South China star Mateja Kezman fired a stinging broadside at the format of the AFC Cup competition after his side were eliminated in the group stage, saying extreme tropical conditions and remote venues gave some of the home sides an unfair advantage.
The Hong Kong champions returned yesterday from Papua, Indonesia, where they lost 4-2 to home team Persipura, a week after they were held to a 3-3 away draw in India by unheralded East Bengal.
The two results helped ensure they do not progress in the regional cup tournament, though they have one game still to play in group H. The Caroliners were semi-finalists two years ago and finished top of the group last year before losing in the last 16.
'This is an unfair competition as the home side can have a great advantage,' said the former Serbia international, who has played for top European clubs such as Eindhoven, Chelsea, Atletico Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain.
'In fact, it is the worst tournament I have played in. We had to take four different flights altogether to play one game with 18 hours of travelling, starting the match at 4pm in 30 degrees Celsius heat and with 100 per cent humidity. I swear I was fighting to survive under these conditions and it was very difficult. A strange competition and kind of stupid.'
He noted that Persipura lost 4-1 to Chonburi when they went to Thailand, but thrashed the same opponents 3-0 at home, saying the Thai team simply could not deal with the difficult away match conditions.