AFC Champions League Elite:
Skocic not surprised after Tractor hits five past Sharjah
Tractor head coach Dragan Skocic said his team’s 5-0 demolition of Emirati side Sharjah FC in the AFC Champions League Elite on Monday was nothing beyond what he expected from the Iranian top-flight champion.
Chasing its first win at the Asian elite clubs’ competition after back-to-back draws against Shabab Al Ahli (1-1) and Al Wahda (0-0), Tractor got off to a flying start at the Sharjah Stadium, taking a two-goal lead inside 11 minutes through Albanian midfielder Regi Lushkja.
Mahdi Hashemnejad netted the third strike for the visitors five minutes before the break, playing the ball into Amirhossein Hosseinzadeh before bursting into the box to steer his return pass beyond goalkeeper Darwish Mohammed.
Right fullback Danial Esmaeilifar then ran into the penalty area to collect Hashemnejad’s cutback from the byline and coolly slot into the bottom corner in the third minute of added time.
Substitute Masoud Zaer-Kazemein put the game to bed six minutes from normal time as Tractor moved up to fourth in the West Zone’s 12-team table with five points.
Skocic was delighted to see his players execute the gameplan to perfection.
“It’s a great moment for my players, for everyone in the club, and for the staff. I think we played a great game - everything we planned to do, we did,” said Skocic. “We limited the opponents’ attacks even though they have quality players up front and we managed to create problems for them.
“I’m really happy for my team. They truly deserve this. In some games this season we’ve been unlucky but today, we showed our quality and proved that no one should forget about us in this competition.”
Asked if he was surprised by the stunning victory, the Croatian said, “Why do you think I didn’t expect the result? We are the [Iranian] champion. Perhaps you didn’t expect this, but I did.
“We are a good team. We showed it last season with some really good performances. No one could beat us in 90 minutes [in the AFC Champions League Two], and we were only knocked out on penalties. I’m really glad that you have now discovered Tractor,” added Skocic.
Lushkja was proud to have played a sterling role in Tractor’s impressive victory, saying: “I’m very happy that we won today,” said Lushkja. “I want to thank all my teammates and the coach for giving me the opportunity to play.
“I’m really happy for the team because without everyone, we couldn’t have won this game. We played against a very good team and I’m just very happy to get the win here.”
Skocic’s opposite number on the Sharjah bench, Milos Milojevic, meanwhile, took responsibility for his team’s humiliation on home turf.
“Unfortunately, the result could have been even worse. We started very poorly in every aspect. They were more organized and looked more like a team. Honestly, they deserved to win against us,” said Milojevic.
“This is not about bad luck – it’s a disaster for Sharjah and for football in the Emirates. It’s unacceptable. Of course, I feel very bad about it. I take full responsibility for this defeat. I was the one who chose the players and decided how we would play. I can’t blame anyone else.”
Tractor will aim for a second win in the league phase when it faces Iraq’s Al Shorta at Tabriz’s Yadegar-e Imam Stadium on November 3, while Sharjah will look to redeem itself against Saudi Arabia’s Al Ittihad in Jeddah a day later.