No rest for the weary of Iran

Amidst internal turmoil and personnel shuffles in both Esfahani teams, Iran's two representatives have been paired against two tough opponents for their upcoming Asian champions league quarter-final clash, a daunting task under normal circumstances.

Sepahan is slated to face the Qatari team Alsadd. And they step into this crucial game not knowing who will be their coach and most probably having lost some of their key players such as Ebrahim Toure, Jalal Hosseini and Iran (and probably Asia’s) best goalkeeper, Mehdi Rahmati. Coach Amir Ghalenoei has expressed his disappointment in leaving the club due to failure in negotiations over his salary and contract fee. Although this has not been confirmed by the club management, but all signs point to a change at the helm for the club which couldnt have come at a more crucial period what with the club making a very strong case to win the coveted Asian champions league trophy.

While the yellow camp in Esfahan mulls over its next possible coach, the green camp of Zob-Ahan faces nothing short of disaster as there have been rumors of departure of Mansour Ebrahimzadeh, their capable coach as well as some of the more prominent players like goal tender Shahab Gordan and the little big man, Mohamad-Reza Khalatbari! Considering their quarterfinal clash is against a very competent South Korean Samsung Blue-wings, fans of the club are experiencing some very nervous and stressful times that should last till the end of Iran’s transfer window.

Ironically, after talk of Ghalenoei’s departure from Sepahan, some pundits have disclosed Sepahan’s management may be going after Ebrahimzadeh as a viable replacement. Although other names have been thrown into the bowl as well, such as Luka Bonacic (former Sepahan coach who went as far as Asian champions league final 2 years back) and Perspolis’ Ali Daei.

Those in the know blame the government and its role in reducing the allotted budget for industrial teams that has forced these clubs to have a long look at their yearly budget and affordability of such high profile and imminently successful coaches and players. But this couldn’t have come at a worse time as this year, given the performances of these two teams, really held much promise for the Iranian fans to actually dare imagine seeing an Iranian club lifting the coveted Asian trophy after a more than 20 years gap.

Sepahan sweeps Bunyadkor aside on its way to quarterfinals

Asian Champions League, Pre-quarter final stage. This year Isfahan has established itself as the football capital of Iran with two great teams, Sepahan and Zob-Ahan representing Iran in Asia. What makes this year's edition more exciting for us football fans is this year we have two strong candidates who can vie for the trophy and go toe to toe with the best of Asia.

However, Sepahan and Zob-Ahan's similarities end here. While Sepahan is a team jam-packed with super-stars and highly skilled individuals each of whom is a household name, Zob Ahan represents a collective and tight unit of players who have created a team in its truest sense. More on Zob Ahan tomorrow as they face the Saudi team Al-Nasr. But today, Sepahan literally steamrolled over the Uzbeks team Bunyadkor who are no slouches themselves. A team that made a lot of noise and a name for itself a few years ago in Asia by hiring one of the world's top coaches Scolari and a roster that included a few South American stars, one Rivaldo at the top of the list.

But history and record books were of no help to the Uzbek team as Sepahan played a fast attacking game in the first half that is seldom seen in Iranian clubs in Asia. Sepahan players did whatever they wanted to do and surged in wave after wave, threatening the opponents' goal at whim.

However, Ibrahim Toure's immature and careless attitude finally caused some concern among the Isfahani team by receiving a red card at minute 56, therefore forcing Sepahan to play the next 35+ minutes one man short. And true to form, there were a couple of humps and wobbles on the way with the Uzbeki team taking advantage of their extra man and for minutes applied tremendous pressure on Sepahan's back line. However sepahan's third goal sealed the game and after Aghili's penalty it was just a matter of controlling the game and running down the clock.

I am extremely happy to see Sepahan perform at such high levels against some tough Asian opponents and this year may finally be the year we see an Iranian club lifting the coveted trophy after a gap of nearly 20 years. Sepahan has shown they have the right tools to make this dream come true and I dare say they are among the favorites and it would take a major obstacle to keep them away from the trophy. Will they remain professional until the last minute of the final game or lose their nerves like Zob Ahan in last year's edition?