Bhutia to lead Asiad football team

Ace striker Baichung Bhutia will lead a 20-member Indian team in the 15th Asian Games Football Championship, starting at Doha, Qatar, on Wednesday.

The All India Football Federation announced the team, which will participate in the Games at its own expense after the Indian Olympic Association decided against clearing it, citing slim chances of success.

India, placed in Group D alongside Hong Kong, Maldives and Iraq, launch their campaign against Hong Kong on Wednesday.

The Indians are currently playing warm-up games in Dubai.

The AIFF has included two midfielders – Climax Lawrence of Dempo Sports Club and Chandam Chitrasen of Churchill Brothers and dropped Mehrajuddin Wadao, defender Narinder Singh and striker Tarif Ahmed Shaikh.

The team:

Goalkeepers: Sandip Nandy, (Mahindra United), Subrata Pal (Mohun Bagan), Subhasis Roy Chaudhary (Mahindra United).

Defenders: Surkumar Singh (Mahindra United), N S Manju (Mahindra United),  Anupam Sarkar (Kingfisher East Bengal), Habibur Rehman Mondal (Mohammedan Sporting), Debbarta Roy (Kingfisher East Bengal).

Midfielders: Steven Dias (Mahindra United), Bungo Singh (Churchill Brothers, Goa),  Subhash Chakraborty (Mohun Bagan), N P Pradeep (Mahindra United), Gouramangi Singh (Sporting Clube de Goa), Climax Lawrence (Dempo SC), Chandam Chitrasen (Churchill Brothers).

Strikers: Syed Rahim Nabi (Kingfisher East Bengal), Manjit Singh  (Mahindra United), Sunil Chhetri (JCT), Bhaichung Bhutia (Mohun Bagan) and Sushil Kumar Singh (Mohun Bagan).

Officials: Syed Nasir Ali (manager), Robert Douglas Houghten (chief coach), Antonio Marcos Pacheco (goalkeeping coach), Henry Stanley Rozario (assistant coach), Manabendra Bhattacharya (team doctor), Tapan Bhattacharya (physiotherapist).