PUTRAJAYA, March 16 — Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin has described the decision made by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) on the 2019 Asian Cup qualifying match between North Korea and Malaysia as the right and fair decision. 

"It was the right and fair decision. We will also be playing at a neutral venue for the return leg later. 

"It is hoped that the decision made by the AFC will not affect the dates of any other matches,” he told reporters after witnessing the signing ceremony of sponsorship between Westports Malaysia Sdn Bhd and PRG Holdings Berhad for the Malaysian Basketball Association (MABA) today. 

Yesterday, the AFC announced that the opening match of Group B teams would be held on June 8, and not on March 28 as originally scheduled. 

AFC also asked North Korea to provide a neutral venue for the match before April 14. 

Prior to this, the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) had requested for the AFC to change the venue of the match, which was initially scheduled to be held in Pyongyang, following the diplomatic spat between the Malaysian and North Korean governments. — Bernama