THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Thiruvananthapuram has been deprived of quality football action for quite some time now. It was in 1991, almost 15 years ago, that the capital city hosted a footballing event of any significance which was the Nehru Cup of that year.
In the final held at the Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium, a second string Romania defeated defending champions Hungary 3-1 to lift the title in the tournament, that also featured Soviet Union, China, Zambia and hosts India. After that, it has been slim pickings for football aficionados of this region. So, when the 11th edition of the SAFF Championship, titled SAFF Suzuki Cup 2015, is going to be held at the Greenfield International Stadium in Kariavattom from December 23, 2015 to January 3, 2016, they have genuine reasons to feel excited about. The tournament will feature eight countries from the South Asian region - Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Nepal and hosts India. Afghanistan are the defending champions in the tournament and will be playing their last SAFF tournament, while India, under English coach Stephen Constantine, will be hoping to put the ghosts of a disastrous 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign to bed.
The teams will be pooled into two groups with top two teams from each group progressing to the semi-finals to be held on December 31. The grand finale is slated for January 3, 2016. The last time Kerala hosted the Indian national football team was in February 2013 when they played an international friendly against Palestine at Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium, Kochi. Palestine won the match 4-2.
Sri Lanka to Arrive Early
The Sri Lankan national football team will make an early landing in the city as they will land here on November 26 to acclimatise to the conditions ahead of the main event. They will play three practice matches in the city before flying back to the island nation.
Sri Lanka will take on Travancore Titanium XI on November 28, Kerala State Electricity Board on November 30 and State Bank of Travancore on December 2 at Greenfield Stadium in Kariavattom. Sri Lanka were the champions of SAFF region in 1995 and reached the semifinals in 2008.
Pakistan’s Participation in Doubt
Mired in internal politics, the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF), it looks like, will not be sending its national team for the marquee South Asian event. PFF is in a crisis after splitting into two factions in the lead-up to its presidential elections earlier this year which saw the Lahore High Court intervene and order a stay on the elections.
“I received an e-mail from the PFF saying it is withdrawing the Pakistan team from the SAFF Championship,” said SAFF general secretary Anwarul Haque Helal recently, adding that no official reason was provided for the pull-out. Withdrawal of Pakistan, pooled with India, Sri Lanka and Nepal in Group A, could mean that the 12-day event will be a seven-team affair. (See also Page 3)