Officials and sportsmen considered that completing the Arab Gulf League championship is considered a humanitarian and moral message for the fans to challenge the Corona virus, and to crown the efforts of the clubs that made it during the season despite the economic consequences and financial losses expected to be exposed to them.
On the other hand, they said that the idea of canceling the season would eliminate the efforts of an entire season, and would not be in everyone's interest.
They affirmed during their conversation with "Emirates Today" that the Corona pandemic will not end overnight, and must be dealt with in a realistic manner while observing safety procedures, noting that the return of the European leagues activities can take advantage of the procedures that were followed and applied in the UAE stadiums.
It is expected that the Football Association will issue a decision determining the fate of the league in its meeting scheduled today, or the idea will be discussed and then the final decision of the next meeting will be postponed after Eid Al Fitr.
They emphasized that the completion of the remaining seven rounds will achieve great gains, the most important of which is that it will guarantee the title to those who deserve it, and the process of going up and down with full justice, while the idea of canceling the league and the results of the season will eliminate the effort and trouble of the season for all parties in the 19 rounds, and these results will be removed from the history records, and will be Historic precedent.
There will also be legal problems and controversy among the clubs in the way of identifying the champion, the descendants and representatives of the Emirates in the AFC Champions League, and problems with the sponsors and the transport channels in settling the financial dues, and all parties will lose out of the season.
Al-Kaabi: I refuse to cancel in person
"The completion of the league championship is the greatest appreciation of the efforts made by the clubs over the course of a whole season during which millions of dirhams were spent, to appear distinctively in the current version of the championship," said Khaled Al-Kaabi, youth team manager.
He added: "It will not be fair to cancel the league for the remaining seven rounds, we will achieve the goal of the organization by finding a champion for the competition, and support the plans of the national team preparing to resume the World Cup qualifiers."
He continued: «I know that there are clubs that oppose completing the competition because its interest is with this decision, and this is their concern, and we also have the right to be with the decision to complete the league, because this is in the interest of Al Ahly youth, and also for the teams that compete for the title, it is not acceptable after what he did Shabab Al-Ahly from the effort and its lead in the competition most of the league rounds, and its singularity in the lead by a difference of six points from its nearest competitors, to cancel the tournament as long as it can be resumed ».
Al-Kaabi confirmed that he personally refuses to cancel the competition and crowns Al-Ahly youth with the title without completing the remaining rounds.
He explained: «This is my opinion, and I do not know if this opinion is consistent with the administration’s view or not, but as long as we were the best with everyone’s testimony, we want to win the title with the effort and sweat of our players.
He continued: «It is in the interest of the competition to be completed and not canceled, as there are European leagues that have returned, and there are other tournaments on the way, and we have all the ingredients that qualify us for the tournament to continue its activity, especially as the orientation for the return of the professional tournaments will be in next August, so the time is ahead for us to rearrange Papers and clubs prepare as required ».
Abdullah Ali: moral boost
For his part, Al Ain Club junior supervisor, Abdullah Ali, saw that Emirates Ball needs to issue a decision to resume the league now more than ever.
He said: “If the Football Association and the Professional League issued a decision today to complete the league, we would have sent a humanitarian message, and given the fans a huge moral boost, they need it, to overcome the frustration that dominates some of them due to the effects of the Corona virus.”
He added: «We must prepare our players and club officials for how to deal with the Corona virus, because it is clear that the effects of this epidemic will continue in the coming period, and it is not acceptable that we stay all the time in our homes escaping this fearful ghost, but it is more correct to face it with the precautionary methods that guarantee Everyone's safety.
He pointed out that «sport in general, and football in particular, is an important outlet for the majority of the Emirati people, and I imagine that we are fortunate that there are periodicals that life has begun to return to and we can benefit from its experiences, and take the same precautionary measures that they took to return to the activity, the German Federation made a decision Brave to return to the league this week, although a large number of German people are infected with the Corona virus, but they decided to deal with this matter realistically, and the games have returned naturally ».
Abdullah Ali continued: “We trust in our leadership and we value their efforts in fighting this virus, and according to the indicators we follow, recovery cases have increased in the past days, and very soon this virus will be controlled, which makes me excited to complete the competition not for the sake of awaiting this or that club, But for the sake of the fans, and fans of the Emirati League, to enjoy again the matches and life in the stadiums. ”
He said: «From our love for Emirati football, we are currently watching some league matches in the past years, and this love is in our competitions I do almost every day, and my father and I remember our memories with the matches that helped us for many years».
Youssef Abdulaziz: The League's Gains
Former Al-Jazira club superstar, Youssef Abdulaziz, confirmed that completing the league in a healthy atmosphere free from Corona virus would be a good thing for players and clubs.
He said: “If any athlete is asked at this time about the return of the league’s activity, he will be vehemently rejecting this matter. Asia, and it will be considered that he stood side by side with the international leagues that fought (SK), and insisted on completing the competition, while setting controls to ensure the safety of players and technical and administrative bodies ».
He added: «There is no doubt that completing the remaining seven rounds will achieve significant gains, the most important of which is the appreciation of the efforts made by professional clubs throughout the season, especially those that worked for the title competition, and these teams have the right to reap the benefits of their efforts by standing on the podium, as well as ensuring Calculating the qualification mechanism of the teams that will represent the Emirati football in the AFC Champions League next season, without entering into any controversy and discussions to determine the parties participating externally, if the competition is canceled.
He pointed out that "reaching the league championship to its natural end will guarantee justice for the amateur league clubs as well, which competed over the course of a whole season, and spent millions in order to find a place among the professionals."
He added: “We should not lose sight of the fact that canceling the competition will negatively affect the marketing and mass aspects significantly, especially after the Professional League has gone a long way in promoting the league championship, and its follow-up has become distinctive, especially in this season in which the competition between the island and youth expanded. Al-Ahly, Al-Ain, Al-Wahda, Al-Nasr, and Sharjah gave each tour great importance and good follow-up.
He concluded by saying, "I think that issuing the decision to complete the league will have significant repercussions on the masses in particular, and will reflect the extent of the efforts made by all state institutions in eliminating the Corona virus, which is an important point that we need at this time in particular."
Cons of canceling the league
- Legal issues and controversy over the method of identifying the hero, the descendants and the representatives of the Emirates in the Asian Champions.
- Problems with sponsors and transport channels in settling financial dues.
- The loss of effort, effort and money of the clubs invested in the season, and the loss of all parties.
The idea of canceling the season’s results is unprecedented, and no country in the world has resorted to it during the Corona pandemic.
• A scheduled meeting for the Football Association today to determine the fate of the season suspended since March.
• The athletes called for benefiting from the German experience after resuming the "Bundesliga".