ACL - Pakhtakor downed Iranian rivals Foolad
2-0 to move to the top of the standings of Group A in the 2006 AFC Champions
League on Wednesday evening and enhance their chances of progressing to the
knockout phase of the competition.
Valeri Nepomniatchi's team climbed two points clear of the Iranian champions
thanks to goals from Zaynitdin Tadjiyev and newly appointed captain Server
Djeparov as Pakhtakor notched up their second win of the campaign.
Tadjiyev's strike saw the 28-year-old show some of his old form following
his return to the club in the winter after a disappointing time at
Kazakhstan club Esil in 2005.
Tadjiyev - the eldest of three brothers on the club's books - was the hero
of Pakhtakor's run to the semi-finals of the inaugural Champions League in
2003 when he scored four goals in five games as the Tashkent-based club
reached the last four.
The striker, who is joined at the club by his brothers Farhod and Komoliddin,
has enhanced his chances of making a long-term return to the starting line
up by giving Pakhtakor the lead in the absence of regular forward Anvarjon
Soliev.
With the Uzbek international missing through injury, Tadjiyev took full
advantage, scoring after 12 minutes as referee Mohammed Omar Al Saeedi
played advantage when Foolad keeper Hassan Hori hauled down the Pakhtakor
forward, only for the ball to roll over the goal line.
Tadjiyev caused more problems for the Foolad defence 10 minutes before the
break when Seyed Mohammad Alavi was forced to foul the forward to deny him
another sortie into the penalty area.
Referee Al Saeedi awarded a free kick on the edge of the area and cautioned
Alavi before Djeparov's well-struck left foot free kick sailed into the far
corner of Hori’s goal.
While Tadjiyev was causing the Iranians all kinds of problems, Foolad's
attack struggled to find a way past the home side's well-drilled defence as
they sought to make amends for throwing away the lead in their late
capitulation to Al Qadisiya on Matchday Two.
Foolad's main threat came from set-plays and Ignatiy Nesterov in the home
goal was called into action on a couple of occasions, but the visitors'
hopes all but evaporated following the expulsion of Nader Ahmadi, who was
sent off eight minutes into the second half following a deliberate handball,
his second bookable offence of the game.