“I always ask people, ‘What wakes you up at night?’ For me, now it’s the pursuit of a championship,” Smith told NBA.com. “That really is what the case is. It’s like, we’ve got a real chance to be champions. And I know that sounds crazy, and people think, ‘Naaah. Yeah, you guys got better; not champions.’ But we’ve really got a real legit chance. And as long as we believe it, nobody else matters....
However, switching sides after the half-time interval meant a switch in the flow of the game as well as the defending champions came roaring back. And after missing a handful of chances themselves, finally got their equaliser in the 77th minute as Davide Succi headed in from around 7 yards out. The result sees Atletico rise to third spot on the table with 15 points from 11 games while Chennaiyin remained in sixth place but only a point behind....
If the competition wasn’t strong enough, to begin with, this season the ISL teams have an added incentive, that being that the winners shall qualify for the AFC Cup. This is bound to bring about a reaction from the teams, who are now fighting for much more than just state pride. Over the course of three seasons, the ISL has especially excelled in the area of finding itself some foreign players....
Announcing this first step towards building a new team with a mission to retain the coveted ISL trophy for the record third time, Mr. Raghu Iyer, CEO, Atlético de Kolkata, said, “Debjit has been a revelation for ATK as the team’s first choice goalkeeper last season. The performance and hard work he had put in proved to be a vital mechanism in our road to success. “We are also elated to retain Prabir Das for the forthcoming season....
The 29-year-old is a defensive midfielder and expected to add some much-needed steel to the midfield of the team which finished bottom of the group last season. Delhi Dynamos sign Mathias Mirabaje The Moroccan has won the Botola Morocco Telecom (Moroccan top division) multiple times with Moghreb of Tetouan club and The Guars signed on loan for one-year from Morocco’s Fath Union Sport de Rabat club. The Moroccan international has also won honours on the international stage, having played a stellar role in Morocco’s successful campaign in the Arab Nations Cup 2012 where they defeated Libya in the final....
A youth product of Italian giants AS Roma, the defensive midfielder started his career with the Serie A giants in 2012 and was a part of the side for three seasons. During his stint with Roma, Lucca had twice moved out on loan to Atletico Paranaense and Guaratingueta Futebol. He had also played for another ISL side FC Goal in the second season of the tournament. Speaking on the bringing back the Brazilian midfielder, FC Pune City CEO Gaurav Modwel said, “Lucca is a proven performer and a fan favourite too....
Once one of the top teams in Japan, Verdy is now tattering in the second division and are desperate for a better show in the upcoming season. However, their exciting bid for Totti came to an end rather abruptly. In the meantime, chances of Totti’s participation in ISL are getting bigger. The context Totti has been a ‘wanted man’ among the ISL clubs. He not only brings unmatched experience and skills but also gives clubs a real x-factor....
Such bomblastic statements are often made in order to show the player that the coach still trusts his abilities or probably a complete disregard to those watching football in India. FC Goa’s chink in the armour was once again exposed by Mumbai which allowed them to pick three crucial points in what was their first home game. However, Lobera remained defiant and once again reiterated the same narrative. Probably, one does feel sympathetic towards him as Kattimani is the best goalkeeper he has in his squad as opposed to in India....
The scorecard might bear the look of a thrilling evenly contested tussle but for much of the 90 minutes at Pune, it was a Dynamos master-class on display with the hosts a clear second best. Miguel Angel Portugal’s stamp was clear to see in his side’s assured display on the ball as fluidity oozed in his 4-4-1-1 system with Matias Mirabaje deployed just behind Kalu Uche in a free role....
Alves had twice leapt the highest from corners to deal two striking blows to Albert Roca’s Bengaluru FC, a side which had come into the finals with the ‘favourites’ tag. Both the corners had been delivered by one Gregory Nelson. The Dutchman had largely been out of the spotlight coming into the business end of the four-month long competition. A winger who made his debut under Louis Van Gaal at AZ Alkmaar, Nelson’s maiden campaign in India had been largely solid, if not unheralded, going into the play-offs....
The unwelcome development has left FC Goa with the prospect of reaching Kolkata only on Wednesday, the day of the game, a few hours before the scheduled kick-off. The Gaurs had chartered a flight on Tuesday to reach Kolkata after they were unable to get all their technical staff and players on a single flight as the game was originally slated to be held on December 31st before the fixtures were rescheduled....
Manuel Lanzarote and Anirudh Thapa scored second-half goals to share the spoils in the first-leg and the young midfielder’s away goal gives a slight advantage to the Marina Machans for whom even a goalless draw will do on Tuesday. “The most important thing tomorrow is to qualify, whatever it takes. We worked exceptionally hard the other night and we were disappointed that we did not convert some chances. We should have been ahead on goals but it was a hard-earned draw....
Chennaiyin FC are currently at the second spot and would surely aim to claim the top spot once again with a victory against Pune. The Marina Machas are undefeated in the last four encounters, but have not managed to take home all three points in last two home games. They will surely like to establish their domination at home with a win against Pune. FC Pune City will be aiming to break the Chennai jinx once and for all....
For all the excitement on the field, the supporters in the stadium were just as brilliant as they turned out in large numbers to cheer and chant for their team. Bengaluru FC, playing on their home ground, had the advantage in terms of numbers as Kanteerava filled up with blue jerseys. The travelling fans were also at their best but sheer numbers on the other side drowned whatever they had to say, at least until Mailson Alves decided to stun the Blues with two commanding headers that put Chennaiyin into the lead....
It was a two-year ride filled with ups and downs for the Spaniard, but he leaves the club as a father figure, one who instilled an identity for Bengaluru on the pitch, and most importantly, he leaves Bengaluru having achieved a few things that no manager of an Indian club had done before. Roca was appointed in 2016, to replace Ashley Westwood, the club’s first ever manager, who had left behind a winning culture, and an unerring belief in the squad and in the stands, that no bridge was going to be too far for the Blues to conquer....
Delhi Dynamos FC seemed to have a curse of win, until December. An unsharp attacking end or a lone striker might be the factor that put Dynamos into a pathetic situation this season. However, in the previous two games, Delhi Dynamos has collected all three points dominantly, though against the bottom-placed teams. Josep Gombau’s squad has got a fresh ray of attack with the signing of Ulises Davila, who will be vital in the game....
FC Goa coach Sergio Lobera didn’t make any changes to the starting XI that beat Mumbai City FC on Wednesday. As for Pune City FC, interim coach Pradhyum Reddy made 5 changes to the side that lost 3-0 against Bengaluru FC with Robin Singh, Marko Stankovic, Lalchuanmawia Fania, Gurtej Singh and Ashutosh Mehta The first goal for FC Goa came in the 5th minute of the match when Ferran Corominas slotted the ball past the goalkeeper after he received an audacious lobbed ball from Ahmed Jahouh....
The Kochi-based franchise marked the beginning of the season with an impressive away win against ATK, but soon embarked on a forgetful run that unceremoniously derailed their hopes of making it to the playoffs even before the mid-season break. David James’ men produced their worst ever run in the history of the competition after the win over ATK in September, as they went on a 14-game winless run, before securing a win against Chennaiyin FC in February....
The first two rounds of the 2021 Formula 1 season have been memorable: In Bahrain, Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen used the last few rounds of the race as their own personal playground, with Hamilton emerging on top. In Imola, Max Verstappen’s incredible start kept him in the lead for most of the race, with a late charge netting him his second podium of the year. Now, F1 drivers head west to Portugal for the first time in over two decades — after a week layoff....
It’s Notre Dame, of course. The Irish (10-1) are at No. 6 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, and there remain some viable arguments to be had over the next few weeks. This is not a new trend. Notre Dame has been in the top six in the CFP rankings heading into rivalry week in three of the last four seasons. There is nothing irrelevant about the program right now....
