Petro Asyut matches moved to Borg El Arab Stadium over safety and broadcast concerns

Petro Asyut’s Egyptian Premier League matches will be played at Borg El Arab Stadium after their home ground failed to meet the requirements for hosting top-flight football, competitions committee chairman Taha Ezzat has said.

The club had criticised the decision to stage its fixtures in Alexandria, arguing that their matches should be held at either Petro Asyut Stadium or Asyut Cement Stadium.

However, Ezzat told FilGoal.com that Petro Asyut Stadium had not received the necessary approvals and did not meet the operational standards required for league matches.

“Petro Asyut Stadium did not fulfil the necessary conditions to host league matches and did not obtain the required security or television approvals, nor approval to operate the video assistant referee system. In addition, it does not have floodlights,” Ezzat said.

He added that the alternative venue, Asyut Cement Stadium, also failed to satisfy the required conditions.

“The alternative stadium, Asyut Cement Stadium, also does not meet the requirements,” he said.

Ezzat said the decision to use Borg El Arab Stadium had ultimately been made by Petro Asyut, rather than imposed by the Egyptian Professional Clubs Association.

“Petro Asyut chose to play at Borg El Arab Stadium of its own accord. If it fulfils the conditions and receives the necessary approvals, it will return to playing at its own stadium immediately,” he said.

He also rejected any suggestion that the association had treated Petro Asyut differently from other clubs.

“The association maintains an equal distance from all clubs and wants fans to be present in every stadium,” Ezzat said.

The Egyptian Professional Clubs Association has since confirmed that all of Petro Asyut’s matches in the first phase of the league, together with its group-stage fixtures in the Egypt Capital Cup, will be played at Borg El Arab Stadium.

Those matches will take place on the same dates and at the same times that had previously been announced, but at Borg El Arab instead of Asyut Cement Stadium.

Petro Asyut have returned to the Egyptian Premier League this season after a 16-year absence. It is the fourth time the club have competed in the country’s top division.

Their first promotion came in the 2006-07 season, when they reached the Premier League for the first time in their history but were relegated immediately.

They returned for the 2008-09 campaign and successfully avoided relegation that season. Petro Asyut then spent the 2009-10 season in the top flight, but were relegated at the end of that campaign. That was their last appearance in the Premier League before this season’s return.

Petro Asyut begin their new campaign on Saturday with a match against Montakhab El Suez and Petrojet at 17:00 local time, with the fixture scheduled to be played at Borg El Arab Stadium.