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The Hindu
5 hours ago
- Sport
- The Hindu
India to play in CAFA Nations Cup — Full schedule; Iran, Tajikistan among opponents
India will play in the 2025 CAFA Nations Cup, replacing Malaysia, which withdrew from the tournament citing logistical challenges. 'Malaysia's participation had been confirmed well in advance, with full awareness of the tournament dates (29.08. - 08.09.2025) and schedule, and those dates have never been changed from the beginning,' the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) said in a statement. 'Unfortunately, this late withdrawal has caused certain disruptions to the ongoing organisational processes, particularly given the advanced stage of planning and preparations.' As a result, the Blue Tigers have replaced Harimau Malaya, and the tournament will mark their first under a new coach, following Manolo Marquez's departure earlier this month by mutual consent. At the Nations Cup, India will be drawn alongside Tajikistan, Iran, and Afghanistan. The team will have a chance to earn significant ranking points if it can pull off upsets against Iran — the defending champion — and Tajikistan, a 2023 Asian Cup quarterfinalist. The top two teams from each group will progress to the play-off stage, with two matches scheduled for September 8. The third-place match will be contested by the two group runners-up in Dushanbe, while the final, between the group winners, will take place in Tashkent. CAFA Nations Cup 2025 tentative schedule: India vs Tajikistan — August 29 India vs Iran — September 1 India vs Afghanistan — September 4 Indian football has been adrift since its group-stage exit at the 2024 Asian Cup — a run that saw the team change head coaches from Igor Stimac to Manolo Marquez, yet go winless in competitive matches for 16 months. Now ranked 133rd, its lowest position in nearly a decade, the men's team is hoping for a course correction under a new coach, expected to be appointed on August 1 from a shortlist that includes Khalid Jamil, Stephen Constantine, and Stefan Tarkovic.
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First Post
8 hours ago
- Sport
- First Post
Indian football team gets invited to CAFA Nations Cup; set to face Iran, Tajikistan
In a big boost for the Indian football team, the Blue Tigers have been invited to take part in the CAFA Nations Cup 2025, where they are set to face teams like Iran and Tajikistan. read more Indian football team has been invited to take part in the 2025 CAFA Nations Cup. Image: PTI The Indian football team will take part in the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) Nations Cup 2025 in August-September 2025, it was confirmed by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) on Wednesday. The Blue Tigers, who are still searching for their next head coach, will take on teams like Tajikistan, the Islamic Republic of Iran and Afghanistan in the eight-team tournament group stage. It's a big step for the Indian football team, which is part of the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF). Playing in a CAFA tournament would allow them the opportunity to compete against much higher-ranked teams as compared to the SAFF Cup STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The CAFA Nations Cup 2025 will also serve as a preparatory tournament for India ahead of their upcoming AFC Asian Cup 2027 Final Round Qualifiers. The biennial CAFA Nations Cup will be held in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan from 29 August to 8 September 2025. More from Football India's next Asian Cup qualifier is against Singapore on 9 October, with the reverse leg on 14 October. They face Bangladesh on 18 November and play their last match against Hong Kong on 31 March 2026. The Blue Tigers are currently at the bottom of the four-team group, having suffered a loss to Hong Kong and a draw against Bangladesh so far. Only the winner from Group C, which includes India, will qualify for the Asian Cup. India's matches in CAFA Nations Cup 2025 In the CAFA Nations Cup 2025, India have been drawn in Group B alongside Tajikistan, Islamic Republic of Iran and Afghanistan. The top two teams from each group will progress to the play-off stage, which will see two matches being played on 8 September. The third-place match will be played between the two group runners-up in Dushanbe, while the two group winners will play the final in Tashkent. Group A will be hosted by Uzbekistan, who are drawn alongside Kyrgyz Republic, Turkmenistan, and Oman in Tashkent. CAFA has six members — Afghanistan, Islamic Republic of Iran, Kygryz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Oman and India are the two invited sides for the second edition of the CAFA Nations Cup. Iran are the defending champions, having beaten Uzbekistan 1-0 in the 2023 final. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD CAFA Nations Cup 2025 Draw Group A: Uzbekistan (H), Kyrgyz Republic, Turkmenistan, Oman. Group B: Tajikistan (H), IR Iran, Afghanistan, India. India's match schedule: August 29: Tajikistan vs India September 1: India vs IR Iran September 4: Afghanistan vs India
India Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- India Today
Players need more pride when playing for India: Manolo Marquez
Former head coach of the Indian men's football team, Manolo Marquez, reflected on his stint and believes that players who are involved in the international setup should show more pride when playing for the time with the national team was not ideal as expected. In his time as the head coach, the Blue Tigers took just one win in the eight games played, and as a result, their chances to qualify for the AFC Asian Cup 2027 took a massive back on his managerial stint with the national team, Marquez, in an interview with the Hindustan Times, suggested that the players needed to show their pride, especially when playing for the national team. 'I feel the players can arrive with more pride. Pride to play in the national team,' Marquez commented. But he was quick to clarify that this was not the primary reason behind their recent CORE GROUP OF PLAYERSAs far as mistakes were concerned, Marquez admitted the lack of direction in what he had intended as compared to what transpired. This is about his first press conference, where he admitted that he wanted to work with a core group of players, something he never had during his were mistakes, he said. If you call 49 players in five FIFA windows, it means you never found the correct group. So, it's more about me,' he even defended the decision to bring back Sunil Chettri to the national side. Marquez wholeheartedly believed that Chettri still had the minerals to lead the frontlines after seeing his performances in the Indian Super League. During this time, the national team was in dire need of an attacking threat, too. So it was only natural to consider the all-time great.'It was risky, yes. But we had problems in finding goals, and he was scoring in the ISL. He had a chance against Bangladesh, and if he had scored, everything would have changed. Now, everyone can say that it was a mistake, and I need to accept that. But I think that was not a mistake. He is a top professional and I was very satisfied to be able to count on him,' he said.- Ends
The Hindu
10-07-2025
- Sport
- The Hindu
Latest FIFA ranking of India - Blue Tigers drop six spots after loss to Hong Kong
The men's Indian football team fell six spots to 133rd in the latest FIFA rankings announced on Thursday. It is India's lowest ranking in nearly a decade. The last time it was ranked lower than this was in December 2016, at 135. The Blue Tigers have gone on a downward spiral since the end of 2023, when it won three trophies and had broken into the top 100. However, it made a group stage exit from the 2023 AFC Asian Cup, and an elimination from the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers followed. ALSO READ: Malaysia rises to highest FIFA rankings in 19 years under former right-hand man of Postecoglou A change of head coach, from Igor Stimac to Manolo Marquez, did not help as India failed to win a competitive match in over 16 months. Earlier this month, Marquez also parted ways with the team, with his last match in charge being a 0-1 loss to Hong Kong in the 2027 AFC Asian Cup third round qualifiers. The six-spot drop was the second-steepest fall for any team around the world in the current rankings, joint with Chinese Taipei, Cayman Islands, St Kitts and Nevis, El Salvador and Slovakia. Only Congo, the Maldives, Haiti and Jamaica are the countries with a steeper fall of seven positions.
The Hindu
05-07-2025
- Sport
- The Hindu
Kochi Blue Tigers buys Sanju Samson for a record amount at KCL auction
Kochi Blue Tigers won the bidding war with Thrissur Titans to buy marquee player Sanju Samson for ₹26.80 lakh in the auction for the second season of the Kerala Cricket League (KCL) here on Saturday. Samson also became the most expensive player in the history of the KCL. Trivandrum Royals was the first team to bid for Sanju for ₹10 lakh but Thrissur Titans joined the fray and straightaway increased the amount to ₹20 lakh. Blue Tigers responded with ₹20.20 lakh and pursued it till Titans backed out when the price touched ₹26.80 lakh. Blue Tigers splurged more than 50 per cent of its available purse of ₹50 lakh for buying Samson. Apart from Samson, the Kochi side also bought K.M. Asif, Vinoop Manoharan and Akhin Sathar to complete the quota in Category A. It also sprang a surprise by buying the oldest player in the auction, the 42-year-old K.J. Rakesh for ₹75,000. 'Sanju brings in a lot of value to the side. He was always in our plans from the outset and we were determined to get him at all costs,' said Blue Tigers coach Raiphy Vincent Gomez. Vishu Vinod was the second most expensive buy in the auction. The swashbuckling batter was pocketed by Aries Kollam Sailors for ₹12.80 lakh. Titans and Alleppey Ripples bid aggressively for Jalaj Saxana with the latter nailing the all-rounder for ₹12.40 lakh. Basil Thampi was Royals' most expensive buy at ₹8.40 lakh. Royals also used the RTM (Right to Match) card to buy Abdul Basith for ₹6.40 lakh. Titans exercised the RTM cards to buy back Ahammed Imran, M.D. Nidheesh, Mohammed Ishque and Akshay Manohar while Blue Tigers used it for Nikhil Thottath, P.S. Jerin, Vipul Shakti and Jobin Joby. M. Nikhil was the most expensive player sold in Category B as he was bought for ₹5.9 lakh by Royals. Royals also paid the highest bid amount for a Category C player, doling out ₹3.95 lakh for V. Ajith. In all, 26 players (out of 31) in Category A, 16 (from 40) in Category B and 49 (from 84) in Category C were sold. The squads (amount in lakh): Aries Kollam Sailors: Biju Narayanan (1.5), Sachin Baby (7.5), Sharafuddeen (5), Abhishek J. Nair (1.5), M.S. Akhil (8.4), Vishnu Vinod (12.80), Pavan Raj (2.5), Eden Apple Tom (1.5), Vathsal Govind (1.5), Rahul Sharma (0.75), Athuljith Anu (0.75), A.G. Amal (0.85), Ashik Muhammad (0.75), Bharath Soorya (0.75), P.S. Sachin (0.75), Vijay Viswanath (1.50), Jose S. Perayil (0.75), N.S. Ajayghosh (0.75). Alleppey Ripples: Mohammed Azharuddeen (7.5), Akshay Chandran (5), Vignesh Puthur (3.75), T.K. Akshay (1.5), N.P. Basil (5.4), Jalaj Saxena (12.4), Sreehari S. Nair (4), Mohammed Kaif (1.5), Aaditya Baiju (1.5), Anuj Jotin (0.75), Rahul Chandran (0.75), M.P. Sreeroop (0.80), Balu Babu (0.75), K.A. Arun (0.75), Abhishek P. Nair (0.75), Akash Pillai (0.75), Mohammed Nazil (0.75), Arjun Nambiar (0.75). Calicut Globstars: Rohan Kunnummal (7.5), Salman Nizar (5), Akhil Scaria (3.75), Anfal Pallam (1.5), M. Ajnas (6.4), (5), Sachin Suresh (5.3), Manu Krishnan (1.8), Akhil Dev (1.05), Monu Krishna (2.1), Ibnul Afthab (3.65), Ajith Raj (0.75), Preethish Pavan (0.75), Krishna Devan (0.75), M.U. Harikrishnan (1.5), Shine John Jacob (1.5), S.N. Ameersha (0.75), T.V. Krishna Kumar (0.75), Trivandrum Royals: Govind Dev Pai (1.5), S. Subin (1.5), T.S. Vinil (1.5), Basil Thampi (8.4), Abhijith Praveen (4.2), Abdul Basith (6.4), Krishna Prasad (3), Fanooz Faiz (4.6), Riya Basheer (1.6), M. Nikhil (5.9), Sanjeev Satheesan (2.2), V. Ajith (3.95), Asif Salem (0.90), J.S. Anuraj (1.5), Adwaith Prince (0.75), J. Ananthakrishnan (1.5). Thrissur Titans: Shoun Roger (4.4), Sijomon Joseph (5.2), Anand Krishnan (7), Varun Nayanar (3.2), Ahammed Imran (3), M.D. Nidheesh (3), C.V. Vinod Kumar (6.2), Mohammed Ishaque (1.5), Akshay Manohar (3.5), K.R. Rohith (0.75), Arun Poulose (0.80), Vishnu Menon (1.4), Adithya Vinod (0.75), Athif Bin Ashraf (1.25), K Ajnas (0.75), Anand Joseph (1.1), Amal Ramesh (0.75), Sibin Gireesh (1.5), A.K. Arjun (2.85), Aju Paulose (0.75). Kochi Blue Tigers: Vinoop Manoharan (3), Sanju Samson (26.80), K.M. Asif (3.2), Akhin Sathar (3), Nikhil Thottath (2.1), P.S. Jerin (2.4), K. Ajeesh (0.75),Muhammed Shanu (0.75), Vipul Shakti (0.95), N. Afrad (0.75), K.J. Rakesh (0.75), Jobin Joby (0.85), Saly Samson (0.75), Muhammad Ashik (0.75), Alfi Francis John (2.2), (1).
