AFC Champions League Elite:
Ronaldo kept at bay, but Laporte leaves it late as Al Nassr edges Esteghlal
Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo again failed to find the net against Iranian teams, but an Aymeric Laporte’s late header proved enough for Saudi giant Al Nassr to edge out Esteghlal 1-0 in the AFC Champions League Elite on Tuesday.
Ronaldo, who was on the scoresheet from the spot when Portugal beat Iran in the 2006 World Cup, has now been without a goal in four meetings with teams form the Middle East country – including the 2018 World Cup encounter where he had a penalty saved by goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand.
The Portuguese still played his part in Al Nassr’s match winner as his goal-ward header from Miroslav Brozovic’s corner was pushed high into the air by Blues keeper Seyyed Hossein Hosseini, before Spanish international Laporte rose to steer the rebound home on the far post with nine minutes left on the clock.
Meanwhile, South African Pitso Mosimane, who was named as the Tehran Blues’ new head coach last Friday and watched the game from the stands in Dubai’s Rashid Stadium, was treated to a glimpse of the task on his hands when taking over from interim coach Sohrab Bakhtiarizadeh for Saturday’s game at Khaybar in the Iranian Pro League.
For all their defensive struggles throughout the season, Esteghlal players put in a solid performance to stifle Al Nassr’s formidable frontline, also featuring former Liverpool striker Sadio Mane, before the Spanish center-back made the difference at the end.
Bakhtiarizadeh was pleased with his team’s display, but lamented the chances his men missed on the break.
“I believe we saw a very good game from a technical standpoint. Both teams started with different plans, aiming to score, and we focused on playing behind the opponents, knowing they had creative and experienced attackers. Our goal was to close the spaces and limit their chances while looking to strike on counter-attacks,” said the interim coach.
“Defensively, we performed well except for a lapse that led to their goal. We had good chances to score on the counter, but we didn’t capitalize.
“Even after conceding, we had opportunities to equalize but failed to take advantage. Our strategy was based on the resources we had, not on whether it was a home or away game. We believed this approach could neutralize Al Nassr’s stars like Ronaldo and Mane while hurting them on the break. Unfortunately, we didn’t make the most of our chances, which cost us the result.”
As if Esteghlal fans needed more reason to rue a second successive defeat in the competition, instrumental winger Mehrdad Mohammadi faces a lengthy layoff after leaving the pitch seven minutes into the game with a leg injury.
The result left Esteghlal in the sixth place of the West Zone’s 12-team table with three points, while Al Nassr is fourth with seven points.