Esteghlal, Persepolis Earn Hard-Fought Wins in IPL
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Esteghlal and Persepolis football teams earned hard-fought wins over their opponents in Matchweek 26 of the Iran Professional League (IPL) on Monday.
Esteghlal came back from a goal down to beat Zob Ahan 2-1 in Tehran’s Azadi Stadium. Majid Aliyari put the visiting team Zob Ahan ahead in the sixth minute and Jaloliddin Masharipov equalized the match in the 64th minute. Gustavo Blanco also found the back of the net with a powerful strike in the added time.
The 10-man Persepolis also beat Nassaji 2-1 in Ghaemshahr earlier in the day.
Oston Urunov was on target for Persepolis in the sixth minute but Soroush Rafiei was sent off five minutes into the second half. Amir Mohammad Houshmand leveled the scoreboard in the 59th minute but Urunov scored the winner in the 69th minute.
Matchweek 26 Results:
*Paykan 0-1 Aluminum
*Sepahan 1-1 Esteghlal Khuzestan
*Nassaji 1-2 Persepolis
*Malavan 1-1 Havadar
*Sanat Naft 1-0 Mes
*Foolad 0-2 Tractor
*Esteghlal 2-1 Zob Ahan
With four weeks remaining, Esteghlal leads the IPL table with 57 points, while Persepolis sits second with 56 points.
