Esteghlal held off by Naft in IPL [VIDEO]

PTV – TEHRAN, Tehran’s Naft football squad has managed to share points with the capital’s Blues in a goalless draw in the Iranian Premier League (IPL).

Esteghlal and the new IPL addition Naft ended an almost eventless match in the presence of some 15,000 football fans in Tehran’s Azadi Stadium on Sunday.

Both teams lost a few opportunities in the evening game in the sixth week of the IPL.

Esteghlal manager Parviz Mazloumi blamed the team’s “fatigue” for his players’ below-par performance and told reporters, “Unfortunately, our players’ problems caused major tactical shifts in different matches and we did not have enough time for the changes.”

Meanwhile, the home-side coach Hossein Faraki praised his squad’s efforts and said, “We would have gathered all the three points if we could use all our players” who suffered from injuries.

Elsewhere in the IPL games, Mes FC snatched a 1-0 victory against the Khouzestan-based Foulad and Peykan hammered Steel Azin 3-1, while Sepahan defeated Pas 2-1.

The result keeps Esteghlal in the fourth place in the table with 9 points. Zob Ahan currently tops the standings on 13 points, followed by Persepolis with one point less. Pas sits third in 10.

The sixth week of the IPL will end on Monday with more matches including one between Persepolis and the Bushehr-based Shahin FC.