Marfavi: Win showed championship credentials

AFC – TEHRAN, Esteghlal boss Samad Marfavi felt his side have laid down a marker as genuine contenders in the AFC Champions League after two goals from Farhad Majidi helped the Iranians down Al Gharafa 3-0 at the Azadi Stadium and gain leadership of Group A.

Majidi twice combined with Seyed Salehi to find the back of the net after 12 and 54 minutes before Pejman Montazeri’s late header added the gloss to a fine win.

“The result showed that Esteghlal are a strong side but we can prove to be better,” said Marfavi.

“Our first target in this game was to grab the win and then to score as many goals as we could.

“I should say that today’s win was a result of my players’ hard work and perseverance during recent weeks.

“It was a good game and we were fortunately highly motivated. It was not an easy task to defeat them especially by three goals.

“We knew them quite well. We’d analyzed them both technically and mentally. I’m glad my players were very enthusiastic to try and win. You could see that they never backed off after making the breakthrough and adding the second goal.”

With a return game against Al Gharafa on the agenda next week, Marfavi admitted he may tinker with his formation in Qatar.

“I might change my plans for the next match because every game requires its own tactics,” he added.

“We finished the first half top of Group A but we can’t say for sure who will qualify. There’s still three more games for each team.

“For the return match, my priority will be winning the game but gaining one point from an away match can be satisfying, too.

“We need to play at the same level to ensure a smooth progression to the next round.”
Al Gharafa’s head coach Caio Junior admitted the absence of influential Brazilian playmaker Juninho played a large part in the result.

“I should firstly congratulate Esteghlal for this victory, they converted the opportunities they created and we didn’t, that’s why they won and we lost,” he said.

“I’d like to reiterate that the result was fair but don’t forget that we missed Juninho for this game and we couldn’t have him in the squad.

“His absence had a huge negative impact on our loss today as it was our first time playing without him.

“When you lose it gets more difficult for you to think about going to the next round but we’re not frustrated as we still have the second leg of this game to compensate for today’s lacklustre exhibition.

“I don’t like the feeling that my team’s performance is based on individuals but we missed a big name for today’s clash and it was unusual for my boys to be playing without him.”

Indeed Caio Junior felt it was the midfield battle where his side fell down.

“I don’t think I should say the problem is only in defence, I should take a closer look at my midfield,” he added.

“My midfielders couldn’t provide enough balls for the strikers and that was the main reason we didn’t create many chances during the game.”