ALGIERS- the match between Saudi Arabia to Palestine for the 2018 World Cup qualifying, could be played in Algeria after Saudi refusal to make the trip to Ramallah.
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“The Palestinian Football Association (PFA) has given full security guarantees for the rescheduled match”, said FIFA in a statement.
The world body has instructed the Palestinian FA to provide details on the neutral ground in Asia within 24 hours.
Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) secretary-general Hamidin Mohd Amin said the decision was made after FIFA held an emergency meeting which was attended by Asian Football Confederation (AFC) president Shaikh Salman Ebrahim Al-Khalifa. That would have greatly benefitted UAE, who are second in the group and fighting precarious positioning among the second-placed sides who need to be among the four best to advance to the third qualifying round.
Saudi Arabia had previously declined to play the fixture in September, saying they could not travel to the Palestinian territories due to force majeure.
Israel controls all access to the Palestinian territories, and Saudi Arabia has no diplomatic relations with Israel.
“Mahdi Ali’s side host East Timor on November 12 in Abu Dhabi before travelling to Malaysia five days later as the Saudis face East Timor away”.
“I am confident that they can go to Palestine”.
“I, myself, have received a personal assurance from the Palestinian ambassador and he will personally accompany our team from the border to the stadium”.
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“The Palestinean government will also facilitate our team’s passage through checkpoints that are controlled by the Israeli regime”, he added.
