Serbia, Head Coach Bibiano Fernandes isn t willing to read much into it. It actually doesn t mean much as this is only the process for our main objective. We haven t yet achieved anything much, Bibiano told www.the-aiff.com moments after India beat Tajikistan 4-2 to emerge champions. But yeah, I am very happy that the boys are showing great focus and hunger in the process, he added. Our main target is the AFC U-16 Finals Malaysia 2018. notch an inspirational triumph in the tournament. The tournament was part of the series of India s exposure tours which are being arranged by All India Football Federation and Sports Authority of India to help prepare the team in the best possible fashion for the AFC finals. The boys are growing in the right direction, but we ve got a long way to go, Bibiano cautioned. There are so many aspects on which we need to improve tactically. These exposure tours making the boys more confident and capable, he stated. India play Chinese Taipei on Day one India will take on Chinese Taipei on the opening day of the much-awaited Hero Intercontinental Cup which kicks-off at the Mumbai Football Arena on June 1, 2018. The other two teams in the competition Kenya and New Zealand will play their first match against each other the next day. The tournament which will be telecast live on Star Sports is being organised to strengthen India s preparation for the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 -- India s second qualification to the Continental Championship in 8 years and fourth overall. India defeated Jordan (2-1) and Tajikistan (4-2), both of whom have also qualified to the AFC U-16 finals before playing a goalless draw against Serbia to The tournament was a great opportunity for our preparation and match temperament and gauging our fitness. The best part stays that we are improving with every match. Indian National Team Coach Stephen Constantine labelled the Hero Intercontinental Cup as a very important tournament for development. The Intercontinental Cup is a very important tournament for our progression and development. It is good that New Zealand are coming as they have a strong team. We will use the matches to prepare for the Asian Cup, Constantine stated. The fixtures stay as follows: June 1: India vs Chinese Taipei. June 2: Kenya vs New Zealand. June 4: India vs Kenya. June 5: Chinese Taipei vs New Zealand. June 7: India vs New Zealand. June 8: Chinese Taipei vs Kenya. June 10: FINAL. 4