Oct 10, 2024 05:20 AM IST
AFC deems Mohun Bagan withdrawn from ACL2 for not traveling to Iran, while Esteghlal’s match with Al-Nassr is to be played at a neutral venue.
Kolkata: Two days after declaring that Mohun Began Super Giant were considered to have withdrawn from the Asian Champions League 2 (ACL2) for not travelling to Iran, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has written to Esteghlal FC stating that their match against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr will have to be played at “neutral” venue.
In their appeal to AFC against the decision, Mohun Bagan are likely to mention this. “It does seem odd that Mohun Bagan were treated one way and Al-Nassr-Esteghlal another,” said an official at the club. The official said Mohun Bagan are consulting lawyers and will file their appeal soon.
The Esteghlal-Al-Nassr match in the Asian Champions League is scheduled on October 22. According to a post in Persian on the X handle @FcEsteghlal on Wednesday, AFC has written to the Iran federation that the club should name a neutral venue at the earliest. Another report on X also said that the Asian Champions League 2 match between Tractor SC and Ravshan of Tajikistan, scheduled for November 7, will also be moved out.
Conflict in West Asia has escalated over the past few days and on October 1, Iran fired about 180 ballistic missiles at Israel.
Mohun Bagan had written to AFC asking for the match, scheduled in Tabriz in Iran on October 2, to be either deferred or shifted to a neutral venue. This was after 35 players sent a signed declaration to the club saying they did not feel it safe to travel to Iran.
AFC responded on Monday by saying as per tournament rules Mohun Bagan were “considered to have withdrawn” for failing to report for the match in Iran. All matches involving Mohun Bagan — they had played one, a 0-0 home draw with Ravshan — would be ignored while determining the standings in the group.
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