Playing in the top club football competition is no easy task, and something that no Indian has succeeded in doing so, until Manisha Kalyan took the field for Cypriot club Apollon Ladies FC on Thursday, August 18, in the UEFA Women's Champions League. The young striker made her debut for the Cypriot First Division champions in the European Club competition in Engomi, Cyprus.
Kalyan replaced Cyprus' Marilena Georgiou in the 60th minute at the Makareio Stadium as Apollon Ladies FC beat Latvian top flight club SFK Rīga 3-0 in their UWCL opener. The 20-year-old had emerged as the fourth Indian women's international footballer to sign for an overseas club when she landed a multi-year contract with Cypriot top division winners Apollon Ladies.
Earlier in her career, Kalyan had produced impressive performances for the national team and the Gokulam Kerala women's in the Indian Women's League (IWL). She was recently awarded the AIFF Women's Footballer of the Year for the 2021-22 season.
Kalyan shot to fame in 2021 when she scored against former World Cup runners-up Brazil in their own den during an international friendly. She is the second player from Gokulam Kerala to sign for an overseas club after Dangmei Grace joined Uzbek outfit FC Nasaf.
Apollon Ladies will next play FC Zurich Frauen on August 21.
Meanwhile, back in India, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) were dealt a blow in the early hours of Tuesday, August 16, when FIFA released a statement saying that the AIFF were banned until further notice citing 'third-party influence'.
This has put pressure on the Supreme Court-appointed Court of Administrators, who need to find a quick resolution to these issues before FIFA decides to snatch the U-17 Women's World Cup hosting rights from India.
