31. January
Note-1: Anthony Mergulhao reports from Goa that Goa Professional League champions and National League runners-up Zee-Churchill Sports Ltd continued to make news for the wrong reasons. After Stephen Abarowei was gracefully asked to pack his bags home to Nigeria for allegedly shaking hands with Mohun Bagan officials and his alleged role in the Durand Cup semifinal encounter, Zee-Churchill claimed another casualty.
Following a string of dismal performances in the 5th edition of the National League, Gregory Testvin, coach of Zee-Churchill Sports Ltd has been asked to pack his bags back home to Uzbekistan. According to highly placed sources in the Zee-Churchill camp, director Joaquim Alemao handed over a letter to the coach on Monday, January 29 pronouncing that his services were no longer required by the management and that he disassociate himself from the team, with immediate effect.
Things came to a boil after the teams loss to FC Kochin on Saturday. Churchill bab and the coach had a heated argument in the dressing room and we knew for sure that the coach was on his way out. After that incident we have not seen the coach a Zee-Churchill player speaking on condition of anonymity said.
The player further informed that Hercules Gomes, who played a major part of his professional career for Churchill Bros has been asked to take over the squad. Hercules, we are told monitored the first practice sessions on Tuesday, January 30 and hinted that he was there to stay. Physical trainer Alberto Jones assisted him.

Note-2: The women's football committee of the AIFF will take appropriate action against those organising unauthorised women's football championships, according to Surinder Bhambri, honorary secretary of the women's wing of the AIFF. According to Bhambri, these persons were organising unauthorised tournaments without recognition from the Ministry of Sports, Department of Youth Affairs and Sports, Indian Olympic Association and the AIFF, the governing body of football in the country. The federation has taken a serious view of the announcement of one such tournament to be held in Orissa and has taken up the matter with the Orissa government. Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi, president of the AIFF, has written to the Chairman, Railway Board, regarding railway concessions being given to these persons. Only recognised national sports federations are eligible to issue railway concession certificates, he added.

29. January
As you will have realised I am having some problems with the alternative server at exit.de. Please use indianfootball.tsx.org as link for the indianfootball.com website for the time being! I hope that indianfootball.com will soon be online again...

Here the report by Anish Doshi on the IFSC launch in London on Friday, January 26, 2001.
'Indian football . . . The Beginning of a New Era'
To most Indians in the world, the 26th of January represents 'Indian Republic Day'. However, to a small set of Indians, and also non-Indians, Friday 26th of January 2001 also represented the historical official launch of the Indian Football Supporters' Club (IFSC).
Taking place at 'The India Club' in London (UK), various members of the IFSC Executive Committee set about in discussing and planning a myriad of strategies with the main objective of eventually achieving the accomplishment of the effective and efficient utilisation of various sports facilities and all matters regarding Indian football promotion and management all over the world. The IFSC represents an international non-profit organisation dedicated to the development and promotion of Indian football, not only in India but in the world all over. Examples of specific areas that the IFSC will be involved in include training, coaching, women's football, information databases, merchandising, sponsorship, youth development schemes, football player exchanges and TV coverage.
The origin, and founding member of the IFSC, lies with a young football crazy fan in Germany, who's roots are in India. In October 1998, Arunava Chaudhuri first started his web-based mailing list and as a result has given the opportunity for many professionals to discuss the future of Indian football. However, the first occasion to address this issue in reality and not only in cyberspace materialised in July 2000 with the two-day Indian football conference and convention that took place at the University College Northampton (UK). With the likes of FIFA's Director of Communications Keith Cooper attending, July's event brought together interested academics, supportes, the media, government and representatives of the football industry. This proved to be a great success and in turn, it brought with it a new momentum to the IFSC.

And now back to the present day regarding the IFSC's official launch. Under the co-ordination of Rene Barreto, the following issues (in summary format) were defined and developed further -
- Mario Fernandez informed everyone that football teams in Goa are 100% willing to introduce a player/coach exchange program with English clubs. Mario is currently involved in launching various Goan football web sites.
- Steve White is to be travelling to India in February and visiting various football grounds and academies. Steve is heavily involved in founding his own state-of-the-art academy and is also involved in the 'Foxes Against Racism' scheme which involves Leicester FC, Leicester council and Leicester schools and which has been nominated for a number of awards.
- Anil Patel has taken professional UEFA coaching exams and has been recommended for further exams. Anil will be overseeing the coaching and training committees of the IFSC.
- Anthony Jaimongal will be involved with the marketing aspects of the IFSC such as sponsorship, merchandising, TV rights and newsletters. Also, a 'thank you' has to be handed to Anthony for sponsoring the event.
- Anish Anil Doshi will also be involved with the marketing aspects of the IFSC such as sponsorship, merchandising, TV rights and newsletters alongside Anthony. As well as this role, Anish will also be working with Arunava regarding the press and publicity.
- Rene Barreto will be co-ordinating the activities of the IFSC.
- Arunava Chaudhuri will remain as the principal chief supervisor of the IFSC. He will also look into the online operations of the IFSC. He will be helped by Chris Daniel and Daniel Ponattu.

In conclusion, Friday 26th of January 2001 marked the beginning of a new era in Indian football... The IFSC is open to all races, sex and creed. Only recently, the international game of football has been nominated for the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize for promoting understanding amongst nations... This was self-evidently justified when after restoring parity in an earlier game, the Bosnian players had struck a deal with neighbours Yugoslavia in Kochi, India that they would meet in the final of the Sahara Millennium Cup in Calcutta and exchange shirts at the end of the match. Take it or leave it, this is the relation between the players of the two nations who were engaged in a prolonged civil war almost throughout the whole of the nineties of the last century.

5.National League - Calcutta: Tollygunge Agragami 0-0 Mahindra United - Goals: none.
Tollygunge Agragami missed scoring opportunities galore to be held goalless by a depleted Mahindra United in a National League encounter at the Rabindra Sarobar, Calcutta. The local outfit who looked rudderless in the first half established total supremacy in the later session with their midfielder Sasthi Duley tirelessly building up attacks from the left.
TOLLYGUNGE: Hemanta Dora, Reazul Mustafa, Debashish Pal Chowdhury, Satish Bharti, Partha Sarathi Dey, Abdul Wastu Saliu, Felix Abayomi, Bhabani Mohanty (Ranjan Chowdhury), Sashthi Duley, Abdulateef Seriki (Mohammed Qaiser), Emeka Achilefu.
MAHINDRA: Virender Singh, Anthony Pereira, Christopher, Habib Adekunale, Sanjay Dayal, Satish Minz (Abhay Kumar), Aqueel Ansari, Davoud Hosseini, Khalid Siddiqui (Shamsi Reza), S Venkatesh, Manjit Singh.

Note-1: The 25th senior National Women's Football Championship for the SR Zaidi Trophy will be played simultaneously at Rourkela and Rajkanika from February 2, according to the Orissa women's football association sources. Twenty teams, including defending champions Manipur, will be participating in the tournament the final of which had been slated at Rourkela for February 11.

28. January
5.National League - Calcutta: Mohun Bagan AC 1-0 Indian Telephone Industries - Goals: 1:0 R.C. Prakash (62').
Title holders Mohun Bagan rode on a second half strike to pip Indian Telephone Industries 1-0 in the National League match at the Rabindra Sarobar, Calcutta. After a barren first half, which saw a listless variety of soccer, Bagan struck the winner in the 62.minute through their in form former ITI striker RC Prakash.
MOHUN BAGAN: Rajat Ghosh Dastidar, Dulal Biswas, Amouri Da Silva, Hussain Mustafi, Lolendra Singh, Basudeb Mondal (James Singh), R.P. Singh, Debjit Ghosh, Renedy Singh (Amar Ganguly), Jose Barreto, RC Prakash.
ITI: N Balaji, M Shafeeq, Majid Odaa, AS Firoze (Nasir Jamal), Rishi Kapoor, Peter (Karunakar Raj), Yusuf Mohammed, KV Dhanesh, Pralad Rawat, Hameed R Atia, Keneth Ugwo

5.National League - Goa: Salgaocar SC 1-0 JCT Mills - Goals: 1:0 Climax Lawrence (29').
A penalty by Climax Lawrence in the 29.minute helped Salgaocar edge past a fighting JCT Mills 1-0, in the National League. Both the teams played at fast pace devoid of any goal bound thrill as the moves fizzled out at the top of the box of each other. Salgaocar dominated the first half, while it was JCT all the way in the second.
SALGAOCAR: Juje Siddi, Venancio Gonsalves, Covan Lawrence, Franky Baretto, Roque Pereira, Denis Cabral, Gbenga Lawal (Jules Alberto), Climax Lawrence, Dharmajit Singh, Bruno Coutinho (Jatin Singh Bisht), Ahmed Tijani (Alvito D’Cunha).
JCT: Arvind Kumar, Tarsem Lal, Ranjit Singh, Pawan Kumar (Balkar Singh), Taranjit Singh, Hardip Saini, Harinder Singh, Ram Pal (Jaswant Singh), Hardip Sangha, Sukhjit Singh, Hardip Gill.

27. January
5.National League - Calcutta: East Bengal 3-1 State Bank of Travancore - Goals: 0:1 T Shabir Ali (6'), 1:1 Dipendu Biswas (27'), 2:1 Dipankar Roy (35'), 3:1 Omolaja Olalekan (72').
East Bengal, under new coach Manoranjan Bhattacharya, returned to winning ways in the National League, when they defeated State Bank of Travancore at Rabindra Sarovar Stadium, Calcutta. Shabir Ali's freak goal put the visitors surprisingly ahead in the 6.minute but East Bengal equalised through Dipendu Biswas in the 27.minute. Dipankar Roy despatched a low swerving shot that did not give the SBT goalkeeper Rajeev Kumar any chance to score the lead in the 35.minute. Omolaja completed the tally for the winners with a header off a centre from left flank by Dipankar Roy in the 71.minute.
EAST BENGAL: Nasim Akhtar, Suley Musah, Jackson Egygpong, Deepak Mondal, Ratan Singh (Surkumar Singh), Chandan Das (Carlton Chapman), Isiaka Awoyemi, Omolaja Olalekan, Dipankar Roy, Dipendu Biswas (Srikanta Dutta), Bijen Singh.
SBT: Rajeev Kumar, V Sivakumar, Jiju Jacob, Lanel Thomas, XR Prajeev (Abdul Noushad), Suresh Babu, T Shabir Ali, VP Shaji (Paul Anthony), Asif Saheer, Abdul Hakim.

5.National League - Goa: Vasco SC 1-1 Air India - Goals: 1:0 Kashimov Avazbek (30'), 1:1 Narendra Meetei (54').
Mumbai outfit Air India came back brilliantly from a 0-1 half time deficit to hold Vasco SC to a 1-1 draw in the National League at Nehru Stadium. Vasco struck in the 30.minute through Kashimov Awazbek, while substitute Narendra Meetei found the equaliser for Air India in the 54.minute.
VASCO: Rogerio Ramos, Agnelo Colaco, Denzil Coutinho, Sanjay Parte, Khogen Singh, Caetanho Pinho (Daniel Colaco), Gregory Clark, Ronaldo Da Silva, Ravi Babu, Awazbek Khoshimov, Edson Wanderley.
AIR INDIA: Yousuf Ansari, Raju Singh, Osborne D'Souza, Khambiton Singh, Henry Picardo, Tomba Singh (Taposh Ghosh), Bungo Singh (Narendra Meetei), Ratan Singh, Khalid Jamil, Anthony Fernandes (Shabir Ali Mondol).

5.National League - Kochi: FC Kochin 2-1 Churchill Brothers SC - Goals: 1:0 Jo Paul Ancheri (43'), 1:1 Francis Silveira (60'), 2:1 T.S. Anoj (87').
India's first professional club FC Kochin, continued its brilliant runs this season and defeated Churchill Brothers 2-1 in the National League match at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in Kochi. Kochin team drew the first blood through a penalty conversion by international Joe Paul Ancheri in the 43.minute and the winning goal was struck by substitute TS Anoj in the 87.minute while Francis Silveira scored for the Goans in the 60.minute.
KOCHIN: Sunday Seah, Shibu Shanmugham, Dinesh Nair, Patrick Nuku, Joe Paul Ancheri, CK Jithesh, VB Santosh (Hemanathan), IM Vijayan, Rasheedi Williams, L Suresh, Aaron Cole, MA Rajesh Kumar (TS Anoj).
CHURCHILL: Edward Ansah, Rajesh Meetei, Mahesh Gawli, Mir Farooq Hyder, Noel Wilson, Roque Baretto, Edson de Castro, Jose Colaco (Ajay Singh), Igor Shkvyrin, Francis Silveira (Somatai Shaiza), Andre Requena.

26. January

The INDIAN FOOTBALL SUPPORTERS CLUB will officially be launched at 18.30h today in London, England! The organisation is starting to get itself organised...

25. January
Millennium Cup - Final - Calcutta: Bosnia-Herzegovina 0-2 Yugoslavia - Goals: 0:1 Igor Duljaj (6'), 0:2 Igor Bogdanovic (45').
Amitabha Das Sharma reports that Yugoslavia demolished all the prophesies of a grand battle making arch-rival Bosnia-Herzegovina surrender 2-0 in the final before seizing the millennium's honour in the Sahara Cup here at the Salt Lake Stadium on Thursday.
Eventually the winner's cheque of $150,000 turned out to be an apt contribution to the outstanding performance that Yugoslavia displayed in the tournament, remaining the only unbeaten side in the meet.
Yugoslavia ensured its win in the very first session getting Igor Duljaj and Igor Bogdanovic to score in the sixth and the 45th minutes respectively. The win also validated the traditional superiority of Yugoslavia - ranked ninth in the world - which successfully thwarted the challenge from the 78th ranked Bosnians.
Yugoslavia coach Ilija Petkovic said the win was inevitable as "we are the elder brother." He was quick to add that his comment applies only to sport and football as there is no animosity between the teams which the political differences invoke. In the words of the FIFA technical committee chairman Mr. Mohammed Bin Hammam, who was present to witness the final, the greatest achievement of the tournament was having the two warring nations dissolve their hostility on the sporting field. "What football has achieved today remains an example in itself to the world as a promoter of international brotherhood."
The Bosnian reaction also befitted a sporting loser. "We lost to one of the best teams in the world," was how Bosnian coach Husnija Arapovic liked to accept the loss in the final.
Yugoslavia applied thrust from the onset and the Bosnian defence was breached in the sixth minute when Igor Duljaj relinquished his midfield slot to avail a provision inside the opposition penalty area. Duljaj, who scored the semifinal winner against Japan, repeated his feat finishing the move with a deft placement that beat the approaching Bosnian custodian, Adnan Guso. The next 10 minutes saw the Yugoslavians come close to scoring at least three times but the Bosnian goal survived the chances as the finishing remained a bit wayward, forwards Igor Bogdanovic and Vladimir Ivic missing the target from close.
The Bosnians, who had shown a mastery on counter offensives, did not reproduce their sharpness on the break as the Yugoslavian defence stood firm. The Yugoslavians showed good organisation in both the defence and the midfield. The tackles were proper and the players showed a great sense of position, and it worked effectively in blocking the opposition moves. Yugoslavia saw its hard-working midfielder Goran Trobok at his best as the Belgrade Partizan player gave an excellent show of passing and interceptions to be the most prominent among the midfielders. The first goal was scripted by Trobok and his provisions opened up the Bosian defence on more occasions than one.
The Yugoslavians, as if to ensure their good work in the first session, got the second goal in the last minute of the first session. Making it another instance of an alert midfield, left- half Jeremic Dragoliub intercepted a pass by opposition's Almedin Hota and released Bogdanovic with a brilliant through- pass. Bogdanovic did equally well in receiving the ball and beat his marker Zehruddin Kavazovic on the turn to free himself on the Bosnian goalmouth before scoring unchallenged.
Yugoslavia played a defensive game in the second session and Bosnia, except for a miss each by captain Dzelaludin Muharemovic and substitute Zeric Senad, could not prove much of a threat.
At the prize ceremony India, who crashed out at the league stage, received the Fair Play Trophy and $25,000.
YUGOSLAVIA: Zarko Lucic (Vojin Prole), Vuk Rasovic, Igor Duljaj, Ivan Ilic, Goran Trobok, Vladimir Ivic (Dejan Osmanovic), Dusan Petkovic, Boris Vaskovic, Jovan Tanasijevic, Igor Bogdanovic, Dragoljub Jeremic.
BOSNIA: Adnan Guso, Omer Joldic, Sasa Papac (Senad Zeric), Munever Rizvic, Dalibor Nedic, Asmir Ikanovic, Zehrudin Kavazovic (Milan Ozren), Almedin Hota, Dzalaludin Muharemovic, Admir Adzem, Sead Seferovic.
Referee: Rungkly Mangkol (Thailand).

24. January
Studio 2100, the event managers of the jinxed Sahara Millennium Cup football tournament, has incurred a loss of Rs. 170.000.000 for organising the mega event which was plagued by last minute withdrawals and fielding of weakened teams.
Last minute pull-outs and the absence of the promised players have put the company with a heavy financial burden, chief executive officer of Studio 2100, Ms Henna Juneja told a press conference in Calcutta.
"Despite the heavy losses, we are committed to football and will go ahead with our plans to sponsor a tournament in Bangladesh," she said.
She said that they were supposed to get roughly Rs 50.000.000 through television deals with Doordarshan and other agencies but the profits have been hardly sufficient.

23. January
Millennium Cup - Semifinal - Calcutta: Yugoslavia 1-0 Japan - Goal: 1:0 Igor Duljaj (5').
Amitabha Das Sharma reports that Yugoslavia justified its favourite status defeating Japan 1-0 in the second Sahara Cup semifinal here at the Salt Lake Stadium on Tuesday.
The path to the final was realised as Yugoslavia successfully preserved the lead it earned in the fifth minute through Igor Duljaj. With Bosnia-Herzegovina making into the final winning the first semifinal on Monday, the battle lines have been drawn for what could be dubbed as a re-match of the friendly clash for Balkan supremacy. It thus gives both the teams the best opportunity to resolve the deadlock that saw both the teams tying 1-1 in the league stage.
Going by the assertion of the Yugoslavian coach, Ilija Petkovic, who had declared the final berth for his team much ahead of the match, the ninth ranked country in the world shook off the opposition, composed of the university recruits from Japan, without much ado in the clash for the final berth on Tuesday.
The Japanese missed the services of their suspended forwardline pivot Ota Keisuke, as the finishing remained a big problem for the team. It came close to scoring the equaliser at least twice in the match. However, entering the last-four stage was the greatest tribute to the abilities of the youthful side which is here on a preparatory tour for the World universities' soccer to be held this summer.
The Yugoslavians with a professional approach gradually withdrew into a defensive shell as the opposition appeared undecided on its offensive. The European flair was evident only for a limited time as the Yugoslavians reaped an early reward and retreated into a defensive shell. The physical supremacy too worked in favour of the European nation, which muffled the comparatively slighter built players of Japan by effectively checking their speed going in for early tackles.
The Yugoslavians, at the same time, ensured a free access on the flanks with the opposition struggling to put together a cohesive approach. The very first opportunity fetched the reward which remained more a tribute to Duljaj's intelligence. Playing as a central midfielder, Duljaj received a provision from the left and, locating Japanese custodian Takahara Toshiyasa relinquishing his charge, lobbed it over to create a fine spectacle of perfection and mental alertness.
It would have been a comfortable 2-0 lead for the Yugoslavians 14 minutes later had not Vladimir Ivic - the other forward - not seen his header come off the upright with the opposition custodian thoroughly beaten. Ivic was, however, replaced by midfielder Boris Vaskovic who came in to strengthen Yugoslavia's defensive ploy.
Japan saw Hanyu Naotake and forward Fukai Masaki come closest to scoring once in the 22nd and 53rd minutes respectively but the Yugoslavian goal survived both the attempts. Naotake's lob was cleared from the goalline by stopper-back Dusan Petkovic while the Yugoslavian custodian Zarko Lucic was there to stop Masaki's tap.
YUGOSLAVIA: Zarko Lucic, Vuk Rasovic, Dusan Petkovic, Ivan Ilic; Goran Trobok, Igor Duljaj, Jovan Tanasijevic, Dragoljub Jeremic, Sasa Ilic (Vladan Kostic), Vladimir Ivic (Boris Vaskovic), Igor Bogdanovic.
JAPAN: Toshiyasu Takahara, Hirakawa Tadaaki, Mitauru Chiyotanda (Hiroshi Fujikura),Hirouki Kobayashi, Takuya Mikami, Satoshi Horinouchi, Nobumitsu Yamane, Yoshimasa Fujita (Sakai Jun), Naotake Hanyu, Keiji Yoshimura (Hideki Sekine), Masaki Fukai.
Referee: S Salerajan (Malaysia).

Note-1: The third-place playoff match at the Millennium Cup has been cancelled by the organisers. The reasons given are the last minute pullout of a number of teams and the heavy financial losses of the organisers.

22. January
Millennium Cup - Semifinal - Calcutta: Chile 0-1 Bosnia-Herzegovina - Goals: 0:1 Dzalaludin Muharemovic (75').
Amitabha Das Sharma reports that Bosnia-Herzegovina became the Latin American nemesis conquering Chile for passage to the Sahara Cup final. The spirit and technical accomplishment of the newly formed East European state overwhelmed the flamboyant Chileans 1-0 here in the first semifinal at the Salt Lake Stadium on Monday.
Captain Dzelaludin Muharemovic scored the only goal in the 75th minute realising Bosnia's win. The upset victory against world's 19th ranked nation has now raised visions of the title in the Bosnian ranks who are just a step away from the first international title.
The defeat came as shock for fancied Chile. Dubbed as the title favourite from the very beginning, the loss appeared a bitter reality for the Olympic bronze medallist. Nelson Acosta, the revered Chilean technical director in charge of the national squad for the last five years, summed up his team's defeat as the culmination of a flawed schedule which gave the teams little rest.
The Chileans were also unhappy about losing their two regular midfielders - Marco Villaseca and Cristian Uribe - owing to suspension. The Chileans argued that the organisers should have altered their approach on the suspension norm as the group league stage did not have full participation. While group IV had the full four teams, the rest of the groups had only three teams each, resulting in the disequilibrium that had the teams in the former playing a match extra.
The Bosnians too had suspension problems with defenders Omer Joldic and Asmir Ikanovic sitting out. But the team overcame the deficit without any protest and won the ticket to final with elan. The Bosnian demonstration speak of a champion's resolve as the men in white doused the Chilean fire.
Just as in the demolition of its earlier victim in Uruguay in the quarterfinals, Bosnia accomplished a fine passing game fraught with variations in formations.
Wile the Chilean midfield faltered, Bosnians were quick on the interceptions and distribution feeding the forwardline with regular provisions to keep the opposition defence constantly under pressure.
The fissures in Chilean defence became apparent as early as in the 12th minute but Mirsad Beslija - the golden boy in Bosnia's quarterfinal win - slipped while trying to finish a Almedin Hota minus. Next it was the chance for forward Muharemovic in the 24th minute but he headed wide a provision from Munever Rizuic.
The first session ended goalless with Chileans seeing its midfielder Andrez Oroz and forward Sebastian Gonzalez muffing two sharp counters down the flank.
The second session too saw the Bosnians enjoying an upper-hand over their Latin America rivals with repeated incursions through the flanks.
The Chilean goal survived a close shave in the 70th minute as it World Cup custodian Marcelo Ramirez had saved a fine header by Milan Ozren with a diving effort in the 70th minute. But Muharemovic made no mistake in finishing a minus from Hota in the 75th minute to see the Chilean citadel falling for the first time in the tournament. The Chilean effort for an equaliser did not materialise and the match saw the Bosnians accomplishing another successful effort.
CHILE: Marcelo Ramirez, Cristian Alvarez, David Henriquez, Alex von Schwedler, Moises Villarroel, Rafael Olarra, Rodrigo Melendez, Andres Oroz, Fernando Martel (Marco Olea), Hector Tapia (Fransisco Arrue), Sebastian Gonzalez.
BOSNIA: Adnan Guso, Sasa Papac, Munever Rizuic, Dalibur Nedic, Almedin Hota, Zehrudin Kanazovic, Dzelaludin Muharemovic, Milan Ozren (Sewad Zeric), Admir Adzem, Mirsad Beslija (Nihad Sadibasic).
Referee: Rungkly Mangkol (Thailand).

21. January
Millennium Cup - Quarterfinal - Calcutta: Jordan 0-4 Japan - Goals: 0:1 Yoshimasa Fujita (31'), 0:2 Ota Keisuke (54'), 0:3 Keiji Yoshimara (58'), 0:4 Hideki Sekine (67').
Amitabha Das Sharma reports that Japan celebrated its entry into the Sahara Cup semifinals with a glut of goals beating Jordan 4-0 in the last quarterfinal match here at Salt Lake Stadium on Sunday. Japan will now meets Yugoslavia in the second semifinal to be played on Tuesday.
Playing its customary fast paced game, Japan excelled in its attacks finishing in four out of the six positive chances that the Asian champion earned. Jordan failed to provide the right opposition and succeeded only in some forays through the wings in the initial session of the match but the moves met premature deaths as the Japan defence - especially the stoppers Mitsura Chiyotanda and Koyabashi - stood to the occasions throttling the attempts by the Jordanian attackers Badran Al- Shaqran and Hatem M. Aqel.
Japan rested its dribbling maestro in forward Fukai Masaki and preferred to have tall Ota Keisuke as the pivot around whom all the attack built up. But the first break in the match came through midfielder Fujita Yoshimasa in the 31st minute. Facing difficulty in breaching the tall Jordan defence-line, Yoshimasa successfully tried a long ranger from around 35 yards intercepting a defensive clearance before unleashing a powerful right-footed pile driver that gave no chance to the Jordan custodian, Ahmad Al-Khazaleh.
Jordan's only hope of breaching the Japanese citadel came in the 36th minute when Rafat Ali Jaber intercepted an intended back- pass by Yoshimasa but before Jaber could make an attempt the Japanese goalkeeper saved the day, charging in for a timely clearance. Jordan, which has scaled the likes of the mighty Romanians in the league phase, found the Japanese combined university team too hot to handle, conceeding three more goals in the second session. The tentativeness in its offence and midfield, as feared by its Argentine coach Ricado Carugati before the match, appeared to be coming true as Jordan faltered in its offensive giving Japan all the freedom to scheme and implement its attacks.
Keisuke played his role to perfection heading in a corner by Keiji Yoshimura in the 54th minute. Keeping up the thrusts on the flanks, Japan got the third goal in the 58th minute when Yoshimura finished a brilliant move down the left that saw Mikami Takuya stealing deep into the Jordan penalty area before essaying a measured minus for his colleague to finish.
Frustration mounted in the Jordan ranks and the players involved in rough tackles incurring cautions from Indian referee Binod Kumar Singh. The Middle East team saw the greatest perpetrator in defender Hassouneh Sheikh Qasem who collected simultaneous yellow cards for foul and dissent to be given marching orders in the 65th minute. Given a greater space to play with the opposition down to 10 men, Japan enhanced its tally to 4-0 in the 67th minute having Sekine Hideki - substituting Yoshimasa midway through the second session - volley home a cross from the dynamic left flank by Takuya.
The win will serve as a great morale booster for the youthful team from Japan which takes on the fancied Yugoslavs after a day's break.
JORDAN: Jamal A Abu Abed, Adnan A Al-Shubait, Hassouneh Sheikh Qasem, Hatem M Aqel, Rafat Ali Jaber, Haitham H Semrin (Rateb Al-Awadat), Faisal I Suleiman (Ghanem Y Hamarsheh), Haitham Al-Shboul, Muhammed Mahadeen, Ahmad Al-Khazaleh, Badran Al-Shaqran (Mu’Yed Mansour).
JAPAN: Toshiyasu Takahara (Testu Sugiyama), Kobayashi Sugiyama, Mitsuru Chiyotanda (Daiki Iwamasa), Hirakawa Tadaaki, Takuya Mikami, Satochi Horinouchi, Naotake Hanyu, Yoshimasa Fujita (Hideki Sekine), Keiji Yoshimara, Nobumitsu Yamane, Ota Kesuke.
Referee: Binod Kumar Singh (India).

20. January
Millennium Cup - Quarterfinal - Goa: Yugoslavia 2-0 Romania - Goals: 1:0 Sasa Ilic (30'), 2:0 Igor Bogdanovic (45').
Yugoslavia easily beat their neighbours Romania 2-0 in the quarterfinals of the Millennium Cup at the Nehru Stadium, Fatorda in Goa. They could have won by a much bigger margin but failed to score more, missing even a penalty in the process. Yugoslavia scored both in the first half. Captain Ilic Sasa scored in the 30.minute, while Igor Bogdanovic added another in injury time of the first half.
YUGOSLAVIA: Zarko Lucic, Milivoje Cirkovic (Boris Vaskovic), Ivan Ilic, Vuk Rasovic, Dusan Petkovic, Dragoijub Jeremic, Sasa Ilic, Dulaj Igor, Goran Trobok (Dejan Radenovic), Igor Bogdanovic, Vladimir Ivic (Vladan Kostic).
ROMANIA: Eugen Anghel, Sergiu Bar, Alin Chibulcutean, Sergiu Costin, Remus Gilmencea, Aurel Zlati (Raul Marincau), Decebal Ghiara, Imre Temfli (Ioan Luca), Florin Beraru (Liviu Zahriue), Marius Sasu, Lucian Sanmantean.
Referee: Balu Sundaraj (India).

Millennium Cup - Quarterfinal - Calcutta: Chile 2-0 Iceland - Goals: 1:0,2:0 Sebastian Gonzalez (37',50').
Amitabha Das Sharma Reports Chile fixed up a semifinal date with Bosnia Herzegovina on Monday beating Iceland 2-0 in the second quarterfinal of the Sahara Cup football tournament here at the Salt Lake stadium on Saturday. Striker Sebastian Gonzalez turned the hero of the evening scoring a goal in each of the two sessions.
It was late into the first session that Chileans could gain some hold over the midfield action. Marco Villaseca, playing the central schemer, mobilised the flanks with upfield provisions. The flank attacks fetched dividends soon as the Chilean outside left forward released his central colleague Sebastian Gonzalez with a minus. Gonzalez was prompt to volley but the crosspiece came in the way in the 36th minute.
As Chile retreived the ball following the clearence, right half Rodrigo Melendez sent a through for Gonzalez. Gonzalez shielded his marker in Iceland stopper-back G. Jonsson and receiving the ball finished with a right-footed half volley in the 37th minute.
The second session saw the Chilens with renewed resolve. It was the another gem of a finishing by Gonzalez, who for the first time was included in the starting XI, as he complemented a short cross from the right by Fernando Martel before diverting the ball past the Iceland goalkeeper G. Gunnleifsson with a sharp volley in the 50th minute to give his team the 2-0 cushion.
With Iceland falling behind unable to call the performance it had shown initially in the first session, Chile slowed down the pace of the match. Iceland tried a late surge but both its striker captain Gudmundsson and the other forward S. Olafsson fared miserably with their finishing. The scoreline scripted by Chile thus endured.
CHILE: Marcelo Ramirez, David Henriquez, Alex von Schwedler, Rafael Olarra, Moises Villarroel, Marco Villaseca, Rodrigo Melendez (Cristian Alvarez), Cristian Uribe (Francisco Arrue, 81st), Fernando Martel (Mauricio Rojas), Sebastian Gonzalez, Hector Tapia.
ICELAND: Gunnieifur Gunnleifsson, Indridi Sigurdsson (Veigar Gunnarsson), Bjarni Thorsteinsson, Sverrir Sverrisson, Gunnanlaugur Jonsson, Clafur Orn Bjarnasson, Sigurvin Olafsson (Hreidar Bjarnason), Thorhallur Orn Hinriksson, Tryggvi Gudmundsson, Gudmundur Benediktsson (Saevar Gislason), Gylfi Einarsson.
Referee: Hassan Marshoud (Jordan).

Note-1: The AIFF executive committee meeting in Bangalore on February 22 will decide the future of India coach Islam Akhmedov. This was announced by AIFF president Das Munshi in Calcutta. Das Munshi stated that he was happy with the way India played at the Millennium Cup, especially against Uruguay but it was very unlikely that Akhmedov would coach the senior team in future. If Akhmedov would remain with the juniors is not clear yet as his contract ends in March.

18. January
Millennium Cup - Quarterfinal - Kochi: Uruguay 2-3 Bosnia-Herzegovina (golden Goal) - Goals: 1:0 Daniel Pereira (12'), 1:1 Zehrudin Kavazovic (40'), 2:1 Juan Segales (59'), 2:2 Dzelaudin Muharemovic (83'), 2:3 Mirsad Beslija (97').
Antony John reports a golden goal by substitute Mirsad Beslija in the seventh minute of extra time helped Bosnia-Herzgovina defeat Uruguay 3-2 after both teams were tied 2-2 at the end of regulation time in the first quarter-final of the Sahara Cup Football, here, on Thursday evening.
Uruguay's Pereira Daniel (12th minute) and Juan Segales (59th) scored for their side, while for Bosnia the scorers were Dzehrudin Kavazovic (40th), Zelaudin Muharemovic (83rd) and Mirsad Beslija (7th minute of extra-time).
In an evenly contested match, Uruguay took the lead in the 12th minute through Daniel which was equalised by Bosnia's Kavazovic in the 40th minute. Uruguay once again took the lead through Juan in the 59th minute, but it was neutralised by Muharemovic. In extra time, much against the run of play, Beslija who came in for Milan Ozren, brought cheers into the camp when he struck the 'golden goal.'
The winning goal emanated from the left flank, where Almedin Hota after trapping the ball sent in a cross into the box where Dzelaudin collected the ball and passed it to Beslija who dodged past a defender and banged into the net with goalkeeper Monserrat Diego out of his position.
Bosnia now move to Kolkota for the semifinals on January 22 where they will take on the winners of the quarter-final match between Chile and Iceland.
URUGUAY: Diego Monserrat, Nestor Cardozo, Antonio Esmerode, Alexandro Umpierrez, Mario Gastan,Marcelo Dapueto, Marcelo Mansilla, Daniel Pereira, Victor Abelenda, Juan Segales, Ricardo Varela.
BOSNIA: Adnan Guso, Zehrudin Kavazovic, Sead Seferovic, Munever Rizvic, Dalibor Nedic, Asmir Ikanovic, Omer Joldic, Milan Ozren (Mirsad Beslija), Dzelaudin Muharemovic, Admir Adzem, Almedin Hota.

17. January
Millennium Cup - Group D - Calcutta: Chile 2-0 Uzbekistan - Goals: 1:0 Marcos Villaseca (41'), 2:0 Rodrigo Meléndez (86').
Dhiman Sarakr reports that if Chile's attack epitomised Latin American flamboyance, their defence showed the frailty associated with that continent's football. Goals in the 41st minute of each half by Marco Villaseca and Sebastian Gonzales took the red shirts to the top of group 4 and into the quarter-finals of the Sahara Cup, but the all-win record could have been marred had Uzbekistan's finishing not lacked finesse.
With strikers Hector Tapia and Fernando Martel in sync with the middle third - the only change coach Nelson Acosta made to today's starting line-up was supplanting Cristian Alvarez with Moises Villarroel - Chile showed the kind of verve and variety South Americans are famous for.
Francisco Arrue played in the hole behind the orthodox targetmen and with Ivan Zamorano look-alike Rodrigo Melendez and Cristian Uribe opening the flanks, Chile often outnumbered the Uzbek defence.
Santiago Morning's Martel shot a long ball from Uribe into goalie Kaharov Oleg early in the match. Uzbekistan then managed to contain the probing runs and swift, short passes that transformed into a typical Chilean build-up for some time and even showed a few tricks of their own.
Following a free-kick and a diagonal ball from the right, Uzbekistan right-half Annamatov Bahadir headed down for Klikunov Aleksey. A midfielder with the Dustlik Club, Aleksey's low shot missed the near post, but not by much. Then, skilful forward Zhadnov Alkesey couldn't control Nikitov Yuri's deft lob from the near the penalty area.
Just when it seemed Uzbekistan would contain their fancied opponents in the first half, Chile struck with a goal that showed their class. Tapia's short pass intended for Villaseca was a touch short outside the right-edge of the 18-yard box.
The Colo Colo central midfielder won the ball and, almost in the same motion, played square to Arrue. Villaseca's inside turn and a short run into the penalty area had the Uzbek back-four split wide open. Timing his run to perfection, Villaseca met Arrue's forward pass and slotted home with a grounder past Oleg's left. Three minutes later, after another set of crisp, forward passes, Uribe curled one in from the left but the ball skimmed Martel's head and went out.
Chile's second goal came when their back line was under pressure. Off a mispass in the middle third, the ball rolled Rodrigo Nunez's way. He immediately despatched it to Melendez on the left. A first-time right-foot jab found Gonzales, who was running in from the right. When the substitute forward scored with a right-footer, the Uzbeks seemed clueless as to what hit them. But though the frontline was on song, the defence stayed off-key. At least twice, the Uzbeks had a clear look at the goal. For the first time in this competition, debonair goalkeeper Marcelo Ramirez was beaten but Zhadnov Aleksey's volley thudded into the horizontal. Earlier, central defender Zakutilin Evgeniy couldn't keep a header on target.
Central defenders David Henriquez and Alex von Schwedler didn't always show the kind of understanding their job demands. Acosta has some worrying to do about that and the growing numbers of players on one caution.
CHILE: Marcelo Ramirez, Moises Villaroel, David Henriquez, Alex Von Schwedler, Rafael Olarra, Marco Villaseca, Rodrigo Melendez, Cristian Uribe (Andres Oroz), Francisco Arrue (Sebastian Gonzalez), Hector Tapia, Fernando Martel (Rodrigo Nunez).
UZBEKISTAN: Oleg Kaharov, Shukra Kurbanov, Leonid Koshelev, Asror Alikulov, Evgeny Zakutilin, Otabek Primatov, Aleksey Klikunov, Bahadir Annamatov, Yuri Nikitov, Aleksey Zhdanov (Timur Kapadze), Oybek Usmankhodjaev (Shukhrat Mirkholdarshaev).
Referee: Mr S Salerajan (Malaysia).

Millennium Cup - Group D - Calcutta: Japan 2-0 Bahrain - Goals: 1:0 Ota Keisuke (39'), 2:0 Hideki Sekine (79').
Saibal Bose reports that Japan, quite expectedly, entered the quarter-finals of the Sahara Cup as the second-placed team from Group 4 with a not-very-confident 2-0 win over Bahrain at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan tonight.
Ota Keisuke and Sekine, who replaced Fukai Masaki in the 78th minute, scored on either side of the break. Japan now face Jordan in the quarter-finals here on January 21. Bahrain, after their commendable showing against Chile on Monday, needed just the right guidance from German coach Wolfgang Sidka for doing the correct things. However, they received an early setback wen dependable defender Arif Razak had to be taken out on a stretcher following a clash in the sixth minute.
Japan went into their last league match tonight knowing a draw would see them through to the quarter-finals. Understandably, they were taking it easy, particularly against the none-too-strong opponents in Bahrain. Japan may not exactly have been complacent, but were certainly not charged up.
It needed a brilliant 30-yard free-kick from Bahrain midfielder Anwar Yousuf to jar the university selection team from the Land of Rising Sun into activity. The Yousuf shot, taken in the 19th minute, dipped after crossing the wall and banged against the Japan cross-piece.
The shot shook the Japan citadel and their relaxed mood as well. Not that they attacked with vengeance after that, but the defence at least woke up to take control before things went out of hand.
Japan did come up with a few moves after that, the goal-bound one coming in the 39th minute. It was the energetic and flexible Fukai Masaki once again who put the ball into the Bahrain box from the left. Yamane Nabumitsu was in perfect position for it. Nabumitsu's shot was padded away by goalkeeper Hamad Khalifa, playing his first match, but only as far as Ota Keisuke just a couple of yards away. Keisuke maintained a calm head while slotting home. Two minutes later, Masaki got past the defence for the umpteenth time in this tournament, but lost possession soon after reaching the Bahrain box.
The Japan confidence was high as Nobumitsu received a gilt-edged chance to increase the lead in the 44th minute. He was clear in the box with only the goalkeeper to beat. However, the shot landed in Khalifa's arms.
The second half failed to bear fruits early as both the teams could not utilise the opportunities that came their way.
However, with the match almost dead, Japan consolidated ith most of the Bahrain defenders way up. In the injury time Saito, who substituted Ota Keisuke, ran away to the right, crossed to Sekine, another substitute, on the left. Sekine found the target unchallenged. Other moves went abegging after the break. Bahrain's Mohammad Jafar let one fly over from close early after break.
In the 70th minute, Japan's Chiyotanda Mitsuru did an encore. He let the fairly comfortabe chance go waste when he hit it over from 10 yards outside the Bahrain box. Six minutes later, Masaki again left the Bahrain defenders in his wake, streaking past them, only to be dispossessed at the end.
JAPAN: Toshiyasu Takahara, Hiroyuki Kobayashi, Mitsuru Chiyotanda, Hirakawa Taddaki, Takuya Mikami, Satochi Horinouchi, Naokata Hanyu, Yoshimasa Fijita (Kenji Yoshimura), Nobumitsu Yamane, Masaki Fukai (Hideki Sekine), Ota Keisuke (Jun Sakai).
BAHRAIN: Hamad Khalifa, Basel Sultan, A Aziz Saleh, Arif A Razak (Faizal A Aziz Mohammed), Ali A Amer, Mahmood Reyadh, Ghasi Majed (Salman Isa), Anwar Yousuf, Adel Abbas, Nadera Jaleel, Mohammed Jaffar.
Referee: Mr BK Singh (India).

16. January
Millennium Cup - Group A - Kochin: Yugoslavia 4-1 Bangladesh - Goals: 0:1 Firoz Hussain (6'), 1:1 Sasa Ilic (19',38'), 3:1 Vuk Rasocic (80'), 4:1 Goran Trobok (89').
Anthony John reports Bangladesh stunned Yugoslavia in the sixth minute with a counter attack goal, but Yugoslavia recovered and romped home to a 4-1 win. Bangladesh, were beaten, but not disgraced in a Group II match of the Sahara Cup Football Tournament at Kochi's Nehru Stadium, on Tuesday.
The result enables Yugoslavia top the group, leaving Bosnia-Herzgovina at second spot while Bangladesh with two defeats finish at the bottom of the three-team group. The Bosnians, however, have the advantage of staying in Kochi for their quarter-final clash with Uruguay, winners of Group II in Thursday's match. Yugoslavia travel to Goa to take on Rumania in their quarter-final.
Bangladesh shot into an early lead and enjoyed a dream for a whole 12 minutes before Yugoslavia, hot favourites for the title, drew level in the 19th minute.
Firoz Hussain put the Asian side ahead when the Yugoslavs appeared to hesitate for an off-side, but skipper Ilic Sasa scored two goals to haul the East Europeans back by the 38th minute. Rasovik Vuk and Goran Trobok scored in the last ten minutes to swell the scoreline after the Bangladesh side had done enough to win the admiration of the crowd with a courageous though pragmatic display yet again.
Bangladesh shot into the lead in the seventh minute when Hussain went through unchallenged to slot past Stevanovic Sasa from Mohammad Shaifur's pass, as the Yugoslav defence appeared to await an off-side call.
Ilic Sasa drew level in the 19th minute, accepting Cirkovic Milivoje's cross and scored a carbon copy of the goal in the 38th minute - Milivoje paving way in similar fashion for the Sasa's coup de grace.
YUGOSLAVIA: Sasa Stefanovic, Vuk Rasovic, Milivoje Cirkovic, Igor Duljaj, Goran Trobok, Sasa Ilic, Vladimir Ivic, Dusan Petkovic, Milos Kruscic, Igor Bogdanovic, Milan Belic.
BANGLADESH: Aminul Haque, Firoz Hussain, Hassan Al Mamun, Motiur Munna, Iqbal Hossain, Shaifur Rahman, Alfaz Ahmed, Zulfiqar Mahamud, Monwar Hossen, Rajani Kanta Barman, Mohammed Sujon.

Millennium Cup - Group C - Goa: Jordan 2-0 Hongkong - Goals: 1:0 Badran Al-Shaqran (49'), 2:0 Haitham Al Shboul (84').
Report coming...
JORDAN: Ahmad Khazaleh, Jamal Abu Abed, Adnam Ahuaibhat, Hassouneh Sheikh Qasei (Sufian Daoud), Hatem Aqel, Rafat Ali Jaber, Haitham Sermin, Faisal Sulieman, Haitham Al-Shboul, Ghanem Hamarsheh (Badran Shaqran), Muhanned Mahadeen (Tateb Al Awadat).
HONGKONG: Chan Ka Ki, Lee Chi Ho, Yeung Kin Wai, Feng Jihi, Kwok Man Tik, Cheung Sai Ho (Szeto Man Chun ), Yiu Hiok Man, Lo Kai Wah, Wong Chi Keung (Chan Ho Man), Lee Wai Man (Poon Yiu Cheuk).

15. January
Millennium Cup - Group B - Kochin: India 0-3 Uruguay - Goals: 0:1 Juan Selages (38'), 0:2 Ricardo Varela (58'), 0:3 Wilson Martirena (74').
Uruguay demolished Indian resistance in the second half in a Group II match of the Sahara Cup at Kochi’s Nehru Stadium on Monday.
The South Americans, who were caused some anxiety in the first half by a home side fighting to salvage some pride after a dismal defeat against Iceland, kept their reputation intact with a 3-0 win to emerge winners of Group II and book a place in the knock-out quarter-finals. With this victory, Uruguay top the Group with Iceland finishing second in the three-team group after beating the Indians 3-0 on Saturday. The South Americans had edged past Iceland in the group opener.
At half-time, India had done much to win the hearts of a healthy crowd drawn to the contest by a reduction of ticket rates.
The hosts appeared to learn from their defensive mistakes in the disaster against Iceland and even took the game to 16-time Copa America champions even though they trailed by a goal at the interval.
Juan Segales put the Uruguayans ahead in the 38th minute after his bench began to wear anxious looks.
The Indians, unperturbed by the reverse, showed fine spirit in closing down the Uruguayans man for man, even threatening the rival goal in the remainder of the half. They kept up the tempo after the change of ends, coming desperately close to scoring with 10 minutes of the re-start before being undermined by a faltering defence.
Ricardo Varela increased the lead for the Uruguayans in the 58th minute before Virender undid an adept display by conceding needless handball outside the area. Sloppy organization in the Indian defensive wall enabled substitute Wilson Martirena to bury the ball in the net in the 74th minute to the dismay of a hitherto enthusiastic crowd.
The first half saw an improved Indian performance after a dismal defeat against Iceland on Saturday. The home side's defence held firm, thwarting the Uruguayan attacking trio of Alexanda Victor, Mansilla Marcello and Juan Segales as the early minutes ticked by.
Virender Singh in goal, putting in yet another lion-hearted performance kept the vulnerable Indian goal intact, but home side must be credited for denying the South Americans space to launch fluent offensives.
The Indian line held firm, encouraged by the occasional glitter up front when IM Vijayan thrilled his home fans, albeit fleetingly.
Islam Akhmedov, the India's Uzbek coach retained faith in the older members of the squad - Bruno Coutinho and Carlton Chapman - but it was only a matter of time before the young Alvito D'Cunha came in for the last named.
Things looked good for the hosts, battling for pride while the Uruguayans appeared to become a little impatient.
The crowd were then brought to their feet when a cross from the right by Renedy Singh was all but away by Vijayan who just failed to head into Martin Barlocco's goal in the 33rd minute.
As all too often happens in soccer, India were punished five minutes later when Marcello's cross from the right was glanced into the path of Juan Segales who deflected high into the net.
India responded in spirited fashion, as Vijayan tested Martin with a menacing left-footer before skipper Basudeb Mondal shot wide from 18 yards but the Uruguayans were denied a second goal by a spectacular save by Virender on the stroke of half-time.
Ancheri, peforming manfully as libero, erred for once but Valeri Ricardo saw his shot shot deflected over the goal by the Indian goalkeeper.
INDIA: Virender Singh, Mahesh Gawli, Ratan Singh, Jo Paul Ancheri, Hardip Sangha (James Singh), Renedy Singh, Basudeb Mondal, Noel Wilson, Carlton Chapman (Alvito D'Cunha), IM Vijayan, Bruno Coutinho (Bijen Singh).
URUGUAY: Diego Monserrat, Antonio Esmerode, Mario Gastan, Marcelo Dapueto, Alejandro, Ricardo Varela, Daniel Pereira, Marcello Mansilla, Victor Abelenda, Juan Selages, Nestor Cardozo.
Referee: Deshapriya (Sri Lanka).

Millennium Cup - Group D - Calcutta: Chile 2-0 Bahrain - Goals: 1:0 Hector Tapia (29'), 2:0 Fernando Martel (80').
Amitabha Das Sharma reports Chile scaled an overtly defensive Bahrain 2-0 in a Group IV league match to almost ensure a quarterfinal spot in the Sahara Cup football tournament here at the Salt Lake Stadium on Monday.
Having beaten Japan in its first match on Saturday, Chile won its second match to net six points and steer clear on the top of the four-team league table. Japan and Uzbekistan are tied in the second spot at three points from two matches each. Bahrain, losing both its matches, has drawn a blank so far.
In the match today, Bahrain set itself in a markedly defensive mould, congesting the midfield with six men while keeping three in the deep-defence with an aim to gag its accomplished opponent. The Latin American team, which has shown to be a late starter, took time to shape its attacks allowing the opponent to keep its goal intact till late in the first session.
The apparent chinks in the midfield organisation made the Chilean attacks look haphazard initially. Encouraged by the early hesitancy in the opposition ranks, Bahrain tried some adventure in the Chilean zone through its lone attacker in Yusuf Aamer Al Sadi. And the best one could see of the Bahrain attack was in the ninth minute when inside right-half Faisal Aziz Mohammad found himself released inside the Chile box on a short through pass. But the suddenness of the situation seemed to dazzle the Bahrain medio, who shot straight into Chile's World Cup custodian, Marcelo Ramirez to squander the opportunity.
The Chileans, with the midfield gaining rhythm, extended their grasp on the proceedings gradually and by the 25th minute the Latin American flair was in full bloom.
CHILE: Marcelo Ramirez, Cristian Alvarez (Rodrigo Nunez), David Henriquez, Alex von Schwedler, Rafael Olarra, Marco Villaseca, Rodrigo Melendez, Cristian Uribe (Moises Villarroel), Francisco Arrue (Sebastian Gonzales), Hector Tapia, Fernando Martel.
BAHRAIN: A Rahman A Karim, Ali A Amer, Arif A Razak, Abdulla Rahman, Basel Sultan, Faisal A Aziz Mohamad, Khaled Abdulla, A Rehman Karim, Ghazi Majed, Anwar Yusuf (Yousuf Khamees), Adel Abbas (Salman Isa), Yusuf A Ammer.
Referee: PK Bose (India).

Note-1: The Telegraph reports from Calcutta that Mridul Banerjee, who had coached the Mohammedan Sporting football team for seven months in 1998, is back at the helm there. Banerjee, who had quit after the club's disappointing outing in the 1998 Bordoloi Trophy in Guwahati, said he was "very excited" about the assignment. "There is a new enthusiasm in the club, and a desire to really do well," said Banerjee, whose first assigment will be in the National League second tier, expected to begin in the second week of February. Practice has already begun.

14. January
Millennium Cup - Group A - Kochin: Yugoslavia 1-1 Bosnia-Herzegovina - Goals: 0:1 Mirsad Beslija (75'), 1:1 Dusan Petkovic (86').
Antony John reports in a match of blistering pace, Yugoslavia and Bosnia-Herzegovina drew 1-1 in Group I of the Sahara Cup at Kochi’s Nehru Stadium, here on Sunday.
With much attention rendered to the first-ever meeting between the two nations, the match assumed importance, days earlier, and for the few thousand fans to turn up on the weekend holiday, the contest provided maybe, the tournament’s first quality match.
Either side missed a penalty and spurned chances; and the honour of scoring fell to substitute Mirsad Beslija, who put Bosnia ahead with a shot from 25 yards that gave Lucic Zarko no chance in the Yugoslav goal in the 75th minute.
However, Yugoslavia, seemingly destined to lose with a spate of missed chances, split honours when Petkovic Dusan equalized with just four minutes to go from a free-kick that took a deflection and entered courageous Adnan Guso's goal.
With the match a mere five minutes old, Bosnia earned a penalty awarded by Malaysian referee Halim Abdul Hamid when Dusan Petrovic brought down Almedin Hota, but skipper Dzelaludin Muheramovic produced damp squib that went to the right of the goal.
Yugoslavia, who enjoyed the better possession, then wrested the initiative, but Guso stood firm with saves to keep the rampaging Yugoslavs at bay, helped to a certain extent by the waywardness of strikers Osmanovic Dejan and Ilic Sasa.
Yugoslovia continued in similar vein in the second half and missed a penalty themselves when skipper Sasa drew a great save from Guso.
It were the Bosnians, who erupted into joy after substitute Beslija struck and it seemed that Yugoslavia would fight a vain battle against destiny, as they came desperately close to scoring so often as the minutes ticked by.
With Bosnia heading towards a historic win, honours and points were deservingly split when Dusan struck from 30 yards.
YUGOSLAVIA: Zarko Lucic, Vuk Rasovic, Milivoje Cirkovic, Igor Duljaj, Goran Trobok, Dejan Osmanovic, Dejan Radenovic , Sasa Ilic, Vladimir Ivic, Dusan Petkovic, Jovan Transijevic, Igor Bogdanovic, Vladan Kostic, Dragoljub Jeremic.
BOSNIA: Adnan Guso, Tomer Joldic, Asmir Ikanovic, Munever Dizvic, Dalibor Nedic, Mirzet Krupinac, Almedin Hota, Zehrudin Kavazovic, Dzelaudin, Admir Adzem, Sead Seferovic.
Referee: Halim Abdul Hamid (Malaysia).

Millennium Cup - Group C - Goa: Romania 4-2 Hongkong - Goals: 1:0 Liviu Zahariu (4'), 1:1,2:2 Kwok Yue Hung (22',45'), 2:1 Marius Sasu (23'), 3:2 Lucian Sanmantean (59'), 4:2 Ioan Luca (63').
A friend reports from Goa that two quick goals in the second session helped Rumania to virtually qualify for the quarterfinals after registering a convincing 4-2 victory against Hongkong in an exciting match of the Sahara Cup, played at Nehru Stadium, Fatorda. Rumania scored through Liviu Zahaviu (4.minute), Marius Sasu (23.minute), Lucian Sanmantean (59.minute) and Ioan Luca (62.minute). Hongkong twice equalised through their mercurial striker Kwok Yue Hung who scored a brace in the 22. and 45.minute of play.
ROMANIA: Eugen Anghel, Bar Sergiu, Alin Chibuleutean, Costin Sergiu, Remus Galmencea, Bolfa Dan Vasile (Decebal Gheara), Ioan Luca (Emilian Hulubei), Aurelian Zlati, Marius Sasu, Lucian Sanmantean, Liviu Zahriue (Paul Florea).
HONGKONG: Xiao Gyoji, Lee Chi Ho (Kwok Man Tik), Ng Wai Chiu, Chan Ho Man, Yeung Ching Kwong (Lee Wai Man), Chan Chi Hong, Chan Wai Ho, Kwok Yue Hung, Poon Yiu Cheuk, Chung Kin Hei Jason (Chan Chi Hong), Szeto Man Chun.
Referee: AM Yapa (Sri Lanka).

13. January
Millennium Cup - Group B - Kochin: India 0-3 Iceland - Goals: 0-1,0-2,0-3 Tryggvi Gudmundsson (44',52',69').
Antony John reports Iceland left India's Sahara Cup ambitions in the cold with a crushing 3-0 victory in Group II at Kochi’s Nehru Stadium on Saturday.
The man to sink Indian hopes and hearts was midfielder Tryggvi Gudmundsson, who slammed in a hat-trick, helped in some measure by pathetic defending by the hosts, who earned the wrath of the largest crowd of some 10,000 who booed the home side off the pitch.
Gudmundsson struck in the 44th, 52nd and 69th minute to complete a comprehensive victory for the island nation from the North Atlantic, dispelling any notions that the hot and humid conditions here would stifle the visitors.
Iceland collect three points after an opening match defeat to Uruguay and given the subdued nature of India's challenge, should make the quarter-finals from the three-team group.
India's hopes to go into the second half on level terms and hope the visitors get exhausted seemed to be fulfilled, but Iceland knocked a whole lot of stuffing out of the home side's resolve.
Gudmundsson struck with half time beckoning, as a faltering Indian defence stood transfixed and waiting for an off-side call after the wall blocked a free kick.
Although the blow was cruel for the hosts, they played with little inspiration and purpose with experienced hands Bruno Coutinho, IM Vijayan and Carlton Chapman looking listless.
Hardip Sangha showed verve and promise on the left, but little control and it was a stout display by skipper Basudeb Mondal and namesake Dipak, who kept the Icelanders at bay.
Not for long however, and after shooting into the lead, Iceland stuck again through Gudmundsson, who created a goal out of nothing in the 52nd minute with a long ranger. Things reached comical proportions for the hosts when an intended back-pass by Dipak Mondal went horribly wrong and Gudmundsson accepted the gift with glee.
Fresh legs came close to providing India some solace, but Alvito D'Cunha and Bijen Singh all but brought down Iceland goalkeeper Thorgeirsson’s citadel in the dying minutes.
INDIA: Virender Singh, Mahesh Gawli, Dipak Mondal, Jo Paul Ancheri, Hardip Sangha, Basudeb Mondal, Noel Wilson, Renedy Singh, Carlton Chapman (Bijen Singh), IM Vijayan, Bruno Coutinho (Alvito D'Cunha).
ICELAND: Fjalar Thorgeirsson, Indrini Sigurdsson, Bjarni Thorsteinsson, Sverrir Sverrisson, Gunnlaugur Jonsson, Ólafur Bjarnason, Sigurvin Olafsson, Thórhallur Hinriksson, Tryggvi Gudmundsson (Hreidar Bjarnason), Gudmundur Benediktsson (Helgi Danielsson), Gylfi Einarsson.
Referee: GC Deshapriya (Sri Lanka).

Millennium Cup - Group D - Calcutta: Chile 1-0 Japan - Goals: 1:0 Hector Tapia (34').
Saibal Bose reports from Calcutta that this is not quite the type of football seen in India. Organised moves through short passes and then a sudden burst of speed. The South American way of soccer came to the Yuba Bharati Krirangan after a long time when Chile faced the youthful Japan in a Group IV league match of the Sahara Cup tonight. Japan were good, but Chile were more experienced. The Latin Americans took about 10 minutes to settle down, allowing Japan the first corner as well as the first move. After that, it was Chile all the way.
Although Chile won 1-0, through a 34th minute Hector Tapia goal, it does not quite show the latin American side's domination.
The weaving game of patterns that has become synonymous with Latin soccer, was evident in the Chile game, under the floodlights. However, once again, the Kolkata fans stayed away once again proving clubs are more important than the game in this football-mad city.
The first eventful happening of the game was a caution to Chile defender David Henriquez. He was trying to stop Fukai Masaki, the Japan dangerman who is proving to be the star of this group. In fact, Fukai did slip past a couple of Chilean defenders in the 18th minute, but could not advance too far. A minute later, Tapia was charging towards the Japan goal. He managed to beat goalkeeper Takahara Toshiyasu, but the his shot was not on target. The Chilean moves were mainly initiated in heir half by Cristian Alvarez on the right. The ball angled to the right where Cristian Uribe could take charge. One such move in the 26th minute almost fetched a goal, as Uribe's angled right-footer went wide.
A similar Uribe shot in the 11th minute had gone out after hitting Takahara's hand.The goal followed somewhat similar pattern in the 34th, but there was a more comple move at the top of the Japan box. Fernando Martel moved to the left with the ball, centred it for Moises Villarroel, who headed it towards Tapia. The talented 23-year-old striker who plays for Perugia, chested nicely and banged home to the right of a diving Takahara. The script was just right.
Japan did make a few stray attempts in the first half, particularly a Yoshimuro pile-driver which went wide. Then, Fukai, who was boxed into a hole for almost the entire game by Villarroel ad Alvarez, managed to beat his shadows and slip past the defence. In fact, he beat three defenders before Alvarez cleared for a corner.
Japan made a much better presentation in the second half, but it was a case of not believing in themselves.
Thrice, they managed to move clear of the Chilean defence but fumbled at the end. Ota Keisuke latched on to the ball at the top of the box, but shot too early, making it ineffective. Similarly, Hanyu hit in hurry from a melee and Fukai's attempt off the rebound was wide.
CHILE: Marcelo Ramirez, Christian Alverez, David Henriquez, Alex von Schwedler, Rafael Olarra, Marco Villaseca, Moises Villarroel, Christian Uribe (Mauricio Rojas), Francisco Arrure(Rodrigo Nunez), Hector Tapia, Fernando Mariel.
JAPAN: Toshiyasu Takahara, Hiroyuki Kobayashi, Mitsuru Chiyotanda, Satochi Horinouchi, Hirakawa Tadaaki, Naokata Hanyu (Jun Sakai), Masaki Fukai, Nobumitsu Yamane, Ota Keisuke, Takuya Mikami, Kenji Yoshimura (Yoshimasa Fujita).

Note-1: The Asian Football Confederation has acceded to the Indian request for a change in dates of its Asia Zone (first round) World Cup qualifying matches, which was scheduled to be conducted between March 3 and July 4. According to the revised fixtures released by the AFC, the Group 8 matches involving the United Arab Emirates, Yemen and Brunei Darussalam besides India will now be held between April 7 and May 20 on a home-and-away basis.
Revised fixtures for the Group 8 Asian Zone World Cup qualifying round (home team named first): April 7: Brunei v Yemen; April 8: India v UAE; April 14: Brunei v UAE; April 15: India v Yemen; April 26: Yemen v Brunei; April 27: UAE v India; May 4: Yemen v India; UAE v Brunei; May 11: Yemen v UAE; May 12: Brunei v India; May 18: UAE v Brunei; May 20: India v Brunei.

Note-2 Syed Nayeemuddin today resigned as East Bengal coach, owning responsibility for the club's dismal showing in the Rovers Cup in Mumbai. According to club president Dr Pronab Dasgupta, Manoranjan Bhattacharjee has agreed to take charge with immediate effect. "I don't want to offer excuses like missing some front-line players in Mumbai. The lacklustre showing forced me to take this decision," Nayeem said. He, though, had a word of advice for his players. "Aim for the sky and there's no substitute for hard work." The Dronacharya said he was planning to take up the instructor's role of the Asian Football Confederation, but at the same time, was also open to offers from other clubs.

12. January
I think this bit of news will make all Indian football fans happy though it has nothing to do with the Millennium Cup!
At long long last some good news from Baichung Bhutia at Bury! Incidentically it was the day that the Millennium Cup started so many who said that Baichung should have been released by Bury because he doesn't play anyway were proved wrong...
Baichung was back in the Bury FC starting eleven for the LDV Vans Trophy match against Kidderminster Harriers on Wednesday. It was Baichung's first match for the first eleven in nearly two month's. Surprisingly he didn't play striker but rather a bit withdrawn or as Bury coach Preece termed it "free-wheeling midfielder" and was very effective in his new role!

Millennium Cup - Group A - Kochin: Bosnia-Herzegovina 2-0 Bangladesh - Goals: 1-0,2-0 Almedin Hota (55',58').
Antony John reports that Bosnian striker Almedin Hota demolished Bangladesh resistance with two quick goals after the break in the Sahara Cup soccer Group one match at Kochi today to buoy his team's spirit ahead of a historic meeting with Yugoslavia on Sunday.
After 45 minutes of dour defending, Bangladesh defence cracked within a quarter of an hour after the break. A chip by Dalibor Nedic undid the Bangladesh defence that showed a trace of panic which Hota exploited to the hilt, courtesy a quick cross by Mirzet Krupinac near the right edge of the area. Hota slotted home easily. In the 58th minute Hota, on a roll, did justice to substitute Mirsad Belija's cross from the right, delivering in style with a side volley. Bangladesh's pragmatism paid off for the first 45 minutes. they gave ample evidence of planning, keeping in mind the chasm in experience and techniques between the sides.
The Bosnians with six players doing duty in the world cup qualifiers meant business from the outset and inevitably, experienced Bangladesh goalie Aminul Haque was drawn into frantic action.
BOSNIA: Adman Guso, Omer Joldic, Sasa Papac, Munever Rizvic, Dalibor Nedic, Mirzet Krupinac, Almedit Hota, Milan Pzren (Mirsad Beslija), Dzelaludin Muharemovic, Admir Adzem, Sead Seferovic.
BANGLADESH: Aminul Hoque, Biplab Battacharjee, Mohammed Sujon, Rajani Kantabarman, Firoj Mahmud Hussain, Zulfiker Marmod, Iqbal Hossain, Mohd Motiur Rahman, Alfaz Ahmed, Saifur Rahman.

Millennium Cup - Group D - Calcutta: Uzbekistan 5-0 Bahrain - Goals: 1-0,4-0 Bahadir Annamotov (15',66'), 2-0 Aleksey Zdhanov (26'), 3-0,5-0 Oybek Usmankhodjaev (53',90').
Anupam Thapa reports that the inexperienced Bahrain side proved a little raw for the young Uzbeks in the second league match of Group IV of the Sahara Cup in Kolkata. In a lopsided encounter, Uzbekistan, who lost their opening match to Japan, salvaged their pride by routing Bahrain 5-0. Annamatov Bahadir and Usmankhodjaev Oybek scored twice each while Zdhanov Aleksey netted once for Uzbekistan, the last off a spot-kick awarded by referee Binod Kumar Singh.
Although Uzbekistan dominated the game, it was Bahrain who got the first chance in the 10th minute of the game. Forward Yusuf al Sadi, the livewire of Bahrain on the field today, receive a pass from the deep and chipped the ball over the charging Uzbekistan goalkeeper Kaharov Oleg. Koshelev Leonid, however, made a goal line save to avoid early embarrassment for Uzbekistan.
The first goal came five minutes later with Bahadir receiving a pass from Zdhanov at the top of the box and moving in very fast. Bahrain goalkeeper Rahman Abdulla wrongly anticipated a centre and charged out to intercept. Bahadir, however, took advantage of the space thus created and placed the left-footer to the right of Abdulla into the net.
Nine minutes later, Uzbekistan citadel had another close shave when Sadi with an open goal, hit his cracker just wide of the right post. Goalkeeper Oleg was moving in the wrong direction.
Uzbekistan was awarded the penalty in the 26th minute after Klikunov Aleksey was brought down by Bahrain defender Abdulla Arzooki inside the box. Zdhanov converted easily.
Bahrain's misery was to continue in the second half with Usmankhodjaev Oybek scoring as early as the eighth minute after the break. Bahadir gave a high ball from the right and as Bahrain defender Marzooki missed the flight completely, Oybek headed home.
In the 66th minute, Bahadir, close to the Bahrain box, moved up even as defender Razak Ali waited. Bahadir scored with Razak reacting too late. The Bahrain humiliation was complete in the injury time when Oybek played an all pass with Mirkhol Darshaev Shukhrat to score the team's fifth goal.
UZBEKISTAN: Oleg Kaharov, Shukrat Kurbanov, Leonid Koshelev, Asror Alikulov, Evgeniy Zakutilin, Otabek Piramatov, Aleksey Klikunov, Bahadir Annamatov, Oybek Usmankhodjaev, Aleksey Zdhanov.
BAHRAIN: A Rahman AK Abdullah, Ghazi M al Khuwari, Abdulla AR Mazrooki, Arif A Razak Ali, Basel Sultan Karim , Faisal A Aziz Mohammad, Roshid A Rahman Saif, Khaled A al Doesery, Saber AR Mohammad, Nader Jaleel, Yusuf A al Sadi.
Referee: Binod Kumar Singh (India).

Note-1: The Indian Premier Football Association has decided to set up two soccer academies in the country. At a meeting held in Mumbai on Tuesday under the chairmanship of UB boss Vijay Mallya, IPFA office bearers have decided to open the academies in two different parts of the country. According to IPFA secretary Babu Mather, while one academy would be started at Durgapur, the other will be in either Goa or Kochi. "The Durgapur centre has been chosen on the insistence of the Mohun Bagan secretary, Anjan Mitra."And as far as Goa is concerned, the academy there we would like to start in collaboration with the Goa FA. But in case GFA disagrees with our plans, we will shift it to Kochi", Mather said.Asked about the financial aspect of the project, Mather said that IPFA would now actively start looking for sponsors. "It could be individual sponsor or collective sponsors." A five-member committee, with PV Paul of FC Kochin as the coordinator, has been set up to study the feasibility of the project. The committee has been asked to submit their report in one month.

11. January
Millennium Cup - Group B - Kochin: Uruguay 2-1 Iceland - Goals: 1-0 Alexandro Umpierref (26'), 2-0 Ricardo Varela (29'), 2-1 Thorhallur Hinriksson (32').
Antony John reports from Kochi that Uruguay provided a whiff of latin magic to the Sahara Cup football with a sprightly 2-1 (half time 2-1) victory over Iceland in the Group 2 match at Kochi's Nehru Stadium.
Uruguay came out to attack and made their intentions clear from the start with attacks down either flank.
Fleet-footed Victor Abelenda on the left had the Icelandic defence back-pedalling time and again with the right flank also showing energy and enterprise in Juan Segales as the early moments suggested that the Uruguayans lookoed good to score anytime.
It was only in the 26th minute that the Iceland citadel fell, buckling as it did after midfielder Mario Gastan once again caused panic-this time with a cross from left. Varela looked set to score but Jonsson brought him down and Uruguay got the reward as a penalty kick. Alexandro Umpierref scored from the kick. Uruguayan joy swelled three minutes later when a lightning move from deep inside their own half defence led to a spectacular goal. Daniel Pereira split the Icelandic defence witha long through ball to Abelanda whose pin-point cross had the running Ricardo Varela heading past the hapless goalie to make it 2-0.
Iceland, though, quickly brought the contest back to life when they beat the seemingly redundant Goalie Martin Barlocco in the Uruguayan goal. A free kick by Sverisson found Hinriksson heading into the Uruguayan net in the 32nd minute.
Chances fell on either side before the interval but the score-board remained unchanged.
In the second half, contrary to expectations, the Icelanders showed better stamina in alien conditions as the South americans fell into their defensive mould. Persistent pessure from the Europeans, however, only drew Nestor Cardofo to goal line save from Gudmundsonn's effort as Uruguayan keeper Martin lay helpless on the turf.

Millennium Cup - Group C - Goa: Romania 0-1 Jordan - Goal: 0-1 Faisal Suleiman (?').
An error committed by Romanian keeper Anghel Eugen two minutes from the end, cost Romania dearly as the fancied outfit went down to Jordan by a solitary goal, in the opening encounter at Nehru Stadium, Fatorda of the Goan-leg of the Millennium Cup. The all-important goal was scored by midfielder Faisal Suleiman in the 87.minute of play.
JORDAN: Ahmad al Khazaleh, Jamal A Abu Abed (Sufian A. Daoud), Adnan A. al Shuaibat, Hassouneh Sheikh Qasem, Hatem M. Aqel, Rafat Ali Jaber ( Muyed Mansour), Haitham H Semrin, Faisal I. Suleiman, Haitham Al Shboul, Ghanem Y. Hamarasheh (Badran Al Shaqran), Muhanned Mahadeen.
ROMANIA: Eugen Anghel, Bar Sergiu, Hulubei Emilian, Costin Sergiu, Galmencea Remus, Bolfa Vasile, Ioan Luca, Elati Aurel, Sasu Marius (Zahariue Liviu), Sanmantean Lucian (Beraru Florin), Gheara Decebal (Alexandru Marian).
Referee: Bala Sundaraj (India).

10. January
Millennium Cup - Group D - Calcutta: Uzbekistan 0-2 Japan - Goals: 0-1 Ota Keisuke (44'), 0-2 Horinauchi Satochi (87').
Amitabha Das Sharma reports from Calcutta that Japan beat Uzbekistan 2-0 in the Group 4 league match to set in motion the Sahara Cup football. The match on Wednesday reached a decent level as Japan, presently the Asian powerhouse with the continental title under its belt, began its campaign in style with two late goals in each half. Uzbekistan, the strongest of the five former CIS states to join the Asian Football Confederation, came with a fair show but lacked that knack to convert opportunities into goal. With neither of the teams showing an high level of preparedness, the first match thus did not touch the presumed heights. But both the teams showed lot of sincerity to make it a good, though at times slackened, contest.
Japan, presenting a combined universities' side that is being readied for the ensuing World universities' meet, gave an allround show. But the man who really enthralled the crowds was the diminutive striker Fukai Masaki. The 19-year-old Komazawa University showed electric reflexes and became the biggest challenge for the opposition defence with his dribbling abilities. Masaki's agility saw the player repeatedly breaching the opposition bulwark as his colleagues aimed their provisions straight to him for the most of the match.
Japan played the role of an aggressor right from the beginning packing the attack with four men and utilised the flanks well to mount pressure on the Uzbeks, who adopted the traditional defensive ploy with a crowding midfield and defence.
The first opportunity of a goal came in the 13th minute when Masaki saw his attacking colleague Ota Keisuke fumble on a minus. Next it was the turn of central midfielder Keiji Yoshimura who shot wide another Masaki creation.
Japan stepped up its efforts for an opening but could realise its aim only in the last minute of the first session when Masaki saw his left footer, following a solo effort, coming off the crosspiece. Keisuke availed the opportunity to place the rebound into the goal. The uzbeks, led in the attack by Zhdanov Alaksey and Usmankhodjaev Oybek, succeeded in occasional counter-offensives.
The Uzbeks got the best chance of equalising in the second minute after the break, but the Japan goal remained unconquered as both Alaksey and Oybek banged their shots straight on the Japan custodian, Toshiyasu Takahara, after being reached by a through from Klikunov. The match passed to relative doldrums before the Japan medio Satochi Horinouchi scored the second goal off an indirect freekick by Kobayshi in the 87th minute to ensure the match for his team.
JAPAN: Toshiyasu Takahara, Hiroyuki Kobayashi, Hirakawa Tadakki, Mitsuru Chiyotanda, Satochi Horinouchi, Keiji Yoshimura, Naotake Hanyu (Jun Sakai, Yoshimasa Fujita), Nobumitsu Yamane, Keisuke Ota, Masaki Fukai.
UZBEKISTAN: Oleg Kaharov, Sukhrat Kurbanov, Leonid Koshelev, Astor Alikolov, Evgeniy Zakutilin, Otabek Piramatov, Aleksey Klikuno, Bahadir Annamatov (Alexander Bakalidis), Oybek Usmankhodjaev (Sukhratbek Mirkholdirshayev), Aleksey Zhdanov, Yuri Nikitkov.
Referee: S Saleerajan (Malaysia).

Note-1: The bad news over the last few days for the Millennium Cup also didn't stop on the inaugural day:
THE AIFF has lodged an official complaint with FIFA, the world governing body, following the last minute withdrawal of Olympic champions Cameroon from the Millennium Cup. Cameroon were clubbed with Romania, Jordan and Hong Kong in Group 3 to play at Margao, Goa.
The Millennium Cup problems continued today, when it received yet another jolt when Indonesia was debarred from the tournament for including foreigners in the team in violation of the competition rules. The decision regarding Indonesia was announced in Kochi today evening by AIFF secretary Alberto Colaoc. The Indonesian club team had come here with seven foreigners in its team. According to Kerala FA sources, the Indonesian team officials were handed over a letter this morning pointing out the violation of the rule. They were given time till this evening to bring replacements and also offered a postponment of their match against India tomorrow. But the Indonesians expressed their inability and the decision to debar them was taken.

9. January
The following are exceprts from a report from Anupam Thapa and Suman Chakrabarti for The NEWS TODAY:
Battling against time, the All-India Football Federation has organised a tele-conference on Tuesday night to fix the differences with the Indonesian Football Association over the latter's claim to bring in two foreign players with their national team for the tournament which begins on Wednesday. AIFF president Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi informed The News Today that the AIFF is trying to pull-together a second-string Indian B-team that will plug in the gap that has been created by the pullout of Iraq on Sunday from the tournament citing non-availability of players. However, there was further setback in store for the hapless Indian football federation as Cameroon pulled out late on Tuesday. "The Indomitable Lions," who are the reigning Olympic champions, have demanded more appearance money. Confirming this, Dasmunsi said: "The Cameroon football administrators were trying to blackmail us into bargaining more money for them from the sponsors, but I have sent a strongly-worded fax to FIFA." The most curious demand however has come from the Indonesians. As far as Indonesia goes, they had demanded the inclusion of two foreign players in their national side. This is ridiculous and it is against the laws of FIFA, an angry Dasmunsi said. According to sources, Indonesia are being represented by the Harimau Trapanauly Club team, their amateur league champions. The team includes some players from Australia and Cameroon. To make matters worse for the organisers, they have been forced to postpone the inaugural match between Chile and Bahrain which was to be played at the 100,000-capacity Yuba Bharati Stadium in Calcutta, as playing kits of Chilean footballers were not boarded at the Johannesburg airport, and will arrive only on Wednesday morning. Thus, the match between Uzbekistan and Japan will officially kick off the tournament, while Chile will take on Bahrain in the second match. Dasmunsi told The News Today that special kits were supplied to the Chilean team so that they could practise on Tuesday.
This sadly shows how unprofessional the approach of the AIFF has been. With direct involvement from FIFA and the AFC all this chaos would not have happened. A big chance for Indian football to present itself on the international football stage might have already been destroyed before the football has even started...
Adan de Garcia reports from Panama that an official notice of the Panamanian Soccer Federation informed that the trip to India was cancelled. Panama requested the change of the date of the game against Yugoslavia from January 10 to 13, but the AIFF notified the PSF that that could not accede to requests, reason why Panama decided not to accept the invitation.

100th Rovers Cup - Final: Mohun Bagan 2-0 Churchill Brothers SC - Goals: 1:0 Jayanta Sen (20'), 2:0 Dulal Biswas (79').

Note-1: Churchill Brothers have joined the Indian Premier Football Association and the Alemao brothers, Churchill and Joaquim, have been taken on board the organisation's hierarchy. Vijay Mallya, disclosed this after the 100th Rovers Cup final prize distribution ceremony. The meeting was also attended by a Vasco SC representative and they would be deciding on joining the IPFA in a week's time. Mallya said the IPFA would be writing to the AIFF about the money owed by it to the clubs and he did not see any contradiction in his roles as one of the AIFF vice-presidents and IPFA president.

8. January
The news from Panama today was that the Panamanian Soccer Federation confirmed that they would take part in the Millennium Cup! But in the end they are not coming reasons for that later...
"We had an option to take Panama in place of Iraq. In fact, Panama had already sent their list of players. But we decided against taking Panama since they are not exactly the best team in the world" was the reason given by AIFF secretary Alberto Colaco.

7. January
Alberto Colaco said at a press conference in Goa that it is not clear yet if Panama will be able to replace Iraq...
In Calcutta meanwhile Uzbekistan arrived as the first team and what a surprise they also didn't turn up with their 'A' team, which is currently taking part in a tournament in Israel, so youngsters were given a chance...

100th Rovers Cup - Semifinal: Mohun Bagan 1-0 East Bengal Club - Goal: 1:0 Amar Ganguly (87').

6. January
Just days ahead of the start of the Millennium Cup Iraq have pulled out, while they are replaced by central American country Panama. According to news received from Central America besides Panama the AIFF had also send an invitation to El Salvador to replace Iceland or Cameroon, if they did not obtain their visas. In the case of Iceland I know that they are on their way to India but in the case of Cameroon no news.

100th Rovers Cup - Semifinal: Churchill Brothers SC 2-1 IRAN Youth Team - Goals: 1:0,2:1 Francis Silveira (15',90'), 1:1 Reza Hadadi (44').

Note-1: From January 11 the Air India Millennium Football Tournament will be held in Kalina in northwest Mumbai. Among those teams taking part will be NFL team Air India and Mahindra United. Others are Harwood League teams Central Bank, Union Bank of India, Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilisers, Central Railway, Bank of India and Bombay Customs.

5. January
The final 22 India players for the Sahara Millennium Cup have been announced. Dropped from the 26 players were Mohun Bagan goalkeeper Rajat Ghosh Dasdidar, defender Hussain Mustafi and RP Singh along with Dempo keeper Francis Fernandes.
In a surprise move Mohun Bagan playmaker Basudeb Mondal or Basuda, as his friends call him, has been named captain of the India team! It was rather expected that IM Vijayan or Jo Paul Ancheri would be captain as India play in Kochin! So the AIFF continues with its policy of captaincy rotation, which it has been doing for some years now.
The squad is a good combination though some like promising wingback Surkumar Singh (East Bengal), Air-India midfielder Khalid Jamil with a good tour of England last year and veteran Churchill Bros' targetman Francis Silveira are notable omissions.
SQUAD - GK: Virender Singh (Mahindra United), Sandip Nandy (Mohan Bagan), Narshiman Balaji (ITI) // DF: M. Suresh (Mohun Bagan), Mahesh Gawli (Churchill Bros), Deepak Mondal (East Bengal), Ratan Singh (East Bengal) // MF: Jules Alberto (Salgoacar), Jo Paul Ancheri (FC Kochin), Hardip Sangha (JCT), Renedy Singh (Mohun Bagan), Basudeb Mondal (Mohun Bagan; CAPTAIN), S. Venkatesh (Mahindra United), Noel Wilson (Churchill Bros), James Singh (Mohun Bagan), Carlton Chapman (East Bengal) // FW: IM Vijayan (FC Kochin), Bijen Singh (East Bengal), RC Prakash (Mohun Bagan), Syed Sabir Pasha (Indian Bank, Chennai), Bruno Coutinho (Salgaocar), Alvito D'Cunha (Salgaocar).

Note-1: The women's wing of the Bihar Football Association will organise the All-India Women’s Football Championship at Baruni from January 8 to 15, according to Surinder Bhambri, secretary of the women's wing of the AIFF. Eight top women football clubs will participate.

4. January
100th Rovers Cup - Group B: Air India 0-1 Salgaocar SC - Goal: 0:1 Tejani Ahmad (16').
100th Rovers Cup - Group B: Mohun Bagan AC 1-0 IRAN Youth Team - Goal: 1:0 Jose Barreto (36').

Note-1: The Junior National football championship for the BC Roy Trophy will be held in Bangalore from February 3 to 20, according to AIFF secretary, Alberto Colaco. The Bangalore edition would not be considered as under-19 tournament since this is being held to clear last year's backlog. "The championship was not held last season because of various reasons. It has resulted in lot of boys getting deprived from this important tourney. "Considering this aspect, we have decided to allow players born on and after 1981 to take part in the tourney. Actually the cut off date should have been 1982. We intend to hold another BC Trophy later in the year, which will be a proper under-19 championship." Nineteen states have confirmed participation so far with a few more expected to follow in few days. Taking part in this edition will, however, be not mandatory, the AIFF secretary added. Meanwhile, the Indian team for the Millennium Cup soccer will be announced tomorrow or Saturday, Colaco said. Four players from the present list of 26 campers would be send back home.
The dates for the 2.division NFL will be decided in the executive committee meeting of the AIFF at Calcutta on January 24. The names of the participating teams will also be decided there.

3. January
100th Rovers Cup - Group A: East Bengal 5-4 Churchill Brothers SC - Goals: 1:0 Dipankar Roy (7'), 2:0 Surkumar Singh (12'), 0:3,1:4 Srikanta Datta (16',30'), 1:3,4:5 Jose Colaco (28',75'), 2:4 Andre Requena (43'), 3:4 Igor Shkvyrin (56')3:5 Olim Talliev (60').
100th Rovers Cup - Group A: Mahindra United 1-1 JCT Mills - Goals: 1:0 Manjit Singh (6'), 1:1 Jaswant Singh (20').

Note-1: In the eleventh hour the Millennium Super Soccer Cup 2001 organisers, Studio 2100 and the AIFF have found a title-sponsor in the Sahara India Pariwar.
"Our company is happy that corporate houses are sponsoring football and hope that more companies will come forward to sponsor the game in near future," said Hena Juneja, CEO, Studia 2001, announcing the sponsor of the tourney at a press conference in Delhi.
Vandana Bhargava of Sahara India Pariwar said, "for years our company has been sponsoring numerous sports including cricket, golf and tennis. Today, we are extremely proud to associated with India's largest soccer tournament. It is our endeavour to make soccer an extremely popular sport and we hope that this beginning with the Sahara Cup will help take the sport to greater heights," Bhargava added.
Ms Bhargava also thanked the All India Football Federation and FIFA, the game's governing body, for allowing Sahara to sponsor the mega show, which is regarded as the biggest soccer extravaganza to be hosted in the sub-continent in 100 years. However, the Sahara official agreed that renaming of the Millennium Cup as Sahara Cup may mislead the average person to understand it to be a cricket tournament. "But our company would strive to rechristen it in a befitting manner within the next 48 hours, so that there is no scope for misinterpretation," Bhargava assured. The sponsorship deal was kept a secret.
Though it was not officially announced, it does seem the tournament will now be called the Sahara Millennium Cup!

Note-2: Here a belated report on a India vs Vasco SC match at Fatorda Stadium in Goa on December 30 by IFSC member and Vasco patron Noel da Lima:
The game started on a fast pace with the India team looking very good in attack as Carlton Chapman moved in very forward position and played excellent wall-passes with Vijayan. Vijayan’s movement was superb, finding and punishing gaps in the Vasco defence almost at will. However, Vasco was able to counterattack with speed and thrust as with Chapman out of position, India gave up vital real estate in the centre of the field to Ronaldo ( Brazilian import ) who had the ability to win balls and make long passes to the flanks. The India defense looked a bit flat on occasion and although Mahesh Gowali did a good job containing Louis Nickson, Jo Paul had his hands full with Edson Wanderley, who time and again passed the India stalwart with quick turns and acceleration inside the penalty area. All in all, the initiative of play was with Vasco between the first five and thirty minutes of play. The Vasco lads looked to be in better physical condition and a little luck could have seen the club side 3-0 up through blatant fouls on the forwards in the penalty area. But India had their moments, capitalising on defensive errors by Vasco, Carlton Chapman threading the ball through to Vijayan and Alvito. Ramos, though had no difficulty with some of the shots on target. For Vasco, Ravi Babu had a good game, creating space on Vasco’s left,and on two occasions incinerating young Dipak Mondal with deft wall passes from Gavin deep on the Indian right flank. And the diminutive Daniel made a couple of good crosses, which brought out the very best from Virendra Singh and Mahesh Gowali. Then in the 35th minute, with Vijayan fading, Chapman sent in a beauty along the ground to an unmarked Alvito. From the top of the box, Alvito let go with a vicious left-footed grass-cutting drive that left Ramos rooted to the ground. The ball swerved into Ramos’ left corner of the net. There was not even an attempt from Ramos, but who could blame him? Alvito’s leg did not follow through, so it didn’t even look like he was taking a shot at goal. And if if he were, most goalkeepers would have dived to the right. Pure poetry in motion certainly one of the best goals I’ve ever seen.
Vasco doesn't like its teeth taken out and roared back into the game, forcing as many as seven corners in the last 10 minutes. A couple might have restored parity but for the agility of Virendra Singh.
At half time, Vasco Coach Derrick Pereira took off Gavin Araujo for Khogen Singh and Caetano Pinho replaced Santan Colaco. Ravi Babu switched to Central Midfield and Pinho took up the left midfield position. Coach Ahmedov, took off Vijayan, Chapman and Alvito, and replaced them with Bijen Singh, Venkatesh and Syed Sabir Pasha respectively. He must have had some very useful words for the India lads because they came out in the second half looking a lot more aggressive than in the first. There was a sea change in the way they built up attacks from the back in the first 20 minutes, with Jo Paul moving through the spine of the formation to lend support to Basudeb Mondal’s neat touches. At the end of this golden spell, we were treated to a flurry of about 25 passes by the India team in possession, in which for the first time in the match they looked very good, and finally, Jo Paul unleashed a fearsome left footed shot from 30 yards that had Ramos scurrying to kill the ball.
Vasco attacked thereafter, forcing India and Jo Paul backward. Edson got into a goalscoring position, inside the penalty box, off a fine cross from Daniel, but was elbowed in the face by Jo Paul as a result of which he lost a front tooth and had to be replaced by Peter Rodrigues. From then on India was on the back foot. Relentless attack after attack by Vasco, alternating deep on both flanks, looking for the equaliser, went unrewarded. The India lads looked jaded. Venkatesh could not match the ferocity of Ronaldo and Mahesh Gowali looked spent as Peter turned him in and out with powerful runs down the middle. With 8 minutes on the clock, Ravi Babu screeched in a left footer from 25 yards that saw Virendra save with the nail on the middle finger of his right hand. Ronaldo wasted a free kick from 20 yards. Two crosses from Daniel ended up in the side netting, once off Ronaldo and then off Peter. Khogen Singh was in full cry and missed narrowly from the top of the six yard box on the left side. By the time the final whistle was blown, India heaved a huge sigh of relief.
As I saw it, all credit to the India team for safeguarding the result. But behind the scoreline, all is not well with the National team. They have some major problems with physical condition and some key players are injured. The defense could do with some strengthening. In midfield the team desperately needs a playmaker. Noel Wilson was wasted in the left wing back position. He would have been my preferred choice in central midfield. And for sure they have some problems in attack, mainly because Bruno is injured and Francis Silveira seems to have lost his form. Najeeb is also unavailable. Alvito always looks superb in practise but his match temperament is suspect. Pasha looked good for a few minutes, but that’s not what the doctor ordered for the Millenium Cup. The onus will therefore rest with Vijayan and I think Baichung's absence will not help India’s chances, at least not on the strength of what was on view today.

2. January
100th Rovers Cup - Group B: Air India 0-0 Mohun Bagan AC - Goals: none.
100th Rovers Cup - Group B: Salgaocar SC 0-1 Iran Youth Team - Goal: 0:1 Alireza Monajati (83').

1. January

From today on the new separate IFSC section is online under http://www.indianfootball.com/ifsc/index.html . There you can join the IFSC, which is at the moment getting constitutionalised! We hope to help Indian football in the future...

100th Rovers Cup - Group A: Mahindra United 1-2 East Bengal Club - Goals: 0:1 Olim Talliev (20'), 1:1 Habib Adenkule (24'), 1:2 Suley Musah (30').
100th Rovers Cup - Group A: Churchill Brothers 1-0 JCT Mills - Goal: 1:0 Edson de Crasto (24').