Sport24.az
"Turan Tovuz"'s potential exclusion from the UEFA Conference League has created a new topic of discussion in Azerbaijani football.
According to allegations, this is due to the involvement of several players in fixed matches in 2019. If such a threat really exists, very serious questions arise.
First of all, why hasn't the "Turan Tovuz" management been informed until now? The club has been playing in the Premier League for years, fighting for a place in European Cups, and finally, when it won this right, it faces such a problem. If there was any decision or risk at the UEFA level, it is incomprehensible that the club was not informed in advance.
Here, attention is directly focused on Seymur Salimli, who currently serves as the head of the AFFA Licensing and Registration Department. Because at that time, he was in charge of the integrity of matches and the fight against match-fixing in the national association.
If he was aware of such a threat, why didn't he warn the "Turan Tovuz" management in time? What logic is there in keeping the club in uncertainty for years? The emergence of such an issue after qualifying for European Cups seriously damages both the club and the image of Azerbaijani football.
If Seymur Salimli himself was not aware of this, the situation is even more worrying. Because the fact that a person responsible for this area is unaware of such a sensitive issue raises serious questions from a professional point of view. In both cases, the picture that emerges raises concerns about the level of information exchange and control mechanisms within AFFA.
There is also another aspect of the matter. If "Turan Tovuz" is excluded from European Cups, "Zira" may qualify for the Conference League. However, no club wants to obtain such a permit at the expense of the opponent's administrative problems. From a sports principles point of view, the most beautiful scenario is that the success achieved on the field is confirmed on the field as well.
Currently, the football community hears more questions than answers. Most of these questions are related to the activities of AFFA and especially Seymur Salimli. Time will tell how events will unfold. But it is already clear that this issue will be discussed in Azerbaijani football for a long time.
