Today's Edition
Agencies (Tehran)
Cristiano Ronaldo enjoyed a winning debut in the Asian Champions League as he helped Al Nassr reach a 2-0 victory against 10-man Persepolis in Iran, while Al Ain scored a formidable 3-0 win over Pakhtakor in the capital of Tashkent.
In Group A, Al Ain secured an impressive 3-0 victory at Pakhtakor in Tashkent, while Turkmenistan side Ahal defeated Saudi opponents Al Fayha 1-0 at home to record only a second win in the competition.
Kodjo Laba put on a virtuoso performance for Al Ain, the 2003 winners of the Championship.
The Togo international was involved in all three of his side’s goals, scoring two and setting up the other as the Garden City club dominated Maksim Shatskikh’s disjointed side.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner, who has five UEFA Champions League titles to his name, captained the Saudi Arabian side to an opening three points in Group E.
The match at the Azadi Stadium in Tehran was played without fans after the Asian Football Confederation upheld a one-game ban for Persepolis supporters dating back to 2021.
That clearly helped Nassr, who grabbed both goals in the second half against the two-time runners-up, through a Danial Esmaeilifar own goal and a fine strike by defender Mohammed Qassem.
It marked the first time a Saudi club played in Iran since 2016. Iran and Saudi Arabia severed diplomatic ties seven years ago, meaning that Asian Champions League matches had been since played at neutral grounds.
Ronaldo, 38, came close twice in the first half. His initial chance – a powerful, close-range header – was sent straight at Persepolis goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand.
Nassr’s hopes grew early in the second half, when Persepolis midfielder Milad Sarlak was given a second yellow card, this time for appearing to stamp on Ronaldo’s boot. Replays showed that it was unintentional, with minimal contact.
Ronaldo then instigated a move that led to Abdulrahman Ghareeb’s blocked shot cannoning off Persepolis full-back Esmaeilifar and nestling in the net.
Ten minutes later, Nassr left-back Mohammed Qassem broke down the left and thumped his shot high past Beiranvand to double the visitors’ advantage and secure the points.
“We won against a strong Persepolis team. We performed well defensively. After the goal, we were able to control the game. We made the best use of the balls behind the Persepolis defence,” said coach Luis Castro.
“Today, we performed the better of the two teams and won. Of course, this is our first step. We will do our best to advance to the next stage as group winners,” Castro added, whose side face Tajikistan’s FC Istiklol next. The latter were held to a goalless draw in Dushanbe by Qatari heavyweights Al Duhail.
In the East Asian side of the draw, South Korea’s Incheon United opened their Group G account with a 4-2 win over J-League champions Yokohama F Marinos in Japan.
As a result, Incheon sit on three points alongside Chinese Super League side Shandong Taishan, who were made to work for their 3-1 victory in Manila over Kaya-FC Iloilo of the Philippines.
In Group I, South Korean champions, and 2020 Asian Champions League winners, Ulsan Hyundai won at home over Thailand’s BG Pathum United 3-1, while Japan’s Kawasaki Frontale saw off hosts Johor Darul Ta’zim 1-0 in Malaysia.
The group stage returned this year to the home-and-away format for the first time since early 2020. That begins in February with the final taking place across two legs in May.
