Esteghlal trounces Persepolis in Hazfi Cup [VIDEO]

TEHRANTIMES – TEHRAN, The Esteghlal football team has crushed archrival Persepolis in a quarterfinal match of Iran’s Hazfi Cup Iran’s.

Esteghlal defeated Persepolis 3-0 for their fourth consecutive win in the Tehran derby in front of approximately 70,000 spectators at Tehran’s Azadi Stadium on Friday.

The two teams and the crowd observed one minute of silence in memory of veteran Iranian sports photographer Esmaeil Zarafshan, who died at the age of 83 on Sunday.

After a goalless 90 minutes, the match headed into extra time. Prodigy Mojtaba Jabbari gave the Blues a lead in the 95th minute and he doubled Esteghlal’s lead from the penalty spot after Esteghlal captain Farhad Majidi was brought down by Mamadou Tall in the 98th minute.

Esmaeil Sharifat escaped the offside trap in the 107th minute and made it 3-0.

“I am proud of my players because of their good performance against Persepolis. I congratulate my men and our fans,” Esteghlal coach Parviz Mazloumi said.

Mojtaba Jabbari was selected as the best player of the match.

Esteghlal will play the winner of the Shahrdari Yasuj-Foolad match in the semifinals of the Hazfi Cup.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBmA5CYzd-o&feature=youtube_gdata