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IRNA - The 17th-week matches of the 16-strong
fifth Iran Pro League on Jan 5 and 6:
ESTEQLAL-PAS DERBY ENDS IN STALEMATE
Pacesetter Esteqlal and third-placed Pas struggled to a nil-nil tie in an
eagerly awaited derby in the 100,000-seater Azadi Stadium, west of Tehran,
Friday.
Midseason champion Esteqlal was forced to play with 10 men in the last 11
minutes as midfielder Mehdi Amirabadi was sent off for his second bookable
offense.
Esteqlal extended its leadership with 33 points and Pas retained its third
position on 27 points.
SABA HOLDS MALAVAN AT HOME
Visitor Saba Battery held Malavan to a goalless draw in Takhti Stadium of
Bandar Anzali, northern Gilan Province, Friday.
Supported by some 6,000 fans in a cold day, Malavan missed a handful of
scoring chances in the first half.
Malavan also possessed the ball and field after the restart but failed to
find the net of Tehran's Saba, which had a lackluster performance.
Referee Alireza Faghani showed yellow cards to four players from each side.
Saba Battery is in the seventh spot with 24 points and Malavan lies in the
12th place on 19 points.
REZA DOUBLE BRINGS FOULAD CLOSER TO TOP
Holder Foulad came closer to the top as striker Emad Reza hit his double
against the home side Rah Ahan in Ekbatan Stadium of Tehran Friday.
Reza put the visitor ahead in the 17th minute, but his opener was canceled
out by new signing Khodadad Azizi three minutes after the break.
Foulad, however, retook the lead on 66 minutes when Reza celebrated the
second.
The southern side Foulad moves up one step, standing fourth with 27 points
and promoted Rah Ahan is demoted to 11th place from ninth with 20 points.
KHEIRI HELPS ABU MOSLEM PAST BARQ
Mehdi Kheiri extracted three points for home team Abu Moslem, finding Barq's
net in Takhti Stadium of northeastern capital Mashhad Friday.
Abu Moslem edged past the Shiraz-based Barq 1-0 as Kheiri struck in the 41st
minute of the action-filled match.
Referee Saeid Mozaffari booked Mohammad Matouri, Qassem Gholamzadeh, and
Mehdi Eyni from Barq and home players Mohammad-Reza Khal'atbari and Reza
Nassehi.
The win sent Abu Moslem one step above, 10th place, with a 21-point asset
while Barq is in the 13th spot on 17 points.
AKBARI INSPIRES SEPAHAN INTO VICTORY OVER QANDI
Jalal Akbari wrapped up a 1-0 home victory for Sepahan over promoted Shahid
Qandi in Naqsh-e Jahan Stadium of central capital Isfahan Friday.
Akbari scored the sole goal of the match two minutes from halftime, helping
his side move up to fourth place with 27 points.
Yazd's team Qandi occupies the 15th slot on 16 points.
Referee Mohsen Torki and linesmen Mohammad-Reza Abolfazli and Alireza
Kahouri judged the match.
FOUR-STAR FAJR TROUNCES SHAMOUSHAK
Fajr-e Sepassi that stunned Persepolis 4-2 last week thrashed the northern
team Shamoushak 4-1 in Hafezieh Stadium of southern capital Shiraz Friday.
The goal spree started seven minutes after kickoff when Hassan Faraji scored
the opener.
Gholam-Reza Rezaei, who was named "Player of the Week" for his brilliant
performance against Persepolis, doubled the scoring on 20 minutes.
The bottom-placed Shamoushak pulled one back one minute into second half
when Esfandiar Mohseni fired home.
But Mohseni's opener was responded by another two from Morteza Khanzad and
Vahid Rezaei. Khanzad restored the two-goal cushion in the 74th minute and
Rezaei converted a penalty kick to complete the northerner's rout.
Shamoushak was reduced to 10 men four minutes deep into additional time as
keeper Mohammad Bahraini was sent off by the referee Fereydoun Esfahanian
for protest.
Fajr lies in the ninth spot with 22 minutes and Shamoushak sticks to rock
bottom, 16th place, on 15 points.
More than 5,000 fans watched the game.
HONORS EVEN FOR SOUTH ESTEQLAL, ZOB AHAN
Esteqlal of southern city of Ahvaz and the visiting side Zob Ahan fought to
a 1-1 draw in Takhti Stadium of Shoushtar Friday.
Esteqlal had a dream start, taking the lead in the second minute when
Mehrzad Rezaei's drive was mistakenly sent home by Zob's defender Sepehr
Heidari.
The visitor, however, grabbed the equalizer two minutes after the interval
as striker Mehdi Rajabzadeh found the net.
The stalemate left the Isfahan-based Zob Ahan in the sixth place with 25
points and Esteqlal in the 14th spot on 16 points.
Assisted by linesmen Massoud Fallah and Javad Taqipour, the referee Mahmoud
Rafiei judged the match.
SAIPA SUPERSUBS HOLD 10-MAN PERSEPOLIS
Supersubstitutes Mohsen Arzani and Javad Ashtiani found the net after the
restart to hold the 10-man Persepolis to a 2-2 tie in Azadi Stadium
Thursday.
The red-shirted Persepolis licking its wound following last week's
humiliating 4-2 loss to lowly Fajr-e Sepassi took the lead in the 19th
minute when striker Sohrab Entezari headed home an Ebrahim Assadi corner.
But the opener left a bittersweet taste on the palates of fans and the reds
in the dugout as Entezari received his marching orders from Asian Referee of
the Year Massoud Moradi for his second bookable offense -- taking off his
shirt as a gesture of jubilation.
The absent-minded striker, who had been already booked for a wild foul,
reduced to tears and watched the remaining 70 minutes from the stand.
Persepolis, however, celebrated the second on 27 minutes following a
spectacular inswinging free-kick from striker Javad Kazemian.
Saipa manager Bijan Zolfaqar-Nassab, who had capitalized on Entezari's
blooper and planned to cement his side's second place in the table, threw on
Arzani and Ashtiani.
The duo gave positive responses to their trainer's confidence.
Arzani rifled home with a powerful drive from edge of the area in the 62nd
minute and Ashtiani outpaced Persepolis defender Ali Ansarian before beating
the helpless keeper Farshid Karimi in a man-to-man challenge 10 minutes from
time.
Persepolis, whose in-form fullback Karim Baqeri was stretchered off the
field minutes after Saipa's opener, was killing time to extract a draw.
Substitute Ali Ebrahimian sent the chills down to the reds' spines when his
point-blank header in the third minute of stoppage time rattled the near
post.
Both Saipa and Persepolis retained their spots -- second and eighth
respectively.
Saipa has garnered 30 points out of 17 matches and Persepolis has 22 points.
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