AFC awaits N. Korea feedback on venue for Malaysia match

KUALA LUMPUR: The Asian Football Confederation ( AFC) are still waiting for feedback from North Korea regarding the neutral ground for the 2019 Asian Cup final qualifying match against Malaysia on June 8.

AFC secretary- general Datuk Windsor Paul said the governing body for football in Asia would choose the neutral ground for the match if North Korea failed to give any reply by Friday (April 14).

“As I have mentioned earlier, North Korea have been given until April 14 to submit the neutral ground venue for the match. If they fail to do so, we will choose the venue for the match,” he told Bernama yesterday.

Windsor also said the AFC would continue to monitor the development of diplomatic ties between both countries before making a final recommendation on the neutral ground for the match on May 8, a month before the match is played.

The Malaysian squad, previously coached by Datuk Ong Kim Swee, was originally scheduled to play North Korea in a Group B 2019 Asian Cup qualifying match at the Kim Il-sung Stadium in Pyongyang on March 28.

However, due to diplomatic tensions fo l l owi n g the assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s half-brother Kim Jong-nam at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 ( klia2) on Feb 13, the Malaysian Government had barred the national squad from playing in that country due to safety reasons.

Following that, the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) on March 13 had requested AFC to pick a neutral venue for the match. — Bernama