The UAE’s hope for an easier path to the 2018 World Cup has ended after FIFA on Wednesday ordered Palestine to play qualification matches against Saudi Arabia and Malaysia at neutral venues because of security fears.
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The Green Falcons had faced a 3-0 forfeit loss after they declared on Tuesday they would not fulfil today’s contested fixture in Ramallah.
This would have given Mahdi Ali’s second-placed men a great opportunity to close a five-point deficit to the Group A leaders in the second round of the AFC progress.
But a FIFA emergency bureau made the decision after their officials and the Palestinian authorities met on Tuesday and “the Palestinian government confirmed it could no longer guarantee the safety and security around the matches in question,” the governing body said in a statement.
The Palestine v Saudi Arabia match which was originally scheduled for on Thursday will now be played on November 9, while the Palestine v Malaysia match will still be played, as planned, on November 12.
FIFA has asked the Palestinian Football Association to find a neutral ground in Asia to host both matches.
The fixture had long been disputed, June’s original meeting being switched to Jeddah. Subsequent rejections from the Saudis followed, prior to FIFA’s now reversed judgement on October 21 demanding they travel to the West Bank.