Bengaluru FC look to seal AFC Cup berth
Bengaluru: Boosted by three away goals, Bengaluru FC will look to seal qualification in the group stages of the AFC Cup when they take on Maldivian side TC Sports Club at the Kanteerava Stadium here on Tuesday.
A Thongkhosiem Haokip brace and Erik Paartalu's fourth goal since signing for Bengaluru gave the Albert Roca-coached southern outfit a 3-2 win in Male last week after they allowed TC to come back from two goals down to level things in what was a strange second half.
The visitors need to win by either a two-goal margin or win scoring more than three goals if they are to edge Bengaluru out and Roca, while sounding confident, warned his side against complacency.
"This tie is far from over. Yes, we've scored three away goals but we've also conceded two and I don't see why they won't take the game to us on Tuesday. That said, we are always confident of our abilities and more so at home. We need to focus and get the job done," said Roca.
Bengaluru seemed to be cruising with two quick second-half goals at the National Stadium when lapses in defence saw the hosts hit back through Anatolii Vlasichev and Ibrahim Mahudhee.
But a Haokip screamer in the 78th minute took out the fight from TC in what were difficult conditions.
"We had a tough time coping with the weather and pitch conditions in Maldives. Thankfully we have the chance to get the job done at home and we need to make the most of the familiar conditions," he said.
The win came at the cost of an injury to defender Harmanjot Khabra who had to be substituted after he picked up a hit to his chest. Khabra missed out on the ISL fixture against FC Pune City and won't be available for selection on Tuesday as he continues to recover.
Roca chose to rest names like Sunil Chhetri, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Juanan Gonzalez, Dimas Delgado and Lenny Rodrigues and whether the Spaniard hands them a role in the fixture at home, remains to be seen.
"I am happy with the way the youngsters on the team have responded to responsibility and they surely need more game time. I will leave the decision late on whether or not I include players who didn't travel to the Maldives, in the squad for Tuesday," said Roca.
Group E, as it stands, has three slots filled with Abahani (Bangladesh), Aizawl FC and New Radiant (Maldives) booking their place in the continental competition.
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2001 Parliament attack anniversary: Vice Prez, PM Modi, MPs pay tributes to fallen heroes
New Delhi (PTI): Vice President C P Radhakrishnan on Saturday led Parliamentarians in paying floral tributes to those who died fending off terrorists who attacked the Parliament House in 2001.
On the 24th anniversary of the attack, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Radhakrishnan, who is also the Rajya Sabha Chair, were among the first to offer tributes.
A brief function is held outside the now old Parliament building (Samvidhan Sadan) every December 13 to mark the day.
CISF personnel presented a salute or "samman guard" at the venue, after which a moment of silence was observed to mark the anniversary. Till 2023, the CRPF used to offer 'salami shastra' (present arms).
Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, and his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, a senior party leader, were also present at the event. Union ministers Kiren Rijiju, Jitendra Singh and Arjun Ram Meghwal also lined up to offer flower petals at the photographs of the personnel who went down foiling the attack.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla is in Latur to attend the funeral of former speaker of the Lower House of Parliament and ex-Union minister Shivraj Patil.
The attack was carried out by five armed terrorists, but personnel from the now former Parliament Security Service, CRPF and Delhi Police foiled the attack, with no terrorist being able to enter the building.
Six Delhi Police personnel, two Parliament Security Service personnel, a gardener and a TV video journalist were killed in the attack. All five terrorists were gunned down in the forecourt of the then Parliament building.
