Just a few days ago, it was the fierce stares of Oliver Kahn and a few sharp words from Mark van Bommel that Ishfaq Ahmed had to contend with.

Now, as the Mohun Bagan player turns out on a considerably less glamourous stage in Srinagar for Jammu and Kashmir in the Santosh Trophy, the 25-year-old appears to have a whole new set of problems staring him in the face, and these may well assume much more uncomfortable proportions.

The Delhi team, which lost 4-0 to J&K in the pre-quarterfinals last Sunday, have filed an offical complaint with the All-India Football Federation (AIFF) and the match commisioner regarding an incident which happened during the match.

Ahmed, says Delhi coach Tarun Roy, violently tackled Delhi goalkeeper Rajat Guha and injured him, and later threatened him (the coach) and the Delhi players. Roy also adds that the match referee let Ahmed off with a “mere yellow card”.

The accused, though, says he doesn’t understand the fuss.

‘50-50 tackle’

“I was going for the ball and my intention was not to injure Rajat at all. It was a 50-50 tackle and I could have been the one injured as well. After that, the Delhi coach came out onto the ground while the match was on and started yelling.

“I just told him ‘why’re you accusing me, go out of the ground’. How can I threaten him?” is what Ahmed has to say. “After the incident, I shook Rajat’s hand and I went to his hotel once the match was over. They had said that he has a head injury, but actually it was a hand injury.

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