Tractor aiming for back-to-back wins in ACL Elite
Persian Gulf Pro League champion Tractor will seek a second successive victory at the AFC Champions League Elite when it faces Al Shorta at Tabriz’s Yadegar-e Imam Stadium today.
Having shared the spoils with Emirati outfits Shabab Al Ahli (1-1) and Al Wahda (0-0) in its first two games in the league phase, Tractor upset the formbook with a stunning 5-0 win against Sharjah FC on matchday three while Iraq’s Al Shorta has yet to shift into high gear with just a point to its name.
While Tractor would have been glad to register victory against Sharjah, it will head into the Al Shorta tie having only twice won back-to-back matches on the continental stage, which were both achieved in 2016.
The victory against Sharjah, however, ended a run of three winless matches and with Al Shorta struggling to get its campaign running, Tractor will fancy its chances of taking maximum points.
Al Shorta’s only point came from its opening-day draw with Al Sadd SC of Qatar and the Iraqi side needs to start getting points on the board if it is to stand a chance of a top-eight spot in the West Zone’s 12-team table and a place in the round of 16.
The odds are stacked against the Iraqi side, with Al Shorta having only picked up one point over its last 11 outings in the Asian elite clubs’ competition, finding the net only four times and conceding 28.
Sitting fifth in the table, Tractor will step onto the pitch on the back of a frustrating 1-1 home draw against 10-man Persepolis in the domestic league on Thursday, when a Marko Bakic’s stunning free kick in the 96th minute canceled out in-form Amirhossein Hosseinzadeh’s 88th-minute opener for the host.