Doha: Qatar’s Al Sadd claimed their first victory of the AFC Champions League (ACL) Elite, beating Iran’s Esteghlal FC 2-0 at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium yesterday.
The Felix Sanchez-coached side, who drew 1-1 against UAE’s Al Ain in their opening match, moved to four points from two games in race to reach the knockout stage from the West region.
An own goal from Hossein Hosseini in 40th minute and a clinical spot kick from Afif in 68th minute proved enough for the Wolves to delight their home fans.
“I am happy with the victory in this tough match as the team put up a solid performance,” Sanchez said after the win.
“Four points from two games is a good start for Al Sadd and we are looking forward to collecting more points.”
The coach hoped injuries to Pedro Miguel, Youcef Atal and Abdullah Al Yazidi will not be serious after the trio was substituted during the match.
“Losing three players in a match due to injuries is a big loss but we still do not have information about the severity of these injuries,” said the Spaniard.
Yesterday, Esteghlal FC started aggressively making repeated attempts, but it was Al Sadd who shifted gears late, registering their first shot on target in the 40th minute.
After receiving a long ball from defender Romain Saiss, Rafa Mujica charged into the box, only to be denied by Hosseini from a tight angle.
However, Al Sadd capitalised on the ensuing corner. In a moment of misfortune for Esteghlal, Hosseini attempted to clear Afif’s delivery from the left but inadvertently punched the ball into his own net, handing Al Sadd the lead.
The visitors, having earlier pressed through Ramin Rezaeian, Gustavo Blanco Leschuk, and Saman Fallah, came close to equalising in the stoppage time. Iman Salimi’s header was on target, but a brilliant save by Meshaal Barsham preserved Al Sadd’s advantage as the teams headed into the break.
The Wolves looked much better after the match resumed as they aimed to double their lead but Hosseini denied threatening efforts from Paulo Otavio and Mujica with some superb saves.
Al Sadd finally built a two-goal cushion midway through the second half when Afif won a penalty after storming inside from the left. He was stopped by Roozbeh Cheshmi, a tackle resulting in a yellow card for the Iranian midfielder and a spot kick for Al Sadd, which the Qatari playmaker converted with an unstoppable shot to put his side in a comfortable position.
Barsham thwarted Gael Kakuta’s efforts from outside the box as Esteghlal struggled to put pressure on Al Sadd.
With 11 minutes of stoppage time added, Cristo Gonzalez was denied by the Al Sadd custodian with another save before Afif squandered a chance to finish the game in style as his right-footed strike just missed the target.
Al Sadd will now host another Iranian side Persepolis FC at the same venue on October 21.
“I want to congratulate Al Sadd fans for the victory. We will try to do well in all the matches and our best is yet to come, God willing,” said Afif.
“We must focus on our next League match but my focus first will be on Qatar’s World Cup qualifying game against Kyrgyzstan,” he added referring to the match at Al Thumama Stadium on October 10.
