Vouria Ghafouri’s strike proved good enough for Esteghlal to beat Persepolis 1-0 to win the 86th Tehran Derby on Thursday and prevent the Iran Persian Gulf Pro League leader from clinching the title six weeks to the end of the games.
Branko Ivankovic’s side came into the derby knowing that a win would sew up their league title for the 11th time but the Reds were outplayed and outmuscled by Winfried Schaefer’s men in a game that was watched by FIFA President Gianni Infantino and former Dutch international, Marco Van Basten, currently serving as the FIFA chief officer for technical development.
The Blues had the majority of possession, but neither side ventured much into the attacking third in the first half at the fully-packed Azadi Stadium in Tehran, which hosted over 80,000 football fans, AFC’s website wrote.
Both sides took turns making futile attempts but a minute from the break, Esteghlal’s Senegalese forward Mame Baba Thiam took a shot from inside the box, which was blocked by the Persepolis defense but Ghafouri latched on to the stray ball and made no mistake with a left-footed strike for Esteghlal to take the lead.
The intense action continued well into the second half, as Schaefer’s charges looked to secure the win while Persepolis fought for the equalizer but a goal eluded them and Esteghlal took the three points.
Persepolis will now have to wait until March 29 for their next chance to seal the title when it takes on SAIPA as the league takes a break.
Up next for Persepolis will be Al Wasl of the UAE in an AFC Champions League Group C tie on March 5, while Esteghlal faces the UAE’s Al Ain in Group D the following day.
During their two-day visit to Tehran, Infantino and Van Basten held meetings with President Hassan Rouhani, Iranian Football Federation President Mehdi Taj and Minister of Sports and Youth Masoud Soltanifar, and talked about issues regarding Iran football.
As Iran is one of the 32 teams present at the Russia World Cup to be held in summer, Infantino invited President Rouhani and Taj to attend the event.
