Bengaluru: Storied lives are fascinating. Storied lives of footballers - even more so. Few in the league can tell tales as gripping as Aizawl FC's Syrian midfielder Mahmoud Amna, who escaped his war-torn hometown of Aleppo to secure his family whilst ensuring his career didn't come to a standstill.
Amna, signed by league leaders four months ago as their Asian quota player, is no stranger to Indian football, after featuring for Sporting Goa in the I-league for two seasons. "I played last season in Sporting Goa. Life is different here. Mountains in Aizawl. Beaches in Goa. But it's okay," the 33-year-old said.
Amna remains one of Syria's most capped players with 81 appearances for the Middle Eastern giants, figuring as a key cog in the 2006 and 2010 World Cup qualifiers, Gulf Cup and 2007 Nehru Cup run that saw his side lose to hosts India. After becoming the most expensive player in the Syrian League when he signed for his boyhood club Al-Ittihad in Aleppo, he was forced to leave due to the heightening violence.
"I was last in Aleppo six years ago. I haven't been there since because of the war. My family is in Egypt, because my wife is Egyptian. I have my sister and brother in Aleppo. I speak to them. But…anytime…you can …I hope," he breaks off, but his sentiment is far from lost in translation.
The itinerant footballer moved to Iran in 2009, but hopes to return to his battered homeland. "Played three years in Iran. Every time I was there, I came back for a month to Syria. Inshallah, I will go back."
Amna's journey represents a tale retold by numerous migrants across the world - fleeing a world, staring into the abyss of doom.
