Independence Loses to Al-Wasl

The football team of Independence faced a defeat against Al-Wasl of the UAE in a friendly match. According to Mehr News Agency, in this match held at Al-Wasl's home stadium and officiated by Ahmad Khamis, the Al-Wasl team dominated the first half, scoring two goals against Independence. Tariq Darwish scored in the 32nd minute due to a defensive error from Independence, and in the 38th minute, Adel Matar scored again based on another mistake by Independence's defenders, ending the first half with Al-Wasl in the lead. In this match, Independence's goalkeeper Masoud Ghasemi was injured and bled from the head in the 25th minute due to a collision with an opposing striker, leading to Parviz Boroumand replacing him. In the final minutes of the first half, Ahmad Firouz, an Al-Wasl striker, was sent off by the referee for excessive violence and a deliberate foul on Mahmoud Fekri. It is noteworthy that Independence did not have their national team players, including Enayati, Seyed Abasi, and Ghorbani, due to their participation in a national team camp. In the second half, Amir Ghalenooi's players aimed to compensate for the goals conceded in the first half and to win against their opponent, which they somewhat succeeded in. Faraz Fatemi, the tall striker of the team, scored Independence's first goal in the 60th minute with a header from a corner kick taken by Yadollah Akbari, reducing the goal difference between the two teams. In the 80th minute, Amir Hossein Sadeghi again scored with a header, bringing Independence's second goal into Al-Wasl's net, leveling the game. However, this time, Alireza Nikbakht and Farhad Majidi, Iranian players of Al-Wasl, collaborated on a beautiful cross from Nikbakht, with Majidi scoring in the 88th minute to defeat Independence, who were down to ten men.