Kolkata : Former India U-17 World Cupper and current Mohammedan Sporting defender Anwar Ali, has been told to discontinue playing football due to a severe heart condition which he has. The AIFF confirmed the news on Thursday. This has shattered the 20-year-old defender who has claimed it as a death sentence.
The 20 year old started his career from Minerva Punjab academy and soon was called up for the 2017 Under-17 football World Cup which was organised in India. After a good performance he was called up the ISL-side Mumbai City FC. But since 2019 he has been suffering from a congenital heart condition, which resulted in his footballing career being in jeopardy.
In the month of August, Anwar Ali joined Kolkata-Giants Mohammedan Sporting to feature in the I-League Qualifiers but AIFF came up with the decision that he should discontinue playing football for his heart condition.
I-League chief Sunanda Dhar said, “His reports have been sent to the AFC and till a final decision is taken, he has been asked to stop practice. A decision on his future in football should come by this weekend.”
Now, Ali on the other hand wrote a 57 page letter to the AIFF stating why he should play professional football. He wrote, ” Article 21 of the Indian Constitution guarantees me the right to earn a livelihood for myself. If I wish to take an informed risk and am ready to monitor my condition with the help of medical experts, then it is ultimately my choice, whether I wish to take the risk of playing football professionally.”
“Football is the only thing I know, and if AIFF bans me, I’ll be forced to play in low-level tournaments like Khep in Kolkata to make ends meet. There are no medical facilities in these tournaments, so the chances of me dying on the field will be much higher. Your disqualification of me will be a death sentence for me and my family. I beg you to let me play,” Ali concluded.
