Chennai City FC – the 2018-19 I-League champion – will play the remaining AFC Cup Group E matches in Maldives with the Asian confederation deciding to do away with the home-away format and host the group stage games in a single venue.
The Football Association of Maldives was the sole bidder to host the games that will also involve local sides Maziya, TC Sports and Bangladesh's Bashundhara Kings.
Chennai City, which last played on March 14, will resume its campaign when it faces TC Sports on October 23.
With the coronavirus pandemic showing no signs of slowing down in India and strict travel restrictions in place, Chennai City owner Rohit Ramesh has a daunting task ahead.
"Having a pre-season camp looks difficult as of now. Our first task will be to see how we can assemble the squad and bring all the players together. We also have to see how we can bring our coach, Akbar Nawas, here from Singapore, within the next two months " Rohit told Sportstar .
Chennai City might also need to make some foreign signings, if need be, after it released all its foreigners when the I-League season was suspended in March.
"We can field an all Indian team too. (Signing foreign players) is something we want to wait on and take a call later. We have to take into account the logistical concerns too," he said.
Bashundhara Kings currently tops the table after a 5-1 win over TC Sports, while Chennai City and Maziya played out a 2-2 draw.
Chennai City's fixtures see it play back to back clashes with Bashundhara Kings on October 26 and 29, followed by a game against Maziya on November 1. It will wrap up its group stage campaign with a tie against TC Sports on November 4.
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