Bengaluru: “I did not hurt anybody. All I did was trying to pacify the situation by pushing the fighting players away. I also tried to save the opponent team’s coach when tempers flared and it turned into an all-out brawl. Was it a crime? What I received in return for acting as a peacemaker was a three-match ban and a Rs 1 lakh fine! Anyway, I have no plan to challenge the decision,” star Indian defender Anas Edathodika, opening up about the infamous tunnel fight between players of Jamshedpur FC and FC Goa during a Super Cup quarterfinal match in April, said here on Thursday.
Anas, who has been signed by Kerala Blasters for the fifth edition of the Indian Super League (ISL), slated to begin next week, will miss the team’s first three matches.
“I want people to understand that I was being penalised for no fault of mine. If you see the video, everything will be clear. I didn't go to confront anybody or do anything. I never knew holding back and preventing players from fighting with each other was a crime,” he said sarcastically during the ISL 'media day' interactions in Bengaluru.
The All India Football Federation's Disciplinary Committee handed out the ban on April 14, two days after the Super Cup quarterfinal tie. As Anas’s team Jamshedpur lost the match 1-5, he is being forced to serve out the ban in the ISL.
The Indian international will miss Blasters' games against ATK, Mumbai City and Delhi Dynamos.
"I was eager to make my first appearance after attending pre-season camps with Blasters, but I did not get a chance to explain anything,” said the Malappuram-born player who started his ISL career with Delhi Dynamos.