Traditionally, the media's attention in the Azerbaijani football championship is mainly focused on the Premier League, although there is also intense competition in the I League, which is not inferior to the top division. It is known that only one team will directly qualify for the Premier League from here. The team that takes second place will face the club that is in the penultimate place - 11th place - in the Premier League in play-off games.
Currently, one of the real contenders to be promoted to the first division of Azerbaijani football is the "Sabail" club. The team is in second place in the I League after six rounds of the championship.
Idman.Biz contacted Firuz Abdulla, the executive director of the club, about "Sabail"'s goals for the current season:
"Last season was extremely unsuccessful for us. Now our main goal is to return to the Premier League. But not just to return, but to return from the first place! We can't have any other goal," said Firuz Abdulla.
He emphasized in the continuation of his thought that it is not correct to say that "Shafa" (currently this team is in the first place in the I League - ed.) is the only rival of "Sabail" in the I League.
"You can expect a surprise from any of the nine clubs that play in the I League along with us. Every club, every region wants its team to play in the Premier League. Therefore, the competition is very high here. However, we will try to ensure that the issue does not extend to play-off games. Because, while respecting all rivals, I would like to note that the difference between the I League clubs and even the 11th-placed team in the Premier League is very large, especially in financial terms. Even the strongest teams of the I League, including us, do not have the financial opportunities of the weakest clubs of the Premier League," said the executive director of "Sabail".
Vugar Vugarli