India’s Minerva Academy retain Gothia Cup title with dramatic win

India’s Minerva Academy have turned success on the international stage into a habit. Just a week after the Chandigarh-based club lifted the prestigious Helsinki Cup for the first time, their Under-12 boys added another major European trophy by successfully defending the Gothia Cup title with a thrilling 2-1 victory over Brazil’s RS Sports Yellow in the final.

If the Helsinki Cup triumph completed unfinished business after last year’s heartbreak, the Gothia Cup victory reaffirmed Minerva’s status as one of the world’s leading youth academies outside Europe.

Playing in Gothenburg where a huge number of Indian fans had gathered to watch them in action, Minerva produced another composed display to cap off a memorable European tour.

Minerva made the perfect start when Kipgen Thangsanglen opened the scoring inside the first 10 minutes. However, RS Sports Yellow responded swiftly as they found the equaliser to send the teams into the halftime break level at 1-1 at half time.

“We told each other that we needed to keep fighting and score more goals. If we continued to play as a team, we would score more goals and win the match,” Thangsanglen told the Gothia Cup website after the final.

The second half remained evenly contested, with both teams searching for the decisive breakthrough. Just when the match appeared destined for extra time, Mekhamkhraw Nongrem produced a moment of brilliance, curling home a superb free-kick with just two minutes remaining to restore Minerva’s lead.

The Indian youngsters defended resolutely in the closing stages to seal a famous 2-1 victory and lift their second consecutive Gothia Cup crown.

For Thangsanglen, the triumph was as much about the team as the trophy. “This is the best team I have ever played with. They are the best teammates, I care a lot about them,” he said.

After the final whistle, the celebrations quickly spread to the stands where hundreds of Indian supporters joined the players in marking another historic achievement.

“Look at the fans, it’s really cool to celebrate together with them,” Thangsanglen added.

The latest title continues an extraordinary run for Minerva Academy, which has made a habit of challenging and defeating some of the world’s best youth teams on European soil. The academy once again dominated much of the tournament, scoring freely during the group stage before overcoming tougher tests in the knockout rounds.

Within the space of a week, Minerva have now returned home with two of Europe’s most prestigious youth football titles, underlining the academy’s growing reputation.