Esteghlal relieves pressure after 2-0 win at PGPL
Esteghlal FC claimed a 2-0 victory against their rival from the southeast of Iran, Esteghlal Khuzestan, on the 8th matchday of the Iranian Persian Gulf Professional League (PGPL) on Thursday.
Ramin Rezaeian scored both goals for the Tehranian team at the minutes of 72 and 90+2 both from the penalty spot.
With the win, Esteghlal moved up two spots on the PGPL table, relieving the increased pressure after their South African Coach Pitso Mosimane suddenly canceled his contract on Tuesday following the club’s failure to observe its financial obligations.
Mosimane had signed with the Persian Gulf Pro League team based in Tehran in October 2024.
Sohrab Bakhtiarizadeh has been named the Esteghlal football team’s interim coach.
After Esteghlal’s 2-0 win over Esteghlal Khuzestan, Bakhtiarizadeh dodged the question of whether Mosimane would have played with the same lineup if he were still at Esteghlal, saying, “I had the least share in today’s win, as the players really tried hard and had good discipline. The players fought with motivation and had good support from the fans.”
In response to the fact that Esteghlal fans are disappointed with the team on social media and whether there is a future for Esteghlal this season, Bakhtiarizadeh emphasized: “Football is like life, and you should always have hope. The fan has the right to be upset, and maybe they talk about different options. Fans want Esteghlal not to be in this position in the table.”
Esteghlal currently sits 8th in the Iran league’s 16-team table, while Esteghlal Khuzestan are in the 11th place on the table.
In a moment of honesty, he maintained, “I have had tough days and am still having them, but I have learned that football is like a family, and if I have any discomfort or complaint, I will never say it in front of the cameras because we are like a family.”
“I was asked to help after the previous technical staff in such a critical situation, and I came without any expectations. If the club does not want to cooperate with me at any moment, I will leave with honor, and I will even proudly say that I would do menial tasks for Esteghlal.”
Stressing that he was not as close to Mosimane as his four non-Iranian assistants, with whom he had been working for 10 years, Bakhtiarizadeh claimed that he was not upset about this “because when a coach comes to a new team, at first, he does not ask what someone like Sohrab says; rather he goes to his assistants.”
“I was with the technical staff and had no interference in choosing the lineup,” he concluded.
The Esfahani team Sepahan are standing at the top with 38 points, followed by the Tabrizi team Tractor with 35 points in second place. Foolad are in the third place with 34 points, followed by Persepolis in the fourth spot with 33 points.
However, the table is bound to change as other teams, especially all the top four teams, play their matches from Friday to Sunday.