Al Jazira beats Iran`s Esteghlal at Azadi

TEHRAN,April 4(MNA) – Iran’s Esteghlal was defeated by Al Jazira of the UAE in the AFC Champions League on Tuesday. In the match held in Tehran’s Azadi Stadium, the visiting team defeated two-time Asian champion 2-1 in the Group A. Juma Abdullah put Al Jazira into the lead after five minutes. Afterwards, Esteghlal put the Emirati representative under pressure but its strikers lacked the cutting edge to break down Al Jazira. Esteghlal eventually equalized the match in the 68th minute after Ferydon Zandi’s shot was deflected by Al Jazira defender. Four minutes later, Al Jazira Brazilian striker Bare put the ball into back of the Blues’ net after Esteghlal keeper Mehdi Rahmati made a blunder. Esteghlal has defeated Al Rayyan of Qatar in its away match and was held by Nasaf Qarshi of Uzbekistan in its home match.