Shabbir Ali

Indian footballer and football manager (born 1986)

Not to be confused with Shabbir Ali (footballer, born 1986).

Shabbir Ali

Ali in August 2017

Personal information
Date of birth|  (1956-01-26) 26 January 1956 (age 67)
Place of birth|  Hyderabad, Hyderabad State, India
Position(s)|  Striker
Senior career*
Years|  Team|  Apps|  (Gls)
0000–1972|  Hyderabad Arsenal Club|  |
1972|  Tata Sports Hyderabad|  |
1978–1979|  East Bengal|  |  (35)
1973–1984|  Mohammedan|  |
1984–1985|  Victoria Sporting Dhaka|  |
International career
1974|  India U19|  6|  (5)
1974–1984|  India|  66|  (23[1])
Managerial career
1985–1992|  Mohammedan
1992–1993|  Rajasthan Club
1993–1995|  Peerless SC
1997–2000|  Salgaocar
2000–2001|  Mahindra United
2004|  Churchill Brothers
2005|  Salgaocar
2006–2007|  Vasco
2007–2010|  Mohammedan
2011–2012|  Southern Samity
|  Telangana
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Shabbir Ali (born 26 January 1956) is an Indian football manager and former player.[2][3][4] He was awarded the Dhyan Chand Award, the highest award in Indian sports for lifetime achievement, given by Government of India in 2011.[5][6] He is the first footballer to be named for the Dhyan Chand Award.[7]

## Club career[edit]

As a footballer, Shabbir Ali was rated as the best player in India during the 1970s and 1980s.[8] Arguably the finest striker of his time, Shabbir was a prolific goal scorer both at the national and international level. He rose to fame at a very early age when he captained India to win the Asian Youth championships in Bangkok jointly with Iran in 1974, a performance which even earned praise from the then Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi.[2]

After playing with Tata Sports Club in Bombay for a few years, Shabbir Ali was lured away by the top Calcutta club, East Bengal in the late seventies. Later he joined Mohammedan Sporting and took the club to a great height before retiring from the same club in the mid-1980s.

During his captaincy, in 1983–84, the club won 9 trophies including back to back wins in Indian Federation Cup. Later in his playing days, he went to Bangladesh to play for Dhaka Football League side Dhaka Victoria Sporting,[9] where he stayed for a season only.[10]

Shabbir Ali scored 23 goals in international matches and remains one of India's all-time top scorers, ahead of Chuni Goswami, PK Banerjee, Inder Singh and Baichung Bhutia among others. In the 1976 Merdeka international football tournament in Kuala Lumpur, Shabbir Ali scored a hat-trick against Indonesia in the first 35 minutes. Only five footballers in India have scored an international hat-trick; of those, Shabbir Ali's is the fastest.[2]

On his 65th birthday, Ali said, "Whatever I have become today because of football. Before retiring I was thinking I got everything from football. Now I have to give something back to the game. So, that is why I became a coach. Before retiring in 1987, I was player-cum-coach of Mohammedan Sporting. In 1988–89, I have pursued a diploma from NIS."

## International career[edit]

For 12 years between 1972 and 1984, Ali was an automatic choice with the national team of India, be it Asian Youth, Asian Games, pre-Olympics, Asian Cup, Merdeka Cup tournament, Nehru Gold Cup,[11] King's Cup or any other goodwill tour. He also captained India in Asian Youth, pre-Olympics, Nehru Cup, Merdeka and King's Cup tournaments.[2] He gained fame when Arun Ghosh managed India U-20 team under his captaincy, went on to share the 1974 AFC Youth Championship title with Iran-20, in which he scored five goals.[12][13]

One of his best moments came in the 1976 Merdeka international football tournament in Kuala Lumpur,[14] where he scored a hat-trick against Indonesia within the first 35 minutes. Among Indians who have scored a hat-trick, Shabbir Ali's was the fastest.[15][16][17]

He also appeared in 1976 Jasson Cup held in Afghanistan, with Indian team managed by Jarnail Singh.[18] He played 66 international matches for India and scored 23 goals from 1974 to 1984 and was one of the highest ranked goal scorers on the basis of strike rate per match.[19]

## Managerial career[edit]

After retiring as a footballer in 1985, Ali became a coach.[20] He earned a first class diploma from the Sports Authority of India. He successfully passed the German football association B License coach and also their four-week coaching course, which is equivalent to A License.[2]

As a coach, Ali proved to be a great success within a short period of time. Appointed the Technical Director of the India, Shabbir Ali steered the team to the gold medal in the 1995 South Asian Games in Chennai. It was a superb achievement considering the fact that India failed to win in the three previous South Asian Games at Colombo, Islamabad and Dhaka. He remained the Technical Director till the pre-World Cup tournament in Qatar next year.[2]

In the 1991–92 seasons, he made Mohammedan Sporting the Champion Club of India having won four tournaments and finished runners-up in two others. Next season, he took up the challenge of coaching a relatively smaller club when he accepted the assignment with Peerless SC. It took him only one season to promote the club to the Calcutta Super Division.[21]

Between 1997 and 1999, Shabbir Ali managed top Goan outfit Salgaocar and established himself as India's best coach.[22][23] Barring a few like PK Banerjee and Syed Nayeemuddin, no other coach in India could win so many titles in such a short span as Shabbir Ali did.[2]

It started in 1998 when Salgaocar won the Goa Professional League under his guidance and went on to win the Indian Super Cup defeating the National League champions, Mohun Bagan AC.[24] Next Salgaocar won the National League title,[25] the only time a Goan team could win it till date.[26] Shabbir Ali then took the team to Bombay and won the Rovers Cup. Thereafter, the team flew into Delhi to bag the Durand Cup beating both Mohun Bagan and East Bengal and then tamed Mohun Bagan again in the Super Cup contest. No other teams in India have been given such a great run in Indian football in recent years.[2]

He also managed Churchill Brothers in 2004.[27] In 2006, he succeeded Mridul Banerjee as manager of another NFL side Vasco.[28] In 2008, he was again appointment head coach of Mohammedan.[29] In 2011–12 season, he managed Calcutta Football League side Southern Samity.[30]

On 2 September 2022, he was unanimously appointed as the Chairman of the All India Football Federation Advisory Committee.[31] He is also included in the board of eminent players of the AIFF.[32][33]

## Football academy[edit]

In February 2021, Ali launched a football academy in Hyderabad named Shabbir Ali Football Academy, that became operational from 1 March.[34] The academy is also affiliated with Telangana Football Association.

## Personal life[edit]

Beside football, Ali was appointed and worked as Scale-I officer of Allahabad Bank.[35] In September 2013, he suffered a massive heart-attack and recovered.[35]

## Honours[edit]

### Player[edit]

India

* ANFA Cup runner-up: 1983[36]
* Afghanistan Republic Day Cup third place: 1976[37]
* King's Cup third place: 1977[38]

India U20

* AFC Asian U-19 Championship: 1974[39][40]

Mohammedan Sporting

* Calcutta Football League: 1981
* Federation Cup: 1983–84
* Rovers Cup: 1980, 1984
* Sait Nagjee Trophy: 1984
* DCM Trophy: 1980
* Sikkim Gold Cup: 1980
* Durand Cup runner-up: 1980
* IFA Shield runner-up: 1982

Individual

* AFC Youth Championship top scorer: 1974[41]
* Calcutta Football League top scorer: 1983[42]

### Manager[edit]

Mohammedan Sporting[42]

* Federation Cup: 1984–85; runners-up: 1989–90
* Stafford Cup: 1991
* Rovers Cup: 1987; runner-up: 1991
* Sait Nagjee Trophy: 1991, 1992
* Bordoloi Trophy: 1985, 1986, 1991
* All Airlines Gold Cup: 1986; unner-up: 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990
* Independence Day Cup: 1988
* Sikkim Governor's Gold Cup runner-up: 1986, 1987, 1989, 1991
* Kalinga Cup: 1991
* Vizag Trophy: 1986

Salgaocar

* National Football League: 1998–99

## Awards[edit]

* Dhyan Chand Award in 2011,[43][44] towards his service to coach Goan outfit Salgaocar Club between 1997 and 1999.[2][45]
* Banga Bhushan in 2014 by the Government of West Bengal[46]

## See also[edit]

* List of India national football team hat-tricks
* List of Indian football players in foreign leagues
* List of India national football team captains

## References[edit]

1. ^ Dey, Subrata. "India — Record International Players". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 21 March 2019. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Chaudhuri, Arunava. "Shabbir Ali". indianfootball.de. IndianFootball Network. Archived from the original on 19 August 2014. Retrieved 6 September 2011.
3. ^ Nizamuddin, Mohammed (14 July 2018). "Old-timers recollect past glory of city football". Hyderabad, Telangana: The Hans India. Archived from the original on 22 October 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
4. ^ Nag, Utathya (19 April 2023). "Calcutta Football League: East Bengal kings of Asia's oldest league competition — full winners list". olympics.com. The Olympics Football. Archived from the original on 5 May 2023. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
5. ^ "National sports awards announced". The Hindu. 19 August 2011. Archived from the original on 17 July 2021. Retrieved 25 January 2012.
6. ^ "Gagan Narang confirmed for Khel Ratna award". NDTV. Press Trust of India. 18 August 2011. Archived from the original on 8 October 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
7. ^ "Shabbir Ali Wins Dhyan Chand Award". www.outlookindia.com. Kolkata. 26 July 2011. Archived from the original on 17 July 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2020.
8. ^ "Watch: Shabbir Ali, the overlooked football legend". englishamp.etvbharat.com. Archived from the original on 24 October 2021. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
9. ^ "Football in Bangladesh - Azam Mahmood". Bdsportsvision.com. Archived from the original on 17 September 2011. Retrieved 1 November 2012.
10. ^ Das, Rudra Narayan (29 November 2011). "Player Biography : Shabbir Ali – Only Footballer To Win Dhyan Chand Award". indianfooty.net. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 23 August 2012. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
11. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava (1999). "The Indian Senior Team at the 1982 Calcutta Nehru Cup". indianfootball.de. Archived from the original on 17 October 2021. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
12. ^ Banerjee, Ritabrata (30 April 2020). "Down the memory lane: India's AFC Youth Championship triumph in 1974". www.goal.com. Goal. Archived from the original on 24 August 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
13. ^ Ali, Shabbir (30 April 2020). "From gate-crashers to joint winners: India's journey at the Asian Youth Championship Bangkok 1974". www.the-aiff.com. Hyderabad: All India Football Federation. Archived from the original on 24 August 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
14. ^ Pestabola Merdeka Football Tournament 1976 #statistics Archived 4 October 2021 at the Wayback Machine international-football.net. Retrieved 4 October 2021
15. ^ "Thais fight back". The Straits Times. 17 August 1976. Archived from the original on 16 July 2018. Retrieved 15 July 2018.
16. ^ Ganesh, Arjun (21 January 2018). "Shabbir back steering dreams". Deccan Herald. Archived from the original on 15 November 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
17. ^ "Shabbir Ali: The Hyderabadi footballer who represented city's golden era of the sport". The Siasat Daily. Archived from the original on 4 October 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
18. ^ "The Senior National Team at 1976 Jasson Cup". indiafootball.de. IndiaFootball. Archived from the original on 12 January 2019. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
19. ^ Football Is My Language - Shabbir Ali Archived 10 September 2021 at the Wayback Machine Indianfootball.de. Retrieved 10 September 2021
20. ^ Sengupta, Somnath (13 July 2011). "Tactical Evolution Of Indian Football: Part Four – Modern Era (1999—2011)". thehardtackle.com. Kolkata: The Hard Tackle. Archived from the original on 18 September 2021. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
21. ^ "Indian Football "HALL OF FAME"". indianfootball.de. Archived from the original on 29 January 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2021.
22. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava. "Season ending Transfers 1999: India". indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 17 February 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
23. ^ "Coutinho best". Press Trust of India. 21 July 1997. Archived from the original on 16 April 2022. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
24. ^ Jonathan De Sousa (16 January 2011). "Salgaocar Sports Club: regaining the lost glory". thehardtackle.com. The Hard Tackle. Archived from the original on 5 October 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
25. ^ "From the History Book". All India Football Federation. the-aiff.com. Archived from the original on 17 July 2014. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
26. ^ Salgaocar Sports Club: regaining the lost glory. Archived 5 October 2021 at the Wayback Machine. The Hard Tackle. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
27. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava. "Season ending Transfers 2004". indianfootball.de. Archived from the original on 26 October 2021. Retrieved 2 November 2021.
28. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava. "Season ending Transfers 2006: India". indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
29. ^ Pawar, Vaibhav (26 September 2008). "Mohd Sporting's name keeps sponsors away". mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com. Mumbai, Maharashtra: Mumbai Mirror. Archived from the original on 15 July 2022. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
30. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava (3 December 2012). "Indian Football: Transfer Season 2012/13 Updated". sportskeeda.com. Sportskeeda. Archived from the original on 21 March 2023. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
31. ^ Media Team, AIFF (3 September 2022). "AIFF Executive Committee appoints Shaji Prabhakaran as new Secretary General". www.the-aiff.com. New Delhi: All India Football Federation. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
32. ^ Sports Desk, FPJ (2 September 2022). "Former goalkeeper Kalyan Chaubey appointed new AIFF President". www.freepressjournal.com. The Free Press Journal. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
33. ^ "List of AIFF executive committee members & co-opted eminent players". khelnow.com. Khel Now. 2 September 2022. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
34. ^ Former India football captain Shabbir Ali launches academy Archived 6 September 2021 at the Wayback Machine. sportstar.thehindu.com. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
35. ^ a b Barua, Suhrid (24 September 2013). "Former India football captain Shabbir Ali suffers massive heart attack". sportskeeda.com. Sportskeeda. Archived from the original on 9 February 2023. Retrieved 9 February 2023.
36. ^ "ANFA Invitational Tournament (Nepal)". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 16 November 2013. Retrieved 9 July 2014.
37. ^ Morrison, Neil (2008). "Afghanistan Republic Day Festival Cup (Kabul, Afghanistan): Palmares". rsssf.com. Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Archived from the original on 2 October 2022. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
38. ^ The Indian Senior Team at the 1977 Bangkok Kings Cup: Archived 19 August 2016 at the Wayback Machine indianfootball.de. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
39. ^ Morrison, Neil. "Asian U-19 Championship 1974". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 5 November 2017. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
40. ^ "Home — Prasun Banerjee — Member of Parliament of India". Archived from the original on 20 March 2014. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
41. ^ Media Team, AIFF (15 August 2022). "Indian Football Down the Years: Looking back at the glorious moments". www.the-aiff.com. New Delhi: All India Football Federation. Archived from the original on 21 September 2022. Retrieved 20 October 2022.
42. ^ a b Chakrabarty, Kushal (12 July 2012). "Mohammedan Sporting Club, Kolkata: A New Horizon". kolkatafootball.com. Kolkata Football. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
43. ^ "List of Dhyan Chand Awardees". Sports Authority of India. Archived from the original on 14 February 2017. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
44. ^ "Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna Awards and other Sports Awards Announced" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 18 August 2011. Archived from the original on 26 April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
45. ^ "Indian striker Shabbir Ali became first footballer to win prestigious Dhyan Chand Award". Jagaran Josh. 6 September 2011. Archived from the original on 8 August 2011.
46. ^ Staff Reporter (18 May 2014). "State government to confer Banga awards on May 20". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 14 January 2020. Retrieved 17 August 2020 - via www.thehindu.com.

## Further reading[edit]

Bibliography

* Kapadia, Novy (2017). Barefoot to Boots: The Many Lives of Indian Football. Penguin Random House. ISBN 978-0-143-42641-7.
* Martinez, Dolores; Mukharjiim, Projit B (2009). Football: From England to the World: The Many Lives of Indian Football. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-138-88353-6. Archived from the original on 2 July 2022.
* Nath, Nirmal (2011). History of Indian Football: Upto 2009–10. Readers Service. ISBN 9788187891963. Archived from the original on 22 July 2022.
* Dineo, Paul; Mills, James (2001). Soccer in South Asia: Empire, Nation, Diaspora. London, United Kingdom: Frank Cass Publishers. ISBN 978-0-7146-8170-2. Archived from the original on 25 July 2022.
* Majumdar, Boria; Bandyopadhyay, Kausik (2006). A Social History Of Indian Football: Striving To Score. Routledge. ISBN 9780415348355. Archived from the original on 29 June 2021.
* Basu, Jaydeep (2003). Stories from Indian Football. UBS Publishers' Distributors. ISBN 9788174764546. Archived from the original on 11 October 2022.

Others

* Santhosh, Aswathy (9 July 2023). "Salgaocar FC's bittersweet goodbye — Fall of a Goan giant". thebridge.in. Panaji: The Bridge. Archived from the original on 11 July 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
* Bhattacharya, Gautam (9 July 2023). "Salgaocar FC shutting shop shocks former stars Barretto, D' Cunha". nationalheraldindia.com. The National Herald. Archived from the original on 11 July 2023. Retrieved 7 July 2023.
* Bhattacharya (2 July 2023). "Salgaocar Football Club bid adieu". navhindtimes.in. Margao: The Navahind Times. Archived from the original on 11 July 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.

## External links[edit]

Portals:

* India
* Biography
* Association football

* Shabbir Ali on Twitter
* Shabbir Ali on Facebook
* Shabbir Ali on Instagram

* v
* t
* e

India squad – 1984 AFC Asian Cup

* 1 A. Bhattacharya
* 2 Dorji
* 3 T. Dey
* 4 Chatterjee (c)
* 5 Roy
* 6 Banerjee
* 7 Panji
* 8 K. Dey
* 9 Thapa
* 10 Ali
* 11 B. Bhattacharya
* 12 Pereira
* 14 Singh
* 15 Mani
* 16 S. Bhattacharya
* 17 Afonso
* 18 Kakroo
* 20 Sankhwalkar
* Coach: Ćirić

* v
* t
* e

Mohammedan SC (Kolkata) – managers

* Nassiri (2002–2004)
* Ali (2007–2010)
* Nayeemuddin (2010)
* Tope (2010–2011)
* Sen (2012–2013)
* Tope (2013)
* Bola (2013)
* Sen (2013–2014)
* Ghosh (2014–2015)
* Bhattacharya (2015–2016)
* Tope (2016)
* Banerjee (2016)
* Chowdhury (2016–2017)
* Biswajit (2017–2018)
* Banerjee (2018)
* Sarkar (2018–2019)
* Biswajit (2019)
* Ramon (2019)
* Ghoshal (2019–2020)
* Law (2020)
* Ramonc (2020)
* Hevia (2020–2021)
* Sankarlalc (2021)
* Chernyshov (2021–2022)
* Vicuña (2022–2023)
* Wadoo (2023–)

(c) = caretaker manager, (i) = interim manager
*[Apps]: League appearances
*[Gls]: League goals
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template