Alkass Digital
Persepolis overwhelmed Al-Duhail,
beating them 3-2 on aggregate, to enter the semifinals of the AFC Champions League
for a second year in a row on Monday. Playing at a packed Azadi Stadium in
Tehran, the home side came back from a goal deficit to earn a 3-1 win over the
Qatari club.
Al-Duhail drew first blood, taking
the lead in the 33rd minute. Murad Naji’s free-kick bounced off Karim Boudiaf
and found the net, even as Shojae Khalilzadeh’s attempt towards clearing the
ball was left undone.
However, Al-Duhail’s glory was
short-lived with Persepolis upping the tempo soon after. Bashar Resan would
have equalised in the 56th minute, shooting from the edge of the
box, but for goalkeeper Amine Lecomte’s sharp reflexes, which held off the home
side. The danger was far from over, as the resulting corner-kick gave Persepolis
the equaliser in the 57th minute, with skipper Seyed Jalal Hossein converting
a half-volley.
Even as the crowds were busy cheering
Persepolis, striker Ali Alipour broke free from Al-Duhail defender Murad Naji
Hussein’s traps and squared into the six-yard box where playmaker Bashar Rasan
was waiting to finish the job. Defender
Sultan Al Brake tried a last-ditch effort at clearing, but instead scored an
own goal in the 76th minute.
With the momentum going, Persepolis
didn’t wait long to add the third and final goal of the match. Two minutes
later, Nigerian Godwin Mensha gathered the ball from goalie Alireza Beiranvand,
dribbled past two Al-Duhail defenders and neatly finished the job giving
Persepolis the coveted semi-final seat.
Persepolis next take on Al-Sadd.
The loss not only denied Al-Duhail a
chance in the AFC Champions League semi-finals, but cut short their historic
run of victories.
Before the game, they were on par
with Ulsan Hyundai, who recorded a historic run of nine successive wins in the
AFC Champions League six years ago. The South Korean club finished their
winning streak with the title to cap it.
Results: Perspolis 3 (Jalal Hosseini 57’, Sultan Al-Brake 76’ – OG, Godwin
Mensha 78’) beat Al-Duhail 1 (Karim
Boudiaf 33’)
Aggregate: Perspolis 3 - Al-Duhail 2