Stranded in Srinagar for more than a month due to the coronavirus-forced national lockdown, Real Kashmir FC head coach David Robertson and his family will finally return to Scotland on Thursday, ending an anxious wait to attend to his sick mother. Robertson, his wife Kim, son Mason, who plays for the club, and three support staff reached Jammu on Wednesday by an official bus of RKFC which left Srinagar early in the morning. They will fly back home in a British Airways flight from Amritsar on Thursday afternoon.
Real Kashmir FC face defending champions Chennai City FC in their first I-League home match of the season on Thursday in the first big sporting event in the Kashmir Valley since it became a union territory. The abrogation of Article 370 and the ensuing lockdown in the valley in August had raised security concerns, but Real Kashmir have made elaborate arrangements since then, allaying the fears of the visiting teams.
Desperate to get back to his ailing mother in Scotland, Real Kashmir FC coach David Robertson and his UK-based players' stay in Srinagar has got extended due to unavailability of chartered flights from the Valley. With his mother undergoing chemotherapy for cancer in Aberdeen, the coach is anxious and so is his co-owner, Sandeep Chattoo, who has been in constant touch with officials from the government, trying to work out a solution.
NorthEast United inched closer to a playoffs berth with a 2-1 win over 10-man SC East Bengal in the ISL
Chennai City FC, whom Real Kashmir had beaten twice this season, are leading the table with 30 points from 14 matches.
'But again, do we have a choice? Absolutely not. The entire world does not have a choice. Everyone has to deal with patience. It is a global issue so the awareness is global, too.'
All the results from the I-League and ISL matches played on Sunday
Earlier in the day, TRAU FC earn maiden I-League point after 2-2 draw against Real Kashmir,
Real Kashmir FC scored the game's only goal through Gnohere krizo's 74th minute strike as the debutants made a dream start to their maiden I-League campaign.
NorthEast United FC were held to a thrilling 3-3 draw by Chennaiyin FC at the GMC Stadium, in Bambolim
The 33-year-old has vast experience of playing in the United Kingdom, United States and the Gulf.
Real Kashmir FC's rise as a top side in the I-League has been "nothing short of a fairytale", feels its Scottish coach David Robertson, who is happy to have refused more lucrative assignments in other countries considering the "pure passion" for the beautiful game in the Kashmir Valley.
Liverpool won an absorbing English FA Cup final on Saturday as they prevailed 6-5 in a penalty shootout after the Wembley showpiece somehow ended 0-0 after extra time.
A goal on either side of the break powered Real Kashmir to a 2-0 win over Indian Arrows in the I-League, in Margao, on Sunday.
All the results from the I-League and ISL matches played on Saturday
Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool raised the spirits with a rip-roaring 2-2 draw in a pre-Christmas Premier League classic on Sunday after a weekend marred by COVID-19 related postponements.
The draw, Goa's sixth on the trot, helped the Gaurs climb to the third spot on the table.
The fairy tale run of Real Kashmir Football Club in the I-League continued as the club from the Valley defeated Gokulam Kerala FC by a solitary goal to jump to top of the I-League.
Real Kashmir FC proudly represents a region whose scars are getting a chance to be healed by the beautiful game.
Jordan Murray put Kerala ahead in the 64th minute before Neville's stoppage-time equaliser (90+5) ensured that SCEB extended their unbeaten run to six games.
Chelsea kept alive their remote Premier League title chances with a 2-0 win over London rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, set on their way by an exquisite strike from Hakim Ziyech which was quickly followed up by a Thiago Silva header.
Vibrant Chelsea made it a torrid few days for Liverpool as goals by Willian and Ross Barkley sealed a 2-0 victory to send them through to the FA Cup quarter-finals on Tuesday. Liverpool's 44-match unbeaten streak in the Premier League ended in stunning fashion with a 3-0 defeat at Watford on Saturday and they were rocked again at Stamford Bridge.
Kimi Raikkonen will miss the last two races of the Formula One season in Texas and Brazil after deciding to have back surgery next week, the Lotus driver's manager said on Sunday.
NorthEast United got the better of Mumbai City yet again, doing a double over the Islanders with a 2-1 win in the Hero Indian Super League
'It won't affect our performance on the pitch. We are just concentrating on tomorrow's match'
Liverpool moved into the Champions League qualifying spots after a 3-0 win at Burnley on Wednesday took them above Leicester City and into fourth place with one round of Premier League matches remaining.
Victory for Gareth Southgate's England side in the eagerly-awaited Group D clash at a rain-swept Wembley stadium would have sealed a place in the last 16 but they produced a nervous performance against the Scots, who kept their own hopes alive.
However, one goal proved enough for City who picked up their sixth successive league win to move four points clear of Liverpool, who host Aston Villa later on Saturday, at the top of the standings.
Images from Saturday's action in the Premier League.
Images from Sunday's English Premier League matches.
Photos from the Premier League matches played on Sunday
Images from Saturday's action in the Premier League.
Virgil van Dijk made a dream start to his Anfield career, scoring the winning goal on his debut for Liverpool, as they beat city rivals Everton 2-1 in a pulsating FA Cup third round tie on Friday.
United down Newcastle after Saints stun Chelsea on a dramatic night in the English Premier League.
McTominay injury takes gloss of vibrant United display
Images from the Champions League matches played across Europe on Tuesday
Liverpool had won each of their previous four home leagues games in which they conceded first and 12 minutes later they had turned another match on its head as Roberto Firmino's trickery set up Mane to give the hosts the lead at the second attempt.
