After four rounds and 20 matches, and the teams so well matched, it's hard to pick a clear favourite in the National Football League.
Churchill Brothers' Nigerian sharp shooter Odafe Onyeka Okolie may have failed to win the inaugural I-League title for his side, but his enormous contribution to the campaign was enough to get him three individual awards.
Bhaichung Bhutia scored the solitary goal as Mohun Bagan beat East Bengal 1-0 in their eighth outing of the I-League football tournament.
JCT defeated Viva Kerala 2-0 in the eighth round of the ONGC I-League at the Corporation Stadium in Kozhikode on Saturday to join Dempo Sports Club at the top of the points table.
JCT's Sunil Chetri has been adjudged the best player of the 11th National Football League.
Fed Cup winners Mohun Bagan thrashed NFL champions Dempo Sports Club 4-0 in the Super Cup.
East Bengal prevailed over Tollyhunge Aggragami 1-0 to consolidate their position atop the National Football League.
Christiano Junior scored his ninth goal in 11 matches to give the defending champions a 1-0 victory in the national Football League.
Churchill Brothers, reduced to 10 men in the second half, downed Chirag United 2-0 to move to the top of the points table after their eighth round I-League match at Nehru Stadium in Margao on Friday.
The victory enabled the defending champions displace Dempo from the top spot in the National Football League.
The Kolkata giants take on the Bangladesh side in the AFC Cup Group A league match on Wednesday.
A 3-0 victory over Indian Bank assured them the crown with two rounds to go.\n\n
The speedy striker got both goals as Dempo beat JCT 2-0 in a National Football League match in Ludhiana.
Sources close to the club said Shah Rukh Khan is in talks with the Goa-based I-League champion club and has also met its owner, Srinivas Dempo, a couple of times.
Churchill Brothers finished above Inter Kashi FC, who are second with 39 points, but the the latter could still win the title on April 28, depending on outcome of AIFF appeal.
Dempo are looking to maintain their good run when they take on their West Asian rivals in the first leg of the AFC Cup semi-final at the Sports City Stadium in Lebanon on Tuesday.
Images: Mohun Bagan get massive reception.
It's been eight months since East Bengal triumphed in the Federation Cup but the age-old Kolkata club is yet to get the prize money for winning the tournament, thanks to dilly dallying on part of the All India Football Federation (AIFF).
India captain Sunil Chhetri led Bengaluru FC to a historic AFC Cup final by scripting an inspiring 3-1 win over defending champions Johor Darul Ta'zim with his stunning double strike in Bengaluru on Wednesday. Bengaluru made it to the final by virtue of superior aggregate goal difference of 4-2. The first leg in Malaysia ended in a 1-1 draw. It is a historic day for Indian football as no club from the country has ever made it to the summit clash of the prestigious second-tier continental tournament.
The All India football Federation (AIFF) gave its go ahead to the IPL-style IMG-Reliance league with its executive committee agreeing to the holding of the tournament by its commercial partners IMG-Reliance early next year.
Goan football fans and Dempo players bid a tearful farewell to Cristiano Junior, whose body would be flown to Brazil.
Hamze Aboud scored the only goal of the match following a corner to give the Lebanese side a 1-0 victory in the first leg of the AFC Cup semi-final at the Sports City Stadium, in Beirut, on Tuesday.
With their eye on the AFC Cup, defending champion Dempo have removed focus from the I-League for the time being.
Dempo SC made history when they won the I-League crown for a record fifth time on Friday as they held East Bengal to a goalless draw.
English striker Rohan Ricketts has been signed for the I-League Champion, Dempo SC for the 2012-13 season.
Dempo paid for their profligacy with an own goal by their captain to go down 2-3 to Sur Club of Oman in the AFC Cup Group A thriller at Nizwa. The I-League champions, who beat Lebanese powerhouse Al Ansar in their opening pool match, wasted a couple of clear chances and conceded an own goal by star playmaker Climax Lawrence.
India's Bengaluru FC lost an opportunity to make history after being grounded by Iraqi club Air Force Club by a 1-0 margin in the AFC Cup final in Doha on Saturday.
Dempo's dream of qualifying for the AFC Champions League went up in smoke after the Goan side went down 0-3 to Al Sharjah in the one-off qualifier at the Sharjah Stadium on Wednesday.
In a stunning development in Indian football, two-time champions Churchill Brothers were thrown out of the I-League along with three other teams for failing to fulfil the AIFF's club licensing criteria.
This 23-year-old footballer exhibits glamour and style. Prathamesh Maulingkar, says Laxmi Negi, made heads turn at the recent India Fashion Week.
Four-time champions Dempo will be the underdogs when they kick-start their I-League campaign against defending champions Salgaocar at the Nehru Stadium in Fatorda, Margao, on Saturday.
Dempo thrashed Indian Bank, Chennai, 3-0, while Vasco defeated J and K Bank, Srinagar 1-0 in the Durand Cup football tournament.
AIFF's Club Licensing Committee decided that based on the reports all the fourteen License Applicants failed to clear the Licensing Test.
Punjab's premier outfit, JCT, continued their unbeaten run in the ONGC Indian Professional League, defeating Sporting Clube de Goa 4-2 in the seventh round.
Dempo's campaign in the AFC Cup took off on a bright note as they held on gamely to a Ranty Martin's first half strike to down Syrian club Al Maged 1-0 in the Group E league match at the Nehru Stadium on Tuesday.
The All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Praful Patel took a veiled dig at Goan clubs on Tuesday for not having the required "bandwidth" to continue in the revamped top tier league as they are "not investing" in football while providing excuses.
Dempo revived their chances of making it to the knockout phase of the AFC Cup with a 2-1 victory over Bahrain league champions Al Muharraq in their Group A match at the National Stadium near Manama on Wednesday. It was sweet revenge for the I-League champions, who lost 0-4 at home to the same opponents on April 2. They now have six points from four matches.
'If I'm too nice, it doesn't help in that position.' 'My position almost asks me to be aggressive and not very nice.'
Brazilian striker Cristiano Junior scored a brace as Dempo outplayed Mohun Bagan 2-0 to lift the 26th Federation Cup Football Championship.
Norma Godinho challenges sporting know-it-alls.
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