CHENNAI: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) officially handed over the I-League trophy to Chennai City FC (CCFC) and announced the list of I-League awardees on Wednesday. It effectively meant AIFF has ended its probe into the crucial I-League match between CCFC and Minerva Punjab following match commissioner Balasubramaniam Byrappa's suspicion that the game wasn't played in "true spirit".

A top AIFF official said they have given a clean chit to the match. "The match is above suspicion. Even the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has cleared it. So we don't have any doubt that CCFC are the winners," the official said.

CCFC had gone on to win the Minerva game 3-1 after trailing 0-1 in the first half, courtesy's Pedro Manzi and Gaurav Bora's goals. The win meant CCFC finished on 43 points, one more than runners-up East Bengal who had defeated Gokulam Kerala in a match played simultaneously in Kozhikode. However, Balasubramaniam, who had earlier given the match a clean chit in his report, had mailed AIFF saying Manzi's 56th-minute penalty was dubious because Minerva goalkeeper Nidhin Lal dived the other way even after the striker gestured which direction he was going to kick. The official also questioned Minerva's substitutions and owner Ranjit Bajaj's unusual ‘calm behaviour'.

It was also learnt that AIFF has now ordered an internal investigation into Balasubramaniam. "Our integrity officer Javed Siraj had asked him whether he found anything unusual right after the game and he replied in the negative. So we don't understand how he could change his report a day after giving a clean chit to the match. We have now frozen all his assignments till the probe gets over," the official said.

I-League awards: Highest Scorer: Willis Plaza (Churchill Bros) & Pedro Manzi (Chennai City FC); Best Goalkeeper: Bilal Khan (Real Kashmir); Best Defender: Roberto Eslava (CCFC); Best Midfielder: Nestor Gordillo (CCFC); Best Forward: Pedro Manzi (CCFC); Best Coach: Akbar Nawas (CCFC); Hero of the League: Pedro Manzi (CCFC); Fair Play Award: Shillong Lajong; Best Hosts: Quess East Bengal

