Persepolis now ruling the roost with the second win

TEHRAN, March 04 (MNA) – Iran’s Persepolis dominated the Group A with a second win against Uzbekistan’s Bonyodkor. The win came rather early in the match for Persepolis when in 19th minute South Korean Jin Dang Kim the referee announced a penalty kick for Persepolis. Bonyodkor’s defender committed a fault over Mehdi Taremi, who had a net chance of scoring in the penalty area by a combination connecting Mohammad Nouri and Omid Alishah as well. Tashkent was hosting the match in the second day of Asian Champions League. The penalty kick was converted to score by Mohammad Nouri. The goal incided Bonyodkor of reckless aggressive game style to equalize the match, with the most critical minute being 33rd, when Shahmoradov missed a golden opportunity to score. In 42nd minute, Omid Alishah was tackled by Bonyodkor defender this time again in the penalty area, to which the referee was heedless to decide. The host’s attempts to create positions before Persepolis’s goal proved unfruitful and Persepolis enjoyed the lead for the second half. In the second half, Bonyodkor turned even more aggressive in futile attempts to create net positions, the most notable was Shudiyev’s 52nd minute header which could have been an equalizer, to which Sosha Makani beautifully responded with snatching the ball. Bonyodkor dominated the match in the rest of the minutes; however, Persepolis defended better to neutralize the host’s much of heat and tactical plans. Persepolis now rules the roost in Group A with full 6 points, and for sure, Derakhshan’s place would be much difficult to challenge as the stories of his replacement stole the headlines in recent few weeks.