Xtra Time Web Desk: The Indian national football team secured a convincing 2-0 victory over the Kyrgyz Republic in the Tri-Nation Tournament on March 28, 2023. The match was played at the Khuman Lampak Stadium in Manipur, India, and saw the Blue Tigers dominate the game with their inspiring brand of football. The victory ensured that India won the tournament with an all-win record, having previously beaten Myanmar 1-0 in their opening match. The opening goal of the match came from centre-back Sandesh Jhingan, who found the net with a deft touch in the 34th minute. The Indian defender pounced ..read more

Anirudh Thapa celebrates after giving Blue Tigers the lead against Myanmar. Image Courtesy: AIFF Xtra Time Web Desk: India secured a 1-0 victory over Myanmar in the first game of the Tri-Nation Tournament in Imphal, Manipur on Wednesday. Anirudh Thapa scored the solitary goal for the hosts in the 45th minute. The match was the first-ever international tie played in Manipur, and the stakes were high for both sides. India started brightly, with Jeakson Singh narrowly missing a header from an Anirudh Thapa free kick in the fourth minute. Thapa turned creator again in the ninth minute, but Sunil C ..read more

India football team train at the Khuman Lampak Stadium on Wednesday. Image Courtesy: @IndianFootball Xtra Time Web Desk: The state of Manipur is set to host its first-ever international football tournament, and football enthusiasts in the state must be thrilled. The tri-nation tournament, featuring India, Myanmar, and Kyrgyzstan, will kick off at the Khuman Lampak Stadium on Wednesday, with India taking on Myanmar in the opening game. India’s captain Sunil Chhetri, fresh from leading Bengaluru FC to the final of the Indian Super League, will lead the Indian team against a Myanmar side that has ..read more

Xtra Time Web Desk: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is set to visit Mohun Bagan club on Monday to congratulate the Indian Super League (ISL) 2022-23 champions. The coveted ISL trophy will also be brought to the century-old club, giving Mariners fans the opportunity to catch a glimpse of it. ATK Mohun Bagan, the ISL champions, were received with a warm welcome as they landed at the Kolkata airport on Sunday afternoon. Throngs of fans gathered at the airport, shouting and celebrating with ATK Mohun Bagan flags, and some wearing the club’s jerseys. The team defeated Bengaluru FC 4-3 o ..read more

Xtra Time Web Desk: Good news for thousands of Green & Maroon fans as the new ISL champions ATK Mohun Bagan will now be renamed as Mohun Bagan Super Giants, according to team owner Sanjiv Goenka. The name of ATK will no longer exist from now as it has been a long time demand by Mohun Bagan fans. The franchise’s owner Sanjeev Goenka made the announcement after the ISL final in Margao on Sunday. “It is a small announcement but a substantial one. From next month, ATK Mohun Bagan will be renamed as Mohun Bagan Super Giants. We were waiting for the (ISL final) win to announce it. This win offe ..read more

Xtra Time Web Desk: ATK Mohun Bagan defeated Bengaluru FC 4-3 on penalties to be crowned the champions of Indian Super League for the first time at Fatorda in Goa. Both teams were locked 2-2 after the extra time. Vishal Kaith saved a shot from Bruno Ramirez in the tie-breakers while Pablo Perez shot it over the cross bar. Dimitri Petratos scored twice from penalties for ATK Mohun Bagan while Sunil Chhetri and Roy Krishna were in targets for Bengaluru FC. Mariners were awarded a penalty in the 13” after Roy Krishna handled the ball inside the box. Petratos was on target beating the outstretche ..read more

Xtra Time Web Desk: Indian Super League (ISL) 2022-23 final between ATK Mohun Bagan and Bengaluru FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Fatorda, Goa have all the ingredients for a humdinger. Both Mariners and Blues would look to grab the silverware on offer to conclude the season on a high. Will it be Sunil Chhetri or Hugo Boumos? Will Roy Krishna score for Bengaluru or Dimitri Petratos find the target for Mariners? Who will be the players to watch out for in the ISL Final? Both teams managed a victory each in two league stage matches played in different scenarios and on the back of different ..read more

Anilava Chatterjee, Qatar: It is not known if Pete Hubers is still involved with ISL’s grass roots development. But Reliance brought him from UEFA in the very first year. Hubers had worked with UEFA at the grass root level for 30 years. Nita Ambani’s team wanted to arrange the grass root program of ISL keeping him in charge. I was fortunate to meet him in Calcutta, got a chance to talk. My question was, I have noticed in Indian football for more than two decades that at the under 12-14 level, our boys play football at the same level as any country in the world, but as the age increases, the g ..read more

Anilava Chatterjee, Qatar: The All-India Football Federation (AIFF) will impose strict sanctions for any clubs found guilty of match-fixing according to Kalyan Chaubey. The AIFF President along with Secretary Shaji Prabhakaran are right now in Qatar for the FIFA World Cup 2022. In an exclusive chat with Xtra Time, Kalyan Chaubey touched several topics related to Indian football. Here are the excerpts: AIFF recently received a letter from CBI about alleged involvement of a few I League clubs in match fixing. Your thoughts? Kalyan Chaubey: As an ex-footballer I would only say that match-fixing ..read more

Xtra Time Web Desk: As the FIFA World Cup 2022 is set to begin in Qatar from Sunday, November 20,2022, news of match fixing in I League has emerged involving five clubs. According to reports, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is looking at the allegations. It is leant that at least five Indian football clubs may have received “huge amounts of money” from an international fixer through shell firms. The man in question is notorious is Singapore based international match fixer Wilson Raj Perumal. It is alleged Perumal has invested in Indian clubs through Living 3D Holdings Ltd. Wilson ha ..read more