Persian Gulf Pro League preview:
Esteghlal hosting Tractor; Persepolis visiting Sepahan in thrilling double-header
Esteghlal will be looking to retain the top spot when hosting Tractor in the Persian Gulf Pro League today.
Javad Nekounam’s Esteghlal saw a four-game winning streak snapped in a 2-2 draw at newly-promoted Shams Azar last time out, while Tractor defeated Nassaji Mazandaran 3-0 in Tabriz to bounce back from successive losses to Shams Azar and Zob Ahan.
Tractor head coach Paco Jemez will be without integral midfielder Ricardo Alves for the visit to the Azadi Stadium after the Portuguese received his marching orders deep into stoppage time against Nassaji.
Esteghlal has fond memories of the last encounter between the two sides, when the Tehran-based Blues ran riot against Tractor on last season’s final day, walking away with a 7-1 triumph in May.
Sitting fourth in the table with 15 points, Tractor will hope to have the gap on top closed to a single point when the final whistle is blown today.
Elsewhere, stakes will be high at Isfahan’s Naqsh-e Jahan Stadium on Sunday as both Sepahan and Persepolis will be seeking solace in what has been the second most important fixture in the Iranian club football calendar in recent years, following the Tehran Derby.
Last season’s runner-up Sepahan saw its perfect start to the campaign end in a 1-1 draw at Nassaji a fortnight ago before suffering a shock 3-2 defeat at home against Mahdi Tartar’s in-form Malavan FC last week.
Jose Morais’s men, however, will step onto the pitch fresh from a 9-0 demolishing of AGMK in the AFC Champions League, in which prolific striker Shahriar Moghanlou was back in action and on the scoresheet after spending weeks on the sidelines with an injury.
Defending champion Persepolis will also chase a first win in three domestic league outings.
Yahya Golmohammadi’s Reds shared the spoils in a goalless stalemate at Malavan and were then stunned by a last-gasp equalizer in a 2-2 draw against the 10-man San’at Naft Abadan in Tehran.
Back-to-back draws were followed by an untimely 1-1 scoreline away to Istiklol Tajikistan in the mid-week, leaving the Reds’ chances of a knockout place in the Asian elite clubs competition hanging in the balance.
Golmohammadi’s squad has been hit hard by a flu over the past two weeks while international midfielder Vahid Amiri re-suffered a hamstring problem in a cameo appearance against Istiklol, expected to be ruled out for a while again.
The last time the two heavyweights met in the league, Sepahan came out on top at the Azadi Stadium in April, thanks to Mohammad Karimi’s stoppage-time winner, though a last meeting at the Naqsh-e Jahan ended in a 4-2 extra-time victory for the Reds in the Hazfi Cup in March.
Sepahan and Persepolis have respectively been docked four and one points this season over breaching the Iranian Football Federation’s financial rules.
Persepolis is second in the table – one point behind its city rival – with Sepahan in eighth with 12 points, having a game in hand.