THE management of the Fiji Muslim soccer team has cleared the air on Imdad Ali's association with the team.
Fiji team manager Shaheen Hussain said Ali was never appointed the coach of the team and did not have a say in the coaching of the team. He said former Suva soccer coach Mira Sahib is the coach of the Fiji Muslim team and the team was ready for the tournament.
"The claims made by Imdad Ali that he resigned as the Fiji Muslim coach is not true," Hussain said.
"He (Ali) was never given an appointment letter in the first place because Mira Sahib had been the coach from day one," he said.
The tournament starts tomorrow and last Sunday Ali claimed he stepped down from the position because players failed to march into camp.
Hussain said the players for the tournament were divided into western and southern teams and they trained in their respective zones. "The western team trained in the west and the southern team training in the south and the players came together every weekend for a camp.
"He (Ali) was just called in to help the western team when the west played south to select the Fiji team. He (Ali) probably thought he was appointed coach but that was not the case.
"The Fiji team is coached by Mira Sahib and the team is ready for its first match of the FANCA Muslim Soccer tournament on Wednesday."
The tournament is played every two years between America, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Fiji.
The two north American countries are already in the country while the trans-Tasman rivals are expected to arrive today or tomorrow. The tournament ends on Sunday.