Persepolis earns solid 2-0 win over Al Wasl in 2018 AFC Champions League
Iran’s Persian Gulf Pro League professional soccer club Persepolis has pulled off a notable victory over Al Wasl Football Club of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the group stage of the 2018 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League, and cherished its hopes to progress to the next level of the tournament.
On Monday evening, the Iranian soccer players succeeded to defeat the Emirati side 2-0 at the end of a Group C fixture played at Azadi Stadium in western Iran.
Midfielder Farshad Ahmadzadeh put the red-clad Persepolis footballers ahead in the 36th minute, when he picked up the ball and volleyed it into the roof of the net.
Five minutes later, 23-year-old striker Ali Alipour sent the spectators into jubilation when he scored from a penalty and doubled the hosts’ lead.
Al Wasl’s Australian midfielder Anthony Caceres sought to half the deficit in the dying minutes of the match, but Persepolis goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand tipped his free-kick for a corner kick, which yielded nothing.
Tractor Sazi grinds out goalless draw with Al Jazira
In another match of the day, Iranian professional soccer club Tractor Sazi Tabriz was held to a goalless draw against Emirati Al Jazira.
Al Jazira started the stronger, and looked the better of the two in the first half of the Group A match played at the multi-purpose Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, the UAE.
Tractor’s winger Ehsan Pahlevan got the excellent chance to hand the visitors the lead three minutes after the restart, after he received a pass from teammate Mehdi Kiani.
Pahlevan pounced on the ball, but Al Jazira goalkeeper Ali Khaseif blocked the shot and saved from close distance to keep the scoring tied at nil.
Tractor’s midfielder Danial Esmaeilifar came close to breaking the deadlock at the hour-mark as he took advantage of a defensive mistake to send a low drive through the legs of Al Jazira’s Mohamed Jamal.
Esmaeilifar’s shot, however, went out for a goal kick.
Tractor’s Brazilian custodian Jordi Almeida took his most difficult test three minutes from time, when Al Jazira’s defender Khalifa Mubarak sprang into air to head Khalfan Mubarak’s free-kick.
Jordi dived low though and got the ball at his near post to earn Tractor an away point.
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