However, his appeal went unanswered. Agakishi was banned from football for almost 4 years. AFFA appealed to the Republican Prosecutor's Office for manipulating the results of the match between Keshla and Neftchi in 2016. However, the case was terminated in 2018 because the agency did not find any criminal elements in Agakishi's case.
According to Offsideplus.az , Mehdizadeh told "Football +" that he was right in terms of the issue and that he would apply to UEFA after hiring a foreign lawyer. The coach also noted that his last hope was President Ilham Aliyev. He said he would appeal to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief to commute his life ban from football. Lawyer Mehman Muradli also told our newspaper that AFFA removed Agakishi from football without the decision of the Republican Prosecutor's Office and that it was a violation of the law not to cancel his sentence after the termination of the case in 2018.
Thus, based on the above, Mehdizade was innocent and AFFA should have overturned his sentence. Why doesn't the federation do that? Why doesn't the main football body of the country forgive the person who terminated the work of the Republican Prosecutor's Office?
To answer our questions, an employee of "Football +" contacted the UEFA representative for Azerbaijan Seymur Salimli regarding the match . However, he exercised his right not to make statements to the media because of his commitment to Europe's highest football body. This was one of his main rights. There is nothing illegal here.
However, information on the issue has been obtained from a reliable source. After the incident, Agakishi Mehdizadeh was invited to AFFA by the commission to explain. The coach admitted that he participated in the process with his signature. After that, he was banned from football for life by the Disciplinary Committee. Following the verdict, the accused could appeal. Time was given for this, but the former coach of "Neftchi" did not see the need for it. After the deadline, the issue was closed. As a result, the decision came into force. In other words, AFFA did not take an illegal step in this matter. Let's answer our questions. Mehdizade appealed to the organization for pardon and repeatedly wrote letters to Executive Vice President Elkhan Mammadov. He claims to have two reasons for this:
1. Termination of the case by the Republican Prosecutor's Office;
2. To show courage and heroism against the enemy by participating in the Patriotic War.
Let's start with the first issue. AFFA appealed to the Republican Prosecutor's Office to investigate whether there was a criminal element in the process. The organization also terminated the case on the grounds that there was no criminal act in the incident. In other words, the Republican Prosecutor's Office has come to the conclusion that there is no need to punish Mehdizade as a criminal. However, decisions on football in the country are made by AFFA and the Disciplinary Committee. For this reason, the federation banned Agakishi from operating in this field due to his actions in violation of football laws.
We can give many examples in this regard. Nurlan Ibrahimov, the head of the press service of "Garabagh", was banned from football by UEFA for life due to the status he wrote on Facebook due to the events in Barda. As the actions of the club official created liability under the legislation of Azerbaijan, the law enforcement agencies initiated an administrative case against him under Article 388-1.1.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses and sent him to court for consideration, and the court imposed the appropriate penalty. Ibrahimov did not commit a crime here and was punished by the UEFA Disciplinary Committee for violating the rules of football. The European football governing body also said that Nurlan Bey had been punished for violating the principles of "racism and incitement to violence".
The second example is Michel Platini. The French official was detained in 2015 for corruption. He was suspected of participating in a possible falsification of the results of the 2010 World Cup hosting vote. Platini headed UEFA in 2007-15. On October 8, 2015, the Arbitration Chamber of the FIFA Ethics Committee suspended him for 90 days. On December 21, he was disqualified for 8 years. However, in May 2016, the sentence was reduced to 4 years. In short, the courts of Europe, especially France, have not ruled in favor of Platini's criminal act. However, he was punished for violating the rules of football and his sentence continues.
Now let's move on to the second claim on which Mehdizade is based. The former coach of "Neftchi" says that he took part in the Patriotic War and showed heroism. He was even awarded a medal by Supreme Commander-in-Chief Ilham Aliyev for this. He also noted that General of the State Border Service Afgan Nagiyev, who was arrested last year on corruption charges, was declared a hero for fighting in Karabakh. There is an issue that Agakishi has overlooked. Afgan Nagiyev was placed under house arrest, and when the fighting broke out, he voluntarily applied as a reserve general to be allowed to take part in the war. As a result, he showed heroism in the battles for Karabakh and was awarded a medal by the President. However, Nagiyev's wrongdoing was not forgiven. That is, he was not returned to his job in the State Border Service. In any case, there is no official information about it.
Let's look at the issue from another angle. Suppose AFFA forgave Agakishi. In this case, other people who have been expelled from football in connection with the games in question will apply with the same desire. He will demand that the concession made to the former coach of Neftchi be applied to them as well. One will claim that I took part in the First Karabakh War, the other will say that my financial situation is bad and the world will suffer. Given the above examples, it does not seem plausible that AFFA will abolish the sentence of removing Mehdizade from football for life. Because the person violated the rules of football, did not appeal and now wants to be pardoned. This is not a professional and correct approach.
What is the way out, what can Mehdizadeh do? He told our newspaper that he will file a complaint to UEFA by hiring a foreign lawyer. Or he will ask the Supreme Commander-in-Chief to forgive him. First of all, AFFA is not a state-dependent body. According to the charters of FIFA and UEFA, state officials and heads of state cannot interfere in the work of the football federation and its decisions. Otherwise, FIFA and UEFA have the right to impose sanctions. In this case, Agakishi's place of hope was UEFA. He can prove his mistake by appealing to the highest football body in Europe. If he really did not take part in the sale of the game and, most importantly, if he was not late to apply to UEFA ...