Sports > Football > SEPAHAN QUALIFY FOR ACL QUARTER FINALS BY AFSHIN DASTAFSHAN
Sepahan make history by qualifying to the last eight
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Sepahan of Esfahan overcame Group D favourites Al Shabab of Saudi Arabia to book their place in the quarter finals of Asian Champions League (ACL) for the first time in their history. The two teams took to the field level on 10 points but Sepahan led the table based on their away win over Al Shabab, this left the Saudi side needing a win to qualify for the quarter finals while a draw was sufficient for Sepahan.
20,000 Sepahan fans packed Foolad Shahr stadium and cheered their team all the way to the final whistle, in their previous two ACL appearances Sepahan failed to reach the knock-out stages but they gained invaluable experience of playing in Asia and the experience showed in this match. It would have been suicidal for Sepahan to play for the draw they needed to win Group D; such passive mentality often backfires with the team needing a draw losing in the end thanks to a 90 minute defence strategy.
Sepahan made their intentions clear from the outset and attacked Al Shabab with the aim of taking the lead. The match wasn’t the highest quality football I have seen in the ACL with both sides failing to convert their chances in front of the goal. Both teams were tense and knew conceding the first goal could seal their faith as any attempts to push forward for an equaliser would be punished by their opponent’s counter-attacks.
With 30 minutes gone and both teams missing goal scoring opportunities I began to wonder if this match was heading for a 0-0 draw, fortunately Sepahan’s missed chances in front of the goal were matched by Al Shabab missed opportunities. Sepahan had the upper hand in terms of possession though and controlled the first half, then came the break-through, having missed a string of goal scoring opportunities Al Shabab opened the scoring; wearing the number 13 shirt Al Shabab defender Hassan Maaz scored at the wrong end of the pitch! A long Sepahan throw taken by Mohsen Bengar was heading for Seapahan’s Seyed Mohammad Salehi who was marked by two Saudi players in the penalty box, while attempting to intercept the ball Saudi’s Hassan Maaz headed the ball into his own net before Salehi got the chance to do so, not quite the clearance Maaz had in mind but perhaps number 13 is unlucky after-all! There was worse to come for Maaz.
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With neither side able to put the ball away in front of the goal the deadlock in this match was always going to be broken by a fluke goal, a deflection or an own goal, fortune favoured the brave though, Sepahan played an attacking game from the start playing a 3-4-1-2 formation and effectively playing with three strikers whilst using three defenders, in the first leg of the tie against Al Shabab Sepahan played with five defenders and scored on counter-attack, on that occasion it was Salehi himself and not his Saudi marker who scored the goal.
The second half continued to be a game of missed chances, Sepahan switched to a 4-4-2 formation to strengthen their defence-line, both sides came mighty close to scoring with both keepers making saves or strikers shooting wide. But on this day getting the result was all that mattered to the Iranian fans and players. With Esteghlal disqualified from ACL due to management blunder Iran’s hopes of a representative in the knockout stages rested on the shoulders of Sepahan. With ten minutes of the match remaining Saudi own goal scorer Hassan Maaz committed a foul on Sepahan’s Nouri, this was followed by a moment of madness when Maaz stamped on Nouri who was lying on the pitch injured, a moment of mayhem followed with several Sepahan and Al Shabab players getting involved in pushing and shoving, the Japanese referee Yuichi Nishimura did not hesitate and showed the red card to Al Shabab defender Hassan Maaz completing a miserable day for the number 13! Down to ten players and with ten minutes left Al Shabab lost any hopes they might have had of getting back into the match, Sepahan held on to their one goal lead to top Group D on 13 points 3 points clear of Al Shabab.
Sepahan and Iranian fans can celebrate their team’s progress to the last eight in ACL, however, Sepahan will meet much tougher opponents from this point on including teams from East Asia, the game will be merciless, Sepahan have work to do if they wish to make further advancement in the tournament, they cannot afford to continue missing their chances in front of the goal, there will be no margin for error in defence. Sepahan will have to step up a gear and raise their game further. In the mean time congratulations to Sepahan and Iranian fans, see you in the quarter finals.
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