The final four teams for the knockout rounds of the Santosh Trophy have been decided as they land in Saudi Arabia to seize the opportunity of lifting the title at the end. This will be the first time the tournament will shift outside the Indian subcontinent to decide the winners. The top two teams from each group of the two groups in the final round, hosted in Bhubaneshwar, qualified for this stage. Punjab, Karnataka, Services and Meghalaya are the states making the historical trip. All the games will be played at the King Fahd International Stadium in the capital city of Riyadh.
Overview of the Final Round
Punjab and Karnataka finished first and second respectively after five matches in Group A ahead of defending champions Kerala. The Southern state missed out on the last qualification places by a whisker but it was still a shock to not see the holders make it into the last four. Maharashtra and Odisha finished after them while Goa ended last.
In Group B, there was more surprise in store as last year’s finalists and record winners West Bengal finished rock bottom of the pile with Delhi, Manipur and Railways above them. They collected only a point from five games including their last four. Former winners and group toppers Services and Meghalaya made it out of the round.
Teams
Punjab
The state of Punjab are making their debut in the semi-finals of the Santosh Trophy. They pipped four-time winners Karnataka for first place in Group A having stayed unbeaten after five games. Punjab collected three wins and drew twice to take their tally to 11 points.
Karnataka
Karnataka finished below Punjab in second and just a point (9) above Kerala (8), even defeating them 1-0 in the battle of Southern India. Like the table toppers, Karnataka did not lose any of the five games in the final round but drew a game more.
Services
Four consecutive-time winners of the Santosh Trophy, Services will eye their sixth title in history after making easy work in the final round, collecting 13 points with no games lost. Their defense was the best in the round with only two conceded.
Meghalaya
Meghalaya are the second debutant in the last four of the tournament after finishing second in Group B. They finished on 10 points, three points better than third-placed Railways, by gathering three wins in five games with a draw and a defeat in the rest.
Fixtures
Wednesday, 1 March 2023
Semi-final 1: Punjab vs Meghalaya (17:30)
The two newcomers, Punjab and Meghalaya will square off against each other in the first semi-final of the Santosh Trophy to reach the final.
Semi-final 2: Services vs Karnataka (21:00)
The second semifinal will see two former winners, Services and Karnataka take on each other to book a place for the showpiece.
Saturday, 4 March 2023
Third-place battle: Loser Semi-final 1 vs Loser Semi-final 2 (17:30)
The defeated teams of the semifinals fight to stake a claim for third place in the competition.
Sunday, 4 March 2023
Final: Winner Semi-final 1 vs Winner Semi-final 2 (21:00)
The winners from each of the semifinals meet in a monumental final to create history in Riyadh.
Note: All timings are in Indian Standard Time (IST)
Must Read | Indian Football Calendar for the year 2023
