Kolkata: With less than a week to go before their crucial Asian Champions League 2 away fixture against Sepahan in Iran on September 30, Mohun Bagan Super Giant face uncertainty after the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) turned down their request to move the game to a neutral venue.
The Indian Super League champions had earlier written to AFC highlighting safety concerns over travelling to Isfahan, nearly 450km from Tehran, as multiple countries including Australia United Kingdom and Spain have issued travel advisories against visiting Iran. Mohun Bagan’s squad includes several players from these countries such as Jamie Maclaren Jason Cummings Dimitri Petratos Tom Aldred Alberto Rodriguez and head coach Jose Molina.
In their first letter, the Kolkata giants had requested a risk assessment and proposed shifting the game to a neutral ground to ensure the safety of players and staff. With AFC rejecting the request, Mohun Bagan have now written again asking how the governing body concluded it was safe to proceed with the fixture. Officials at AFC and the All India Football Federation (AIFF) confirmed the exchanges but declined to be quoted on record.
Despite the uncertainty, Sepahan’s manager Mir Salehian told reporters that visas have already been issued to all Mohun Bagan players and that there are “no issues” from their side. Meanwhile, Mohun Bagan officials have yet to finalize their travel date.
The Mariners began their ACL2 campaign with a 0-1 loss to Ahal FK of Turkmenistan on September 16 and are looking to bounce back. Last year, Mohun Bagan had refused to travel to Iran for an away clash against Tractor FC due to escalating tensions in the region. Though they were deemed to have withdrawn, AFC spared them sanctions citing circumstances beyond their control.
This time, however, AFC has made it clear that the fixture will go ahead in Iran, placing Mohun Bagan in a difficult position just days before kickoff.