AFC Champions League:
Sepahan, Persepolis up for crunch group finales
Two last-16 spots will be up for grabs when Sepahan and Persepolis head into Matchday 6 of the group stage in the AFC Champions League today and tomorrow.
Saudi Pro League giants Al Ittihad, Al Hilal, and Al Nassr plus Emirati club Al Ain have already secured a place in the knockouts, with eight other West Zone teams still fancying their chances of progress in the Asian elite clubs’ competition.
Sepahan visits Mecca’s King Abdulaziz Sport City today to take on Group C leader Al Ittihad, knowing a single point will all but guarantee a first knockout berth in 11 years for the Persian Gulf Pro League side as one of the three best runner-up teams across the five West groups – thanks to a far superior goal difference.
A victory will see Sepahan leapfrog the Saudi heavyweight into the top spot in the group, though Jose Morais’s men have bigger reasons to go all out for maximum points, as they felt hard-done by when the AFC handed them a 3-0 loss – banning the club from playing at home for three matches – in the aftermath of the canceled reverse fixture in October, for what the Asian football governing body described as the Iranian side’s failure to “act in a politically neutral manner” at Isfahan’s Naqsh-e Jahan Stadium.
Sepahan bounced back from the verdict disappointment in style, demolishing Uzbekistan’s AGMK 9-0 before edging out Air Force Club of Iraq 1-0 last week in Tehran, though the latter triumph proved costly for the Iranian team, as young international midfielder Mohammad-Javad Hosseinnejad and center-back Hadi Mohammadi received their marching orders and will miss today’s encounter.
Al Ittihad, meanwhile, will be without former Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema after the French talisman was forced out injured during a domestic league victory over Al Khaleej on Thursday.
Moroccan Abderrazak Hamdallah will lead the line for the host today, with the prolific striker in flying form this season, bagging 12 goals in 16 matches – including three in as many matches in the Asian club event.
Red-hot day at Azadi
Things will be more complicated when Persepolis welcomes Al Duhail to Tehran’s Azadi Stadium in Group E on Tuesday.
While even a win against the Qatari champion could be followed by the group-stage exit for the Tehran Reds, a draw might prove to be enough to see Yahya Golmohammadi’s men go through, should the results in other groups go their way.
Plagued by injuries and a flu virus, Persepolis has been struggling with form in recent weeks as the goalless stalemate against Al Nassr in Riyadh last Monday was a fourth draw in a five-game winless run for the Reds.
Midfielder Milad Sarlak and skipper Omid Aalishah remain doubts for the game after walking out injured against Al Nassr, while young striker Mohammad Omri will face a race against time to recover from a minor problem.
Aalishah’s second-half strike led his side a 1-0 victory over Al Duhail in October’s game, in which Persepolis was by far the better of the two sides but wasteful in the opposition box and Golmohammadi hopes his frontline, inspired by international winger Mahdi Torabi, will be more clinical on Tuesday.
Persepolis boss, who steered his team to the 2020 final, will also be eager to see a raucous crowd at the Azadi Stadium play its part in pushing the Reds forward in the must-win contest.
Persepolis fans have fond memories of the last time playing the Qatari side at home, when Branko Ivankovic’s short-handed side, trailing a first-leg 1-0 loss and a halftime one-goal deficit, pulled off a brilliant comeback by scoring three in the second half to progress to the semifinals.