Mirko Vucinic was left out of the Al Jazira squad for their 2-1 defeat to Uzbek club Bunyodkor in the Asian Champion League play-off due to fatigue, rather than an injury as it was presumed.
The Montenegro international had complained of “tiredness” after playing three league games and then having to travel to his home country to renew his passport.
“Mirko complained of severe fatigue before the match and that’s the reason we had to leave him out,” said Eric Gerets, the Jazira coach.
“He played three games in seven days and was forced to go to Montenegro to get a new passport only two days before the game.
“Mirko returned to Abu Dhabi a few hours before we boarded a plane to Tashkent. He had been on the move for more than 48 hours.
“Mirko is an important player and we didn’t want to risk him for one match. I preferred to give him a complete rest rather than playing him and then face the consequences of missing him over a longer period.
“We have a league game against Al Dhafra on Saturday and Mirko will be available for that.”
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