NorthEast United FC humiliate Diamond Harbor FC 6-1 to retain the Durand Cup title
NorthEast United FC retained its Durand Cup title after thrashing Diamond Harbour FC 6-1 in the 134th final of the tournament at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata on Saturday. The defending champion were leading by a brace after the first 45 minutes. Asheer and Parthib Gogoi gave the lead, scoring one each. Thoi Singh made the scoreline 3-0 in the 50th minute. The forward made a darting run down the right and showed excellent vision to find Thoi Sngh at the far-post, but with a measured pass across the face of the goal. It is the easiest of finishes for Thoi, who lashes the ball inside the net from point-blank range to score the third goal for NorthEast. Diamond Harbor FC pulled one back, and it came from a set-piece. A corner is delivered into the box, and Joby Justin had an initial touch. Kortazar also offered the telling touch in the end as the ball crept inside the net with Gurmeet completely out of the equation. But by the time Diamond Harbor’s morale was seen sinking already. NorthEast’s newest foreign signing, Jairo Bustara, struck the fourth goal in the 81st minute. Gaitan and Ajaraie sealed the opposition’s fate by scoring the fifth and sixth goal, respectively.
MBSG eyes for Parthib Gogoi this season
Mohun Bagan Super Giants management seems keen on roping in Parthib Gogoi, the country’s one of the potential forwards for his season. The striker from Assam who joined NorthEast United FC from Indian Arrows in 2022 has already become the top scorer of NEUFC last season, scoring 16 goals across all competitions. The 22-year-old striker scored five goals in the ISL last season, and provided four assists in his 17 appearances in the League last season. The striker even struck once in his team’s 6-1 drubbing of Diamond Harbor FC in the Durand Cup final on Saturday at the Salt Lake Stadium. It is believed that Gogoi has already been shortlisted by the top bosses of Mohun Bagan Super Giants since the last season. The striker who also represented the country twice in 2022 and 2023 once revealed while speaking to the media that he was nurturing two dreams. One is playing for country and the other was donning shirts of two Kolkata giants.
Messi to play in Kerala ultimately in November!
The uncertainty seems to be over. The Lionel Messi-led Argentine national team is coming to Kerala to take part in a friendly match in November this year! The friendly match is likely to take place during FIFA’s November-window, between 10th and 18th November. This visit will mark the first time an Argentine side will be playing in Kerala. The official confirmation came through the team’s social media handles earlier today. The opponents for the fixtures are yet to be announced. “The Argentine national team, led by Lionel Scaloni, will have two FIFA friendly matches in the remainder of 2025. The first, in October, from the 6th to the 14th, will be played in the United States (opponents and cities to be determined). The second, a FIFA friendly in November, from the 10th to the 18th, will be played in Luanda, Angola, and Kerala, India (opponents to be determined),” the statement read. Kerala Sports Minister V. Abdurahiman first revealed that the Argentine national team, led by Messi would be taking part in a friendly match this year. But the much-awaited trip got a big blow following disagreements between the Kerala government, event sponsors, and the Argentine Football Association (AFA). Doubts were created over whether the friendly would actually go ahead. At one point, Kerala’s Sports Minister announced that the Argentine national team’s Kerala-tour would be cancelled. Then, Reporting Broadcasting, the commercial partner of the Kerala state sports ministry, warned of legal action against the AFA. However, the situation now seems to have been resolved, and Argentina are set to play in India later this year. This will be the reigning world champions’ second visit to the country. Their first appearance came in 2011, when Lionel Messi led the side in a friendly against Venezuela at Kolkata’s Salt Lake Stadium.
India’s under-23 national football team will travel to Malaysia without key MBSG players!
Naushad Moosa’s dreams of making history by reaching the finals have suffered a big blow, as the Indian squad, traveling to Malaysia to take part in the under-23 Asian Cup qualifiers, are likely to miss talented footballers from Mohun Bagan Super Giants! The talented youngsters of Bagan, such as Suhail Bhat, Dippendu Biswas, and Tekcham Abhishek Singh are likely to miss out. The selected footballers from NorthEast United FC are expected to join the national squad after their Durand Cup Final, which takes place on 23rd August against Diamond Harbor FC. However, AIFF are still trying to convince the ISL winner to release the players before the official FIFA window, scheduled to start on 1st September. With Mohun Bagan kicking off their ACL 2 matches on 16th September the club raised concerns over the fitness issues of players. Head Coach Naushad Moosa had to start the preparatory camp in Bangalore without the presence of 16 key footballers, who are from Punjab FC, Jamshedpur, Mohun Bagan, NorthEast United, and FC Goa. Only 10 footballers who participated in the friendly matches against Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan had reported to the camp. Moosa was forced to call upon 15 trialists to get the number to 25 for a full squad to start training. Among the absentees were FC Goa’s Ayush Chhetri, Sanatomba Singh, and Alan Saji, who joined the squad right after Goa’s AFC Champions League 2 preliminary round tie against Al Seeb on 13th August. The 16 of the initial players who were unavailable for the camp were mostly players who would have walked straight into the playing XI or the match-day squad. Despite bringing in new footballers for the selection trials the absence of such players for the preparatory camp left Moosa worried. On the positive note, players from Punjab FC and even Jamshedpur FC have joined the squad.
