Persian Gulf Pro League:
Cheshmi’s screamer piles misery on Morais
A Rouzbeh Cheshmi’s stunning strike was the difference between Esteghlal and Sepahan in the Persian Gulf Pro League’s highly-anticipated fixture on Tuesday.
There was little to separate the two sides, with the only goal coming late in the first half when the Iranian international midfielder’s sizzling effort from 30 yards out went in off the bar – reminiscent of his stoppage-time strike in the World Cup victory over Wales two years ago.
The 1-0 victory maintained the Tehran Blues’ perfect home record at the Azadi Stadium, while adding to the misery for the visiting-side and Portuguese head coach Jose Morais, who fell to a sixth consecutive defeat across all competitions.
Sepahan’s frontline – the most prolific in the league this season – was thoroughly kept at bay and hardly made an impact over the course of the 90 minutes, for which Blues boss Javad Nekounam deserves credit, but still had a couple of chances to find an equalizer.
The top flight’s leading marksman Shahriar Moghanlou’s tame effort came off the bar before the break, while winter signing Ali-Asghar A’rabi missed a glorious opportunity to bag his first goal for the club when he was denied by Esteghlal keeper Seyyed Hossein Hosseini in a one-on-one situation after the break.
The statement triumph saw Esteghlal move eight points clear of third-place Sepahan on top of the table, though Morais’ men have two games in hand.
Elsewhere on Tuesday, Foolad Khuzestan and Malavan shared the spoils in a 1-1 stalemate in Ahvaz’s Foolad Arena.
Mohammadreza Soleimani gave Mahdi Tartar’s Malavan the lead eight minutes after the interval, but his goal was canceled out by Mohammad Asgari in the 84th minute.
In Sirjan, Roberto Torres, Ahmadreza Zenderouh, and Saeed Saharkhizan were on target as Golgohar walked away with a 3-0 win against Nassaji Mazandaran – a result to forget for head coach Saket Elhami on his return to the northern Iranian club’s bench.