Late Persepolis equalizer shocks Esteghlal [VIDEO]

Tehran Times – TEHRAN, The stunning last-gasp from Jerry Bengtson earned Persepolis a 1-1 draw at the Azadi Stadium on Friday.

In the Week 11th of the Iran Professional League (IPL), Esteghlal suffered a disappointing draw against its arch-rival Persepolis.

Jaber Ansari had fired Esteghlal into a 1-0 lead in the 49th minute.

He found the back of the net with a header.

Soon after, Persepolis put Esteghlal under pressure and created several chances but the Blues’ keeper Mehdi Rahmati produced some brilliant saves.

He had already denied Omid Alishah and Ahmad Nourollahi in the first half.

In the dying moments of the match, unmarked Bengtson, who had come off the bench, equalized the match.

“I thought we played well as a team and we deserved at least one point. If you don’t score then you will get punished,” Persepolis coach Branko Ivankovic said in the post-match news conference.

“My players fought until the end, they didn’t give up the struggle and we deserved the draw,” the Croat added.

“I believe that we could have won the match but our players squandered their chances. I am satisfied with the result,” Branko concluded.

Esteghlal and Persepolis have played against each other 81 times, with Esteghlal winning 24 games, Persepolis taking 20 victories, and 37 matches ending in a draw.