Gentleman footballer Manna, who was ailing for quite some time, was admitted to the AMRI Hospital, Salt Lake, around 11 p.m. Sunday. The end came about two hours later.

Rated as one of the best defenders the country has ever produced, Manna was adjudged the country’s footballer of the millennium by the All India Football Federation in 2000. Known for his keen game sense, Manna was famed for his anticipation, covering and set pieces.

He led India to the gold in the inaugural Asian Games in New Delhi and also captained the country in the 1952 Helsinki Olympics and the 1954 Manila Asian Games.

Under his captaincy, India emerged champions in the Quadrangular tournament – also featuring Burma (now Myanmar), Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and Pakistan – consecutively in 1952, 1953 and 1954.

Manna’s performance as national team skipper drew wholesome praise and the England Football Association named him in its 1953 Yearbook as one of the 10 best captains of the world.

Indian soccer players then played barefoot, as they lacked the funds to buy boots. In the London Olympics, where India bowed out after losing to France 1-2, Princess Margaret of the British royal family asked Manna whether the players did not feel frightened to take on their opponents who wore boots. “We could not say that there was no funds for buying boots,” Manna said later. Manna had then replied that his team felt more comfortable without boots.

In the inaugural Asiad, hosted by New Delhi only four years after independence in 1951, the Manna-led Indian team beat Iran 1-0 in the final to claim the gold, leading to festivities across the nation.

Manna became the second footballer after Goshto Pal to receive the Padma Shri in 1970.

Born on Sep 1, 1924, Manna joined Mohun Bagan in 1942 at the young age of 18 after a short stint with the local league’s second division side Howrah Union, and continued to don the green and maroon jersey till his retirement in 1960. In local football circles, Mohun Bagan and Manna have been synonymous with each other.

After calling it a day as a player, Manna joined as Mohun Bagan coach in 1961, and in later years served the club administration as football secretary and assistant secretary. The club acknowledged its gratefulness by conferring on him its highest award Mohun Bagan Ratna in 2001.

Known for his simple lifestyle, honesty and dedication to the game, Manna till a few years before his death remained an enthusiastic participant in social and charity programmes. He was a regular in taking part in walks organised for a cause. While other celebrities would board their cars after obliging shutterbugs, the fit-as-an-athlete Manna always walked the whole stretch, and always with a smile. (IANS)

SHILLONG: The Meghalaya Football Association (MFA) on Monday announced the 20-member squad for the Dr T Ao Memorial Football Tournament to be held at Gangtok, Sikkim from March 2-9.

The Rs 50 lakh tournament is organised by the North Eastern Council (NEC) as part of its sports development programme in the region and would feature all the north-eastern states including Sikkim.

The NEC had recently sanctioned funds for installation of floodlights at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Polo, in a move to upgrade the existing facilities at the venue.

The squad:

Aibor Khongjee (captain), Kitkupar Kharshiing (vice captain), Allwyn Patweth, Aibormiki Suchiang, Lebious Nongtdu, Batkupar Lamare, Saleng Sangma, Reginald Shadap, Milton Kharsati, Niwan-O-Gatphoh, Wankyrshan Kharkongor, Henry Marboh, Ebormi Buam, Samson Nongrum, Brolling Warlarpih, Debinroy Nongspung, Fullmoon Mukhim, Marlangki Suting, Timmy Ryngkhlem and Shalan Umdor.

Coach: Lekini Suting

Karachi resident Sajid Khan arrived in Dhaka on February 10 and BCB security chief Mesbahuddin Serniabat said they had been watching him since the BPL’s Chittagong phase from February 18-22.

“His movement was very suspicious and we followed him from Chittagong,” Serniabat said.

“We immediately took him to the visiting ICC Anti-Corruption and Security Unit official before handing him over to police.”

Sajid made a call to Pakistan every time a six was struck while watching the game from a VIP area on top of a dressing room, Serniabat said. He also attempted to enter the players’ zone on several occasions.

Former Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza alleged three weeks ago that he was approached by a former cricketer over spot-fixing. (Agencies)

Barely left standing on their feet after a dismal show in the tournament, India would not only need a win with a bonus point to remain alive but also hope that Australia would somehow prevail over Lanka in the last league match in Melbourne on March 2.

The odds are heavily staked against the beleaguered Indians but teams have won with bonus points and India would hope that they do it tomorrow or leave Australian shores with humiliation after a Test series whitewash.

A bonus point is earned when a team achieves a run-rate of 1.25 times than that of the opposition. A team’s run-rate will be calculated by the reference to the runs scored in an innings, divided by the numbers of overs faced.

In essence, India needs to chase down a target in 40 overs or while batting first, get the opposition out in the least number of overs as possible.

A bonus point though looks a wild dream for a team which is getting all-out in most of the matches and have suffered defeats by the margin of 101, 51 and 87 runs in last three successive matches.

No Indian has hit a hundred nor have they managed a century partnership in the tournament and the highest score from their miserable batsmen last night against Australia in Sydney was a mere 23. There have been only eight partnerships of 50 or more. They have lost four of their seven matches and managed a tie in one game.

It would be too much to expect from the hapless unit to suddenly discover the potency of scores and most bear the look of someone who would give anything to get out of Australia on the next available flight.

Sachin Tendulkar has just one innings, if India were to be knocked out tomorrow, to fulfil his unfinished mission of scoring his 100th international century.

There was poignancy in the manner he was run-out last night and it was one more instance where he’s dismissed in an unexpected manner. In the previous game, he had shouldered arm to Nuwan Kulasekara but the ball had still touched his willow and fell on to his stumps. (PTI)

Despite its first away victory in three games, Barcelona is still 10 points adrift of leader Real Madrid thanks to Cristiano Ronaldo’s superb back-heeled goal in his team’s hard-fought 1-0 win at Rayo Vallecano earlier.

After Radamel Falcao had cancelled out Dani Alves’ opener for Barcelona, Messi caught Atletico’s players unawares while they were trying to form a defensive wall by looping a perfectly placed shot into the far side of the net in the 81st minute.

Messi’s own bit of brilliance took his league tally to 28 goals_ one behind Ronaldo’s 29.

Barcelona dominated possession from the start at Vicente Calderon stadium, patiently probing for a way through an Atletico team on a nine-game unbeaten streak since the arrival of coach Diego Simeone.

Xavi Hernandez, on his return to Barcelona’s starting 11, came close in the second minute while Messi had a goal disallowed shortly after for using his hand to control the ball. It was the Argentina forward’s fifth yellow card, meaning he will miss next week’s match against Sporting Gijon.

Barcelona finally broke through with Dani Alves’ goal in the 36th. Messi set up the goal by drawing in a swarm of defenders at the top of the box before laying the ball off, allowing Cesc Fabregas to cross to the far post for the Brazil right back to fire home.

Atletico pressed for an equalizer after halftime. That came four minutes later when striker Falcao knocked in a poor clearance by Sergio Busquets for his 15th goal of the league campaign.

With the score level, the game turned into an up-and-down contest marred by fouls that favoured Atletico’s more aggressive style.

The hosts looked set to keep Barcelona winless in three straight away games until Messi saw the chance for his 43rd goal of the season in all competitions.

The three-time Ballon D’Or winner executed the long-range strike from the left to perfection, his shot leaving the opposition goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to look on helplessly. (Agencies)

The 26-year-old returns to the national team after a five-year absence as coach Vicente del Bosque weighs up his striking options for the defence of their European title in Poland and Ukraine in June. “I knew it would be difficult to return to the national team but at last it has happened,” Soldado told reporters as he joined up with the rest of the squad on Monday. “For a striker, it is the numbers which dictate whether you are here or not. I have scored an important number of goals and I hope I can continue to score to be with the national team.

“The competition (for a place) is very tough and there are three months left which will determine whether I will be at Euro 2012 or not. I hope I can rise to the occasion and make the most of this opportunity. “We know how important Fernando Torres is to the team and we hope he will be at Euro 2012, but I am also going to give my all to be there too.”

Torres out

Torres, the scorer of the winner in the Euro 2008 final, has struggled for form since returning from injury in 2010 and Del Bosque reluctantly left him out of the squad on Friday. He has scored four goals for Chelsea this season. “I speak to Fernando a lot. It’s a difficult time for him and he was very keen to be here with us,” Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina told reporters.

“His form will return, I’m sure, but it is the boss who draws up the list.”

Soldado has scored 12 goals in La Liga, one behind fellow international and Athletic Bilbao striker Fernando Llorente, who is probably assured of his place having helped the team to success at the World Cup in 2010. (Agencies)

Mahan moved 4 up through 10 holes then held off the reigning US Open champion to become the first American to win the title since Tiger Woods in 2008.

McIlroy and Mahan had reached the title match with semi-final victories on Sunday morning. McIlroy roared back from 3 down to beat England’s Lee Westwood 3 and 1, while Mahan never trailed in a 2 and 1 victory over fellow American Mark Wilson. McIlroy admitted it was tough to bounce back after the tense battle with Westwood — who also had a chance to supplant England’s Luke Donald atop the world rankings by lifting the trophy.

After McIlroy and Mahan halved the first five holes, Mahan stuck a nine-iron two feet from the pin for a conceded birdie to win the par-three sixth.

That started a run of three straight holes won for the American, who went 4-up by winning the 10th hole, where his approach from 179 yards out nearly found the cup.

McIlroy didn’t win a hole until the 11th, where he chipped in for eagle to lie 3 down.

He rolled in a birdie putt from within eight feet at 14 to trim Mahan’s lead to 2 up.

After they halved 15 with birdies, Mahan had a chance to close it out at 16, where his putt for the title brushed the edge and didn’t drop.

He made the three-footer coming back to halve the hole with McIlroy, whose birdie attempt from 38 feet had stopped less than two feet from the hole.

They were both on the green in two at 17, but McIlroy, needing to win the hole to extend the match, left his 29-foot putt short. Mahan left his birdie attempt from 21 feet about a foot away and McIlroy conceded the tap-in to end it. The victory will move Mahan into the top 10 in the world rankings for the first time in his career. Mahan also added another elite WGC title to his resume, after his triumph at the 2010 Bridgestone Invitational. (Agencies)

Chief coach Michael Nobbs and Hockey India selectors Col. Balbir Singh, BP Govinda and Syed Ali alongwith the government observers Harbinder Singh and Dilip Tirkey held a selection meeting and unanimously selected the 48 probables. Top-ranked team in the tournament, India completely dominated the proceedings during the nine-day event at the Dhyan Chand National stadium and the team will next attend a series of coaching camps commencing for the men probables at SAI Centre Bangalore from March 5.

In the run-up to Olympics, India will play at various tournaments overseas and has already received invitations for two four nations tournaments at Lahore, Pakistan and Santandar, Spain, besides the Olympic Test Events at London and Sultan Azlan Shah Cup at Ipoh, Malaysia.

List of probables:

Goalkeepers: Bharat Chetri, PR Sreejesh, Naveen Kumar, Harmanpreet Singh, Nanak Singh.

Defenders: Sandeep Singh, VR Raghunath, Rupinder Singh, Manjit Kullu, Gurjinder Singh, Harbir Singh, Amit Rohidas, Rahul Shilpkar.

Midfielders: Ignace Tirkey, Kothajit Singh, Sardar Singh, Birendra Lakra, Manpreet Singh, Vikas Sharma, Gurbaj Singh, VS Vinaya, Bharat, Pardeep Mor, SK Uthappa.

Forwards: Yuvraj Walmiki, Tushar Khandker, Shivendra Singh, Danish Mujtaba, Sarvanjit Singh, SV Sunil, Gurvinder Singh Chandi, Pradhan Sommanna, Roshan Minz, Malak Singh, Akashdeep Singh, Chinglensana Singh Kangujam, Ramandeep Singh Nithin Timmaiah, Dharamvir Singh, Mandip Antil, MB Aiyappa Gurmail Singh, Arjun Antil, Damandeep Singh, P Singh, Ranjit Singh, Mandip Singh, MG Poonacha. (PTI)

Shells and rockets crashed into Sunni Muslim districts of Homs that have already endured weeks of bombardment as Assad’s forces, led by officers from his minority Alawite sect, try to stamp out an almost year-long revolt against his 11-year rule.

‘Intense shelling started on Khalidiya, Ashira, Bayada, Baba Amro and the old city at dawn,’ opposition activist Mohammed al-Homsi told Reuters from the city on the Damascus-Aleppo highway.

‘The army is firing from the main thoroughfares deep into alleyways and side streets. Initial reports indicate at least two people killed in the souk area,’ he said.

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said later at least seven people had been killed by shellfire in Baba Amro. The accounts of opposition activists were echoed by those from other observers, including the Red Cross.

At least 59 civilians and soldiers were killed on Sunday in a violent backdrop to a referendum on a constitution that offers some reforms, but could enable Assad to keep power until 2028.

The International Committee of the Red Cross, which has said conditions in parts of Homs are worsening by the hour, has failed to secure a pause in the fighting to allow the wounded to be evacuated and desperately needed aid to be delivered.

‘We are still in negotiations. Since the beginning, the objective has been to go in and evacuate people and bring in assistance. Every hour, every day makes a difference,’ ICRC spokesman Hicham Hassan said in Geneva.

The relief agency has been pursuing talks with the Syrian authorities and opposition forces for days to secure access to besieged neighbourhoods such as Baba Amro, where local activists say hundreds of wounded need treatment and thousands of civilians are short of water, food and medical supplies.

Four Western journalists are trapped in Baba Amro, two of them wounded. American reporter Marie Colvin and French photographer Remi Ochlik were killed there on Feb. 22.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy said he hoped the journalists could be rescued soon. ‘It’s very tense, but things are starting to move, it seems,’ he told RTL radio.

The ICRC evacuated 27 people, seven of whom were badly wounded, from Baba Amro on Friday.

The ICRC and Syrian Arab Red Crescent volunteers distributed aid supplies in Hama, another restive city under army attack, on Monday for the first time in six weeks, the ICRC spokesman said.

The outside world has proved powerless to halt the carnage in Syria, where repression of initially peaceful protests has spawned an armed insurrection by army deserters and others.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin again warned the West against military intervention in Syria, Moscow’s long-time ally, but US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made clear there was no enthusiasm in Washington for war. Russia and China have blocked action against Syria by the UN Security Council.

There were signs of rhetorical escalation in the international confrontation over Syria – Clinton’s description last week of the Russian and Chinese veto as ‘despicable’ earned her a reproach from Beijing’s foreign ministry that such language was ‘totally unacceptable’.

A Chinese newspaper, noting the chaos in Iraq after the US occupation, accused Washington of ‘egotistical super arrogance’.

Sarkozy said, however, that Western powers hoped diplomacy could change minds: ‘We are putting pressure on the Russians first and the Chinese afterwards so that they lift their veto.

‘You can’t continue to massacre a people. The next Syrian government is not up to us but things can’t continue like this.’

The European Union agreed a further round of economic sanctions on Monday, targeting the Syrian central bank and some ministers, curbing gold trading and banning cargo flights. (UNI)

Assad’s government, which is also backed by Iran, says it is fighting foreign-backed ‘armed terrorist groups’.

MILITARY INTERVENTION

While the West dismisses talk of a Libya-style NATO role to support Assad’s opponents, Gulf Arab states have pushed for a more forceful stance. Saudi Arabia said on Friday it would back the idea of arming rebels – a proposal likely to alarm Moscow.

‘I very much hope the United States and other countries … do not try to set a military scenario in motion in Syria without sanction from the U.N. Security Council,’ said Putin, for whom a strong profile in world affairs may play well in Sunday’s presidential election, which he is expected to win comfortably.

Clinton told BBC television there was ‘every possibility’ of civil war in Syria. ‘Outside intervention would not prevent that. It would probably expedite it,’ she said.

The Syrian government was due to announce the result of the vote on the constitution, which would drop an article making Assad’s Baath party the leader of state and society, allow political pluralism and enact a presidential limit of two seven-year terms. A parliamentary poll would be held in three months.

But the presidential term limit is not retrospective, implying that Assad, 46, already in power since 2000, could serve two further terms after his current one expires in 2014.

Diplomats who toured dozens of polling stations in Damascus reported seeing only a handful of voters at each location.

The opposition dismisses the reforms on offer, saying that Assad, and his father who ruled for 30 years before him, have long paid only lip service to existing legal obligations.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called the referendum ‘an important step on the path of reforms’ and criticised as ‘one-sided’ Friday’s ‘Friends of Syria’ gathering in Tunis at which Western and Arab powers met Syrian opposition leaders.

All sides must end violence, he said: ‘If it is demanded of the government stop operations to fight militants and the militants have no responsibilities, that is unrealistic.’

Opponents of Assad have struggled for unity since the uprising began in March. On Sunday, at least 20 secular and Islamist members of the Syrian National Council broke away on Sunday to form the Syrian Patriotic Group.

Razing the building, where bin Laden was shot dead by US special forces last year on May 2, Pakistan has destroyed a symbol of the country’s failure to trace the al-Qaeda chief. Bulldozers and heavy machinery completely tore down the building and other structures within a compound located about 800 yards from the elite Pakistan Military Academy in the garrison town of Abbottabad. Local residents said the walls surrounding the compound were still standing.

Trucks removed debris from the site as the heavy machinery pulled down the structures. The demolition had begun late on Saturday night amidst tight security. Scores of policemen and army soldiers were deployed around Bilal Town, the suburb where the compound is located.

“The whole structure has been razed to the ground. It actually took some time as the process of demolition and removing the rubble was going on simultaneously,” an unnamed security official was quoted as saying by Geo News channel.

Local residents said some debris was still present within the compound and expressed hope that their suffering would end now that the compound had been demolished. The compound had aroused curiosity and attracted a large number of visitors, the local residents said. There was no official word on who had ordered the demolition or its timing.

The unnamed official quoted by Geo News said a number of meetings were held to decide what should be done with the compound since his killing, but the structure could not be demolished due to differences of opinion among officials.

“It was finally decided to demolish the building on Saturday night,” the official said. A recent rocket attack on the Pakistan Military Academy had caused serious concern among military authorities and the local administration and strict security measures were put in place for the demolition, a police officer told Geo News. Reports said security forces would remain deployed at the site where bin Laden reportedly moved into in 2005. (PTI)