Al Duhail’s forward Almoez Ali (left) scores from a penalty spot against Iran’s Persepolis, yesterday.
Star striker Almoez Ali made the most of a penalty kick and struck his third goal in this season’s AFC Champions League (ACL) as Al Duhail clinched a crucial 1-0 win against Iran’s Persepolis FC in their Group C encounter which took place at the Education City Stadium, yesterday.
The Qatari forward’s goal which came in the 60th minute also took the QNB Stars League winners to top of the table in their Group.
The fixture was of great importance to both the teams as only three points separated the top and bottom placed teams in Group C before the kick off yesterday, with Persepolis occupying the top spot with seven points.
A victory was the ‘only option’ according to Al Duhail’s coach Walid Regragui, who had emphasised the importance of a win against the former ACL finalists, following their shock defeat in the hands of Sharjah in their previous fixture.
The first half of the match saw a keen tussle for the ball possession, with both teams defending well against each other while not many chances were created.
With just three minutes to the break, Persepolis were awarded a free-kick on the edge of the area after dangerous play from Ali on Shojae Khalilzadeh. Bashar Resan curled it over the wall but could not get it down in time to hit the target.
A quick exchange of passes at the other end saw Ramin Rezaeian break free in space down the right, but the former Persepolis player watched as his effort was parried by goalkeeper Hamed Lak.
Upon restart, the hosts stepped up their efforts and continued to put pressure on the Iranian side.
That resulted in a penalty in the 58th minute after an aggressive challenge by Khalilzadeh on Al Duhail’s Belgian midfieldr Edmilson inside the box.
Al Duhail captain Ali then fired home his third goal from three matches to put the Qatari side in front.
Persepolis almost levelled the scores six minutes later when Resan tested goalkeeper Mohammed Al Bakri, but the Al Duhail custodian made a brilliant save to spoil the effort.
The Iranian side continued to push forward for an equaliser but failed to break the Al Duhail momentum until the final whistle.
The result means Al Duhail now have nine points and sit above the rest of the pack in their race to the knockout stage with one more match to go.
Persepolis also remain in contention with their fate to be determined in their final encounter against Sharjah.
Additional inputs from theafc.com.
