Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Tashkent: Coach Hamid Derakhshan believes that his Persepolis side tactically out-thought hosts Bunyodkor as the Iran Pro League side registered a second consecutive win in the AFC Champions League on Tuesday in Tashkent.
Mohammad Noori’s penalty was enough to give Derakhshan’s side a narrow 1-0 win at Bunyodkor Stadium and maintain their 100 percent record at the top of Group A adding to their 3-0 victory over Qatari champions Lekhwiya in their continental opener last week.
And Persepolis now enjoy a four point cushion over Saudi champions Al Nassr who shared a 1-1 draw with Lekhwiya in the group’s other game on Tuesday.
Match report: Bunyodkor 0-1 Persepolis
“We studied Bunyodkor very well and we watched their match against Al Jazira and Al Nassr in the AFC Champions League. We closed down their access to the wide areas and they didn’t create a lot of chances. It was our special plan for the game and gave us the result,” said Persepolis coach Derakhsan.
“We had some chances to make counterattacks, but we preferred to play without risks in our defence. This is why we paid attention to controlling the ball and didn’t give free spaces to Bunyodkor. They have good players who can play fast during the attacks.
“My players showed good performances and I want to say thanks to my team. They played well and everyone tried their best to win the game.”
Bunyodkor, meanwhile, will need to bounce back from the defeat should they wish to maintain their impressive record of qualifying for consecutive knockout stages in every AFC Champions League tournament since their maiden campaign in 2008.
“We expected that match against Persepolis would be very difficult and it didn’t help us when we made a serious mistake in the first half and conceded a goal,” said Bunyodkor coach Lushchan, who called on star playmaker Sardor Rashidov to make more of an impact in forthcoming appearances.
“Rashidov has good speed, technical ability and dribbling skill but he couldn’t show it tonight. We will work with him in training. He has to show himself better and help the team to solve problems during the match.
“We had some chances in the game, but couldn’t take advantage of them. We had some mistakes in our whole team game and the players didn’t show our football in the second half.
“We have a good chance to qualify still and will try to give our best in the next games.”
Photo: WSG