Kolkata and Indian giants Mohun Bagan Super Giant refused to travel to Iran to play their AFC Champions League Two clash against Tractor FC. Originally, the Mariners were slated to fly off from Bengaluru on 29th September. But the grave conditions in Iran have forced Mohun Bagan to not travel to the country.
All 35 players along with the staff members sent a letter to the club claiming that they are unwilling to travel to Iran. And now things took a sharp turn. Previously the country went into a 5 day national mourning period after the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
What happens to the Tractor FC vs Mohun Bagan match?
And now as per reports war have broken in Iran. As previously reported by InsideSport, Mohun Bagan returned to Kolkata on Sunday, 29th September, as they didn’t want to go to Iran, given the club feared about the safety of their players and staffs. A Mohun Bagan senior official told this website, “The security of our players and staff is of utmost importance. We have informed the AFC about the situation and await their response. Furthermore, we have also been in touch with the Ministry of External Affairs.”
And now the match won’t take place as Mohun Bagan haven’t travelled to Iran. The AFC in their official statement said –
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has taken note of Mohun Bagan Super Giant’s intentions not to travel to the Islamic Republic of Iran for the club’s AFC Champions League TwoTM 2024/25 Group A fixture against Tractor SC, which is scheduled to take place on October 2, 2024, at the Yadegar Imam Stadium in Tabriz. The matter will be referred to the relevant AFC Committees with further updates to be communicated in due course.
Now, the Ministry of External Affairs of India too have given their statement. The Ministry currently is monitoring the security of the region. Furthermore, the ministry has advised all Indians to avoid all non-essential travel to Iran. Indians who are residing in Iran have been asked to be in constant touch with the Indian Embassy.
As for now, Mohun Bagan have turned their attention to the Indian Super League. The Mariners will be keen to make a strong comeback after their 3-0 drubbing against Bengaluru FC. The next assignment for the Green and Maroon brigade is the Mini-Derby when they take on Mohammedan SC on 5th October at the Salt Lake Stadium.
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