AFC to decide on Monday on neutral ground for Malaysia-N. Korea match

KUALA LUMPUR: The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) will decide on Monday regarding the neutral ground for the 2019 Asian Cup qualifying match between Malaysia and North Korea.
AFC secretary-general Datuk Windsor Paul said so far North Korea had not given any feedback although today was the deadline for the country to submit its suggestion on the neutral ground for the match.
"We will make an announcement on Monday since North Korea has not given any feedback on the matter.
"The match will be played on neutral ground only if there is no change in diplomatic ties between both countries by May 8, which is a month before the match is slated to be held," he said when contacted by Bernama, today.
Windsor also noted that the match would be played on the home and away format if the diplomatic ties between Malaysia and North Korea returned to normal.
Prior to this, North Korea was given a month's time by AFC to propose a neutral venue for the match.
The Malaysian squad, previously coached by Datuk Ong Kim Swee, were 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 following 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