Neft Loses to Al Ahli of the UAE at Azadi Stadium

In the first leg of the quarter-finals of the AFC Champions League, Naft Tehran faced Al Ahli of the UAE at Azadi Stadium and lost 1-0. The only remaining representative of Iran in the Champions League now has a tougher path ahead and must defeat Al Ahli in the UAE. Romanian coach Cosmin Olăroiu of Al Ahli believes: "There are 90 minutes left, and it won't be an easy game. Naft is strong in free kicks and corners. We are cautious and should not think we have passed this stage." Naft, which has also failed to achieve victory in its four matches in the Iranian Premier League, has distanced itself from the vibrancy and attacking rhythm of the previous season. The departure of players such as Amin Haj Mohammad, Leandro Padovani, Kamal Kamyabinia, Gholamreza Razaei, as well as injuries to Iman Mobaili, Amirarsalan Motahari, and the decline in quality of Vahid Amiri have also impacted the unsuccessful performances of Alireza Mansourian's team. In the 61st minute of the match, Al Ahli opened the scoring through their Brazilian striker Rodrigo Lima, which was a decisive three-point goal for the UAE football representative. On the other side, Alvays Nang's focus on the left side of Al Ahli's defense was ineffective, and he did not create an opportunity to score against Ahmad Mahmoud. Handing most of the balls to Payam Sadeghian and his failure in playmaking leading to a goal, as well as his insistence on dribbling, were among the reasons that led Naft to fail in registering an equalizer. When Abbas Bouazad came onto the field, he created multiple opportunities for Naft, and it was unclear why Mansourian kept this technical midfielder on the bench until the 70th minute. He used Beiranvand, Santos, Kouroshi, Izati, Amiri, Hamdinejad, Lotfi, Rezavand, Hosseini, Nang, and Sadeghian in his lineup, and during the game, he substituted Hamdinejad, Nang, and Sadeghian to bring Bouazad, Aliyari, and Motahari onto the field. At the end of the match, Mansourian told reporters: "We need to increase the solidarity of the players. We should not let despair consume us. I do not blame the referee for our mistakes, and I have no objection to the opponent's time-wasting. The Melbourne generation makes the impossible possible, and I am part of the same generation that went to the World Cup from Melbourne. In the next 20 days, you will see a different Naft." Bijan Zolfagharnasab, a football expert, said after Naft's defeat to Fars News: The match in the UAE will be harder than the first leg. Iranian football has major problems in the international and club sectors. Our club football is not up to standard.