Bhaichung lambasts; Chaubey asks him to attend the 2nd July meeting
Indian footballer Bhaichung Bhutia made a scathing review of AIFF’s functioning and development of football under President Kalyan Chaubey’s leadership. The former Indian skipper, at a media conference at the Calcutta Sports Journalists Club on Friday, alleged that Chaubey had turned the All Indian Football Federation into a circus and termed the head a joker. “It is very unfortunate that we are 133rd in Fifa rankings. We all watched how we are struggling in the Asian Cup Qualifiers,” the 48-year-old said. He continued, “I believe we have a good chance of qualifying but at the same time we have to realize that the Asian Cup now has 24 teams, compared to 16 during my captaincy, so we must qualify,” he added. “Our great President Kalyan Chaubey had earlier said we will be in the top 10 in Asia by 2026. Now he is saying we should have prepared for this 10 years ago,” the Sikkimese Sniper said. “In three years under Kalyan Chaubey, even our women’s team has gone down,” Bhutia continued. Bhutia, in his explanation, focused on the importance of grass-route development, especially, alleging the AIFF top bosses for imposing several restrictions on the academies across the country. “The AIFF is suppressing the country’s several academies by imposing restrictions which are forcing the academies not to participate in the grass-route level competitions. But you have to promote the academies to explore talents and scout talents from there,” explained Bhaichung. He also defended the allegations against his Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools of taking undue advantage by playing on emotions. “I usually don’t talk about Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools during a press conference but it is high time,” the former striker said. He added, “We had started the tournament 12 years back and within 2-3 years we decided we needed to be sustainable. That is when we started the after-school program. 30% of students are on a full scholarship whereas 70% are focused on after-school programs. We have got 220 coaches, and 70 centers and are the biggest grassroots program in the nation. All the money that comes in goes towards our goal,” he explained. “Kalyan had talked about the FIFA Academy, four players were from our school. He talked about the women’s academy. Our club Garhwal FC had won the IWL-2 in which Indian Arrows finished runners-up. He has not done anything to contribute to football, even when he played he was focused on politics,” Bhutia signed off. However, the AIFF president on Friday issued a statement against Bhutia, saying the former India captain ‘has consistently and deliberately made baseless allegations and presented a distorted image of the AIFF’. “However, it has been observed that since Mr. Bhaichung Bhutia’s defeat in the September 2022 elections, he has consistently and deliberately made baseless allegations and presented a distorted image of the AIFF. Such actions not only tarnish the reputation of the Federation but also throw Indian football in a negative light on international platforms,” His statement said. Chaubey added, “The AIFF always remains open to constructive suggestions from Mr. Bhutia for the growth and betterment of Indian football”, but said that the former forward has contributed to opposing decisions made by the board. I would like to inform you that Bhutia is most welcome to participate in the upcoming AIFF Executive Committee Meeting scheduled for 2nd July. The official invitation for his attendance was extended by the AIFF Secretariat on 11th June. He is encouraged to present any constructive proposals during the meeting, which will be duly deliberated upon by the entire executive board in the spirit of transparency, collaboration, and the collective development of Indian football,” the statement concluded.
Trevor Sinclair, part of India’s coaching staff at AFC Asian Cup, declared bankrupt
Former England footballer Trevor Sinclair has been declared bankrupt after a judge accused him of ‘burying his head in the sand’ after he failed to pay a five-figure amount relating to his media work in 2021 and 2022. Sinclair, a 2002 World Cupper with England, had joined the Indian men’s team as part of its coaching staff in January 2024, during the AFC Asian Cup in Doha, Qatar. However, the team failed to score any goals and bowed out in the group stage, following losses to Australia, Uzbekistan, and Syria. The Englishman is currently part of the coaching staff of the senior men’s team of Jamaica. Sinclair, who played 360 matches in the Premier League, for clubs like West Ham, Manchester City, and Queens Park Rangers, was issued a bankruptcy order at Central London County Court last week, on June 12. The court heard that Sinclair owed a sum of 36,424 pounds to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), including over 13,000 pounds related to his work as a pundit on television and radio. Judge Caroline Wilkinson presided over the case and granted the bankruptcy order in the former player’s absence.
Tendulkar predicts a 3-1 win for India; Bumrah shows magic with ball in the training!
Sachin Tendulkar predicted a 3-1 win for the Shubman Gill-led side in the upcoming Test series against England. It will be a huge series for India who will be without the services of star batters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma after they both retired from the format. As a result, a new-look batting unit is expected to feature in the first Test match starting Friday under the leadership of Gill. Sachin seemed confident about the Indian cricket team’s chances in the Test series and the legendary batter had a huge prediction. “I have settled for 3-1 to India,” Sachin revealed while speaking to ESPN Cricinfo. Sachin feels that right-arm seamer Jasprit Bumrah will be the strike bowler for the visitors in the upcoming England tour for the five-match series. A new era beckons for India in the Test format as the modern-day giants gear up for their first assignment without the prized batting bigwigs Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Shubman Gill, India’s youngest Test captain, has taken the baton from Rohit to guide the nation to success and challenge for the World Test Championship mace. During India’s training session in Beckenham, Kent’s second home venue, Bumrah displayed his unparalleled mastery in the art of pace bowling. With the ball in his hand, Bumrah showed signs of breaking the notion of requiring assistance from the surface to wreak havoc. Tendulkar told the media, “I think the bowling attack will depend on Bumrah and how the other guys support him. Bumrah, without any doubt, is going to be our strike bowler.”
DHFC’s youth development program continues; Promising juniors to play for Young Corner in the CFL First Division this season
Despite being promoted to the elite I-League this season and taking the initiative to build a formidable senior squad, Diamond Harbor FC’s youth development program continues. In a bid to provide ‘quality’ match-time for the promising youngsters, DHFC has made an association with First Division club Young Corner this season and Young Corner will be fielding all the promising footballers of DHFC in the forthcoming CFL First Division this season. The club’s secretary Akash Banerjee, when asked about the issue, revealed, “We will also field reserve squad in the CFL Premier League this season. However, several young potential footballers have been recruited who may not get proper exposure. In that case, we made the arrangement and got the consent from Young Corner. The team will be participating in the CFL First Division with our juniors.” He continued, “The purpose is to assess the juniors in the First Division as we also take part in youth competitions like RFDL, and AIFF youth leagues. So, these boys’ participation in the First Division will help us to build up teams for the national-level youth tournaments. Finally, our purpose is to promote quality footballers to the reserve squad and then finally to the I-league squad. We want to build up a process of bringing up quality footballers gradually.” The Young Corner is currently training with around 20 DHFC footballers at Bata ground. Dipankar Sharma, who guided Chanmari FC to the elite I-league this season, explained when asked about the prospect of the boys in the CFL Premier Division, “The real prize will be how many quality players come up after the end of the CFL Premier League who could be promoted to the I-League squad. Simultaneously, the purpose is to make them mature before the national-level youth football tournaments. Although we started preparation only a week ago, I am optimistic about the boys performance.” Diamond Harbor FC will start their campaign in the CFL Premier Division on 2nd July against Sreebhumi FC.
