Al Sadd fell to a narrow 1-0 defeat to Persepolis of Iran in the first leg of their AFC Champions League semi-final clash on Tuesday.
The lone goal of the game came in the 86th minute, when Persepolis striker Ali Alipour scored from the penalty spot.
After a competitive start to the game, Al Sadd soon came to take control and Akram Afif fashioned the first real chance of the game in the 16th minute. The forward got into the box and took a shot at goal only to see Persepolis goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand make an easy save.
Two minutes later, Persepolis almost took the lead. Godwin Mensha was just inches away from the goal-line when he met Bashar Resan’s cross but the striker somehow skied the ball over the crossbar.
Baghdad Bounedjah then had his first proper attempt, with a ppowerful shot that went over the bar in the 33rd minute. In the 43rd minute, Afif cut in from the left and sent low drive at goal but once again, he was denied by the diving Beiranvand.
Al Sadd began the second half looking to make a mark. Ferreira made his first substitution at the beginning of the half, bringing on Hassan Al-Haydos in place of Jung Woo-young.
In the 67th minute, Pedro had a rare foray into the opposing half, getting past two defenders and powering a fierce shot at goal but Beiranvand was on hand to keep the balla out.
Al Sadd kept up their efforts to break the deadlock, with Ferreira sending on striker Hamza Al Sanhaji in place of full back Hamid Ismail. Despite the change, the home side were unable to make their mark and instead, it was Persepolis who managed to score in the 86th minute.
Al Sadd custodian Saad Al Sheeb, who was otherwise untroubled, brought down Alipour in the box following a quick counter attack. Alipour took the penalty himself and scored to put his side in front with just minutes to go until full time.
Afif thought he had equalised in the 92nd minute after nicking the ball away from Beiranvand and slotting home, but the referee ruled it out for a foul. It meant that Persepolis would go on to clinch a slim 1-0 win.
MATCH DETAILS
Al-Sadd x Persepolis
VENUE:
Jassim bin Hamad Stadium
LINEUPS:
Al-Sadd: Saad Al-Dosari, Pedro Miguel, Hamid Ismail (Hamza Al-Sanhaji), Khoukhi Boualem, Abdelkarim Hassan, Xavi, Gabi, Salem Al-Hajri, Jung Woo-young (Hassan Al-Haydos), Akram Afif, Baghdad Bounedjah
Persepolis: Alireza Beiranvand, Shojae Khalilzadeh, Seyed Jalal Hosseini, Ali Mosleh, Siamak Nemati, Bashar Resan (Hamid Reza Taherkhani), Omid Alishah (Ehsan Alvanzadeh), Ahmed Nourollahi, Adam Hemati, Godwin Mensha, Ali Alipour (Saeed Hasseinpour)
RESULT:
Persepolis won 1-0
GOALS:
Alipour 86′ (PEN)
BOOKINGS:
Siamak Nemati 14′
Omid Alishah 39′
Alireza Beiranvand 76′
REFEREES:
Dilan Perera (Main referee)
Priyanga Palliya Guruge (Linesman)
Deniye Gedara (Linesman)
Sanjeeva Wellapada (Fourth official)
Gamini Nivon (Additional referee)
Rowan Arumughan (Additional referee)
Source: al-saddclub.com