Bengaluru FC shine in another dull year for Indian football. Image Source: XtraTime[/caption]Internet Desk: Bengaluru FC’s performance this season has been the only brightest thing in an otherwise dull year for Indian football. The Blues did the nation proud by becoming the first team to end up runner up in the AFC Cup 2016. The other highlight for the year was the National team achieving its best FIFA rankings in last six years by jumping two spots to reach 135.
The club from Bengaluru has stormed into Indian football ever since its birth three years back. Apart from winning the I League twice, they also reached the Final of the AFC Cup, Asia’s second tier club competition, eventually losing to Air Force Club of Iraq (1-0) to finish as runners-up.
No other Indian clubs has reached the final of AFC Cup before. The farthest an Indian club had advanced in a continental tournament was the two AFC Cup semifinal appearances by Dempo in 2008 and East Bengal in 2013.
The other highlights for Indian football this year has been the national team attaining its best ever FIFA rankings in last six years. The side coached by Stephen Constantine jumped two spots to end the year at 135. India emerged as the SAFF Championships for the seventh time by beating Afghanistan 2-1 in the final at Thiruvanathapuram.
Reality soon struck after the SAFF success as India endured a disastrous campaign in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers, which also served as the joint qualifiers for the 2019 Asian Cup.
They ended their campaign at the bottom of the five-team Group D with just three points after a lone win (from eight matches) over Guam.
With a bottom-placed finish in the campaign, India had to compete in a play-off round to even find a place in the qualifiers of the Asian Cup. The country did eventually make it to the qualifying round of 2019 Asian Cup after beating Laos in both the home (6-1) and away (1-0) leg.
There were a few brilliant individual performances throughout the year. India and Mohun Bagan striker Jeje Lalpekhlua was adjudged the Best Player of the Year. Sasmita Malik was named the Best Woman Footballer of the Year by AIFF. Roulin Borges and Sanju were named as the Emerging Player of the Year in mens and womens category.
Gurpreet Singh Sandhu won an award for special recognition for being the first Indian player to have played in the UEFA Europa League with Stabaek FC. He is also the first Indian to represent a premier division European club.
There were some notable performances by match officials as well. Uvena Fernandes became the first Indian referee to officiate in any World Cup Final match, when she supervised the U’17 Women’s World Cup final match in Jordan between DPR Korea and Japan. Pranjal Banerjee of Bengal won the Best Referees Award by AIFF.
Atletico de Kolkata lifted its second Indian Super League (ISL) title in 3 years. Delhi Dynamos Brazilian striker Marcelinho Leita won the Golden Boot award for being the top scorer with 10 goals. French world cup winning footballer Florent Malouda won the Player of the Tournament award. Amarinder Singh of Mumbai City FC won the Golden Gloves award. Jerry Lalrinzuala of Chennaiyin FC won the Emerging Player of the Year award.
On the administrative front, national senior team coach Stephen Constantine was handed a year's extension after the end of his two-year contract while Praful Patel was re-elected AIFF President for his third consecutive term. He was also made AFC senior vice-president earlier in the year.
The country also embarked on frantic preparations for the Under-17 FIFA World Cup next year. Six venues were picked to host the matches after inspections by FIFA representatives.
The football fraternity was rocked with the news of pulling out of top Goan clubs Salgaocar SC, Dempo and Sporting Clube de Goa from I League, protesting against a proposal of the All India Football Federation to make the Indian Super League (ISL) the country's official top competition.
Two new clubs in Chennai City FC and Minerva Punjab FC were added to the I-League which begins next month.
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