Tajernia: There Was No Favoritism, We Paid for the Plane Rental; the Federation Should Announce the Asani Ruling Sooner

The acting CEO of Esteghlal Club spoke about the Asani case.

According to ambassador Arjan; About the status of Yaser Asani's case, Ali Tajernia, Acting CEO of Esteghlal Club, said: The disciplinary committee of the federation has issued its decision on Yaser Asani's case, and we know that the appeals committee has also confirmed that decision. Unfortunately, every now and then, when a team in our country achieves results and performs well, margins are created for it. People who constantly raise these issues do not think about the national interests of the country at all.

Stating that today the Esteghlal football team defends the reputation of Iranian football, he continued: when unfortunately we have not seen the expected results in the Omid team, nor in the national team, nor in some other clubs, today Esteghlal is at the top of the table in the Asian elite league, alongside teams with several hundred billion investments.

Tajernia added: The people who create the biggest margin for Esteghlal today also know that this club has no problem and there is no problem with Yasir Asi's contract with Esteghlal. The upper rules of FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation also always emphasize the relationship between the player and his club. Yasir Asani is one of the most fanatical and loyal players to his club, and this can be clearly seen.

He further demanded the announcement of the final vote: My request to the officials of the federation is to announce the final vote as soon as possible and end this discussion. If marginalization against Esteghlal continues after the announcement of the final decision and assignment of the matter by the appeals committee, we will also pursue the matter through the Ethics Committee of the Federation and the Asian Football Confederation. We also follow the behavior of clubs that unfortunately did not have a professional approach. At the time when Mr. Asani had a contract with Esteghlal Club and the negotiations regarding him started, some clubs entered into this matter. We have documents in this regard, but our best effort is to follow football in a calm atmosphere.

Acting CEO of Esteghlal Club continued: If Esteghlal does not enter into some confrontations in this field, it is not because its hands are empty; Rather, we believe that the reputation of Iranian football lies in the fact that issues and results are identified in the green rectangle. Esteghlal fans can be sure that in our opinion there is no problem in this field. My last warning is to the teams who, when they can't get results on the field and don't have a good place in Asia, they try to undermine Esteghlal Club by marginalization. Naturally, we will also use our legal capacities from now on.

In response to the sidelines of the team's direct trip to Qatar, Deir Aamal of Esteghlal also explained that the club had planned for a long time to provide suitable conditions for the players' trip and initially considered the route to Iraq, but at the same time held consultations for the possibility of a direct trip.

He said: We used Varsh, Meraj and then Iran Air to make this trip. Further, with the guidance of the Iranian Embassy in Qatar, we found out that the planes of Iranian companies are not allowed to perform this flight, unless an aircraft outside of the usual routine is used. Finally, this possibility became available and we rented the plane and paid for it.

Tajernia emphasized: There was no government relationship in this field, and there was no rent. We looked at different routes and when we were sure it was possible, we did it. The fact that some were disappointed too soon is not a reason for us to stop trying.

Referring to the choice of Basra, Iraq as the host of some Iranian teams in the Asian competitions, he considered this decision as a solution to reduce travel problems and said that the proximity of Basra to Iran and the possibility of traveling by land from Abadan is an important advantage in the event that foreign flights face problems.

Tajernia also asked the country's officials and groups related to air transportation to help Esteghlal, Tractor and Golghar to facilitate the travel of Iran's representatives in Asian competitions and added that Esteghlal's experience can help other clubs to choose more suitable routes.