All the conditions are suitable for staging the match The fallout rumbles on after the Asian Football Confederation postponed the AFC Champions League Elite clash between Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr and the UAE’s Al-Wasl.Al-Nassr were set to host Al-Wasl today, Monday, only for the continental body to call the match off. A new date and kick-off time would follow in due course, the AFC said, without naming one.Dr Ayman Al-Rifai, legal adviser and former head of the disciplinary and ethics committee at the Saudi Federation, hit back by insisting the AFC’s decision rests on no regulation or legal text and arrived both general and vague.Speaking exclusively to the Saudi newspaper “Arriyadiyah”, Al-Rifai said: “Firstly, the AFC’s decision is not based on any regulation or legal text, but rather came general and vague. Secondly, all circumstances are suitable for staging the match in every respect and there is nothing to prevent it being played”.He continued: “Thirdly, not playing the match or a team abstaining from it must be within the regulations governing the competition, and there is no text to support Al-Wasl’s position in apologising. Worse still is the AFC’s approval of the postponement without notifying the other team and discussing with the body responsible for organising the match and the current situation, especially as last week saw a round of the Roshn League in addition to the return of air traffic to its normal state”.The former head of the disciplinary and ethics committee added: “Al-Nassr’s position is largely legal, especially as the Saudi Federation showed its full readiness to provide support and submit everything that proves the validity of the club’s position. But unfortunately, the AFC’s stance with Saudi clubs is known for its negativity and injustice, as we saw how Al-Nassr were wronged in their recent case with Persepolis, as well as Al-Hilal in the matter of completing the squad list”.He went on: “The AFC did not take all these matters into consideration, in terms of giving Al-Nassr the right to prove the ineligibility of the Persepolis player’s participation, and postponing Al-Hilal’s match so they could complete the squad list and apply force majeure and the surrounding circumstances”.
