Indian players help ZNK Dinamo Zagreb win first title

The Indian trio of Jyoti Chauhan, MK Kashmina, and Kiran Pisda played key roles in ZNK Dinamo Zagreb winning the Croatian Women's Football Cup, marking the club's first major title.

Kashmina, a 25-year-old midfielder from Manipur, stood out at the SRC Mladost ground in Cakovec, scoring the decisive penalty that ended their match against ZNK Osijek in sudden death.

Kashmina scored the final spot-kick, securing a 5-4 win on penalties for Dinamo Zagreb after a 1-1 draw in regulation time. The victory was notable as Osijek are 19-time champions and were unbeaten this season until the final on Saturday.

ZNK Dinamo Zagreb has become a significant destination for Indian women footballers over the last few seasons. This trend started with Jyoti and Soumya Guguloth in 2022, followed by winger Kiran and Kashmina.

"The way we won this Cup was special. Our club had never won it before, and the manner in which we won it right at the end makes it all the more memorable," Kashmina told the-aiff.com. "I've scored a few goals in the IWL as well, but winning here in Croatia, with the three of us playing an important role in the team, it really feels like we have created history for our club."

Kashmina came off the bench in the final, while Jyoti and Kiran played the full game. Both Jyoti and Kashmina scored in the quarter-finals and semi-finals, respectively.

This is the second season ZNK Dinamo Zagreb reached the final of the tournament. They lost the final 2-3 to ZNK Split last season, where Jyoti had scored.

"Winning the Croatian Women's Football Cup is a huge achievement for us all. Not only is it the first time our club has won it, but what makes this win even better is that we had lost the final last season, and now have come back to win our first title," said Jyoti, a striker from Dhar district of Madhya Pradesh.

(With inputs from PTI)