Answer: Al-Sadd from Qatar in 2011.
Question 1: Who were the last Middle Eastern team to win the AFC Champions League?Questions History:

Question 2: Who is the all times top goalscorer for Saudi Arabia National Team?

A: Majed Abdullah (71 goals)

Question 3: Who is the only Omani player to have played in UEFA Cup?

A: Ali Al-Habsi

Question 4: Which star of the 2015 Asian Cup, arguably the best player in the continent, traces his roots to Yemen?

A: Omar Abdulrahman (Amoory)

Question 5: Which captain of his team scored the winning goal with a header in the 2007 AFC Asian Cup final?

A: Younis Mahmoud for Iraq vs Saudi.

Question 6: Which foreigner signed for Al-Ain in 2011, going on to break every single goalscoring record for foreigners in UAE Football history?

A: Asamoah Gyan

Question 7: Which player successfully became the top scorer of the Lebanese National Team in 2015, beating Wartan Ghazarian’s record of 19 goals?

A: Roda Antar

Question 8: How many Ballon d’Or winners have played for Middle Eastern Clubs? 

A: 3 players, Hristo Stoichkov for Al-Nassr (KSA), George Weah for Al-Jazira (UAE) & Fabio Cannavaro for Al-Ahli (UAE).

Question 9: Who was the first Iraqi footballer to play in UEFA Champions League group stage?

A: Hawar Mulla Mohammed for Anorthosis Famagusta FC of Cyprus

Question 10: Against which country did Iran get their only win in FIFA World Cup finals?  

A: Against USA in France 1998.

Question 11:Clubs from which Middle Eastern country have lifted the most AFC Cup trophies?

A: Kuwait (4 times, three for Kuwait SC & 1 for Qadsia).

Question 12: Who were the two brothers who played for different Gulf national sides?

A: Mohammed Salem Al Enezi for Qatar & his younger brother Mohannad Salem Al Enezi for UAE.

Question 13: Along with the likes of Paolo Maldini & Ryan Giggs, this Bahraini legend shares the title of the second longest one-club playing career in the history of football (24 seasons)? A: Hamoud Sultan

Question 14: Which Middle Eastern player participated in three FIFA World Cups and won the AFC Champions League/Asian Club Championship with two different clubs? A: Ahmed Al Dokhi

Question 15: Which Middle Eastern player won the Golden Ball at a FIFA U-17 World Cup and Asian Young Footballer of the Year in the same year?

A: Mohammed Amer Al-Kathiri

Question 16: Which Emirati player was the first ever to play in the UEFA Champions League?

A: Hamed Al Kamali for Valetta FC from Malta.

Question 17: Which ME player has made the most appearances in the UEFA Champions League?

A: Mehrdad Minavand, 19 games

Question 18: In which year did Yemen make its only appearance at the AFC Asian Cup?

A:  As South Yemen in 1976, Iran

Question 19: Which Lebanese club set a Guinness World Record at one point?

A: Al Ansar

Question 20: Saudi midfielder Saeed Al-Owairan scored a Maradona-esque goal in the 1994 world cup against Belgium. The Belgian GK in that game later managed the same club team Al-Owairan played for. Who was that GK/manager and what was the team? A: Michelle Preud’homme, Al Shabab

Question 21: Which was the last team to win the Kuwaiti League apart from Al-Qadsia and Kuwait SC? A: Al Arabi in 2001

Question 22: Who are the three Qatari players who have played in two Gulf Cup winning campaigns?

Mubarak Mustafa (1992 & 2004), Wisam Rizq & Bilal Mohammed (2004 & 2014)

Question 23: Where was the first ever Gulf Cup held? A: Bahrain 1971

Question 24: In the past 30 years, which was the only club to break the Al Wehdat – Al Faisaly duopoly and win the Jordanian league?

Question 25: Which Middle Eastern defender underwent trials at Arsenal in 2011? A: Saad Suhail Al-Mukhaini.

Question 26: Which Middle Eastern club was originally founded as ‘Zamalek’ after the Egyptian giants? A: Al-Wasl.

Question 27: Teams from which Middle Eastern city have appeared in the most number of AFC Champions League/Asian Club Championship finals? A: Riyadh.

Question 28: Bahrain came very close to qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Who missed the penalty against New Zealand that would have sent them through? A: Syed Mohammed Adnan

Question 28: Which Middle Eastern born striker is recognised as the highest international goalscorer in the World? A: Ali Daei

Question 30: Who holds the QSL record for most number of goals scored in a single league campaign? A: Clemerson of Al-Gharafa with 27 goals in 2007/08

Question 31: Which match saw the biggest scoreline in Middle Eastern Football’s top divisions this season so far? A:  Al Qadsia 10-0 Al Jahra (Kuwaiti Premier League)

Question 32: Who scored the first ever FIFA World Cup Goal for a Middle Eastern Nation? A: Iraj Danaeifard (Iran 1978).

Question 33: Which club is the oldest in the UAE? A: Al Nasr

Question 34: I spent most of my playing career in Serie A. I played in two Middle Eastern leagues and represented my country in 3 FIFA World Cups. Who am I? A: Mark Bresciano

Question 35: Who ended Ali Al-Habsi’s Gulf Cup hegemony as the recipient of the Best Goalkeeper award, exploiting his absence at the 2010 edition? A: Nawaf Al Khaldi

Question 36: Among current players, who is the longest serving foreigner at one club in the Arabian Gulf League?

Question 37: Which FIFA World Cup Golden Ball winner went on to manage the Saudi Arabian national team?

Question 38: Who is the first and only Qatari footballer to score in the UEFA Cup? A: Hussein Yasser 

Question 39: Who are the 3 Iraqi players to have appeared in 5 Gulf Cup tournaments? A: Mahdi Karim, Adnan Dirjal and Younis Mahmoud.

Question 40: I am a foreign striker, played for 4 clubs in 3 different Middle Eastern leagues. I topped the goalscorers in one league, but flopped miserably in another. Who am I and can you name the clubs I played for? A: Eder Luciano.

Question 41: Which two clubs face off in the “Derby of the Smiling Emirate”? A: Al Shaab and Sharjah.

Question 42: Who is the only Middle Eastern player to score in three FIFA World Cup competitions? A: Sami Al Jaber

Question 43: Which two Middle Eastern players shared the top goalscorer award at the 2004 AFC Asian Cup? Ala Hubeil and Ali Karimi.

Question 44: Who is the only non-Qatari to win the QSL top scorer award three times? A: Younis Mahmoud.

Question 45: Which club has won the most Hazfi Cups? Esteghlal FC

Question 46: Who coached Lebanon at the 2000 AFC Asian Cup? A: Josef Skoblar

Question 47: Which Emirati star won the Best Player Award at the FIFA World Youth Championship in 2003?

Question 48: Two players scored 5 goals for Saudi Arabia. Which club do they play for? Al Nassr.

Question 49: First Middle Eastern Manager to win the ACL? Obeid Juma, Al Sadd 1989

Question 50: Which player recently became the youngest player to ever play in the UAE Arabian Gulf League? Ali Saleh
Question 51: Who captained the 2009 Gulf Cup winning Oman team? Mohammed Rabia

Question 53: Who is the first ever Iraqi player to play in the Turkish League?

Question 54: Who is the only Emirati club to win AFC Champions League? Al-Ain

Question 55: Who’s the only Middle Easterner to become the Asian Footballer of the Year three times in a row? A: Majed Abdulla

Question 56: Who was the GK MVP in the 2014 Gulf Cup of Nations? A: Qassem Burhan

Question 57: Which club sent the most players to the 1990 World Cup for the U.A.E National Team, boasting the nickname “The Kings”? A: Sharjah

Question 58: Who were the first Middle Eastern team ever to play in the FIFA Club World Cup?

Question 59: Which Middle Eastern country was the birthplace of the FIFA Confederations Cup and hosted the first edition of the competition? A: Saudi Arabia 

Question 63:Which two Gulf national teams are nicknamed “Al Ahmar”? A: Oman and Bahrain.

Question 64:In April 2015, this striker broke the record for the most goals scored in all Kuwaiti competitions? A: Firas Al Khatib

Question 65: How many former Al-Hilal managers are coaching in the UAE’s Arabian Gulf League as of today? A: 3

Question 66: Who is the all time record goalscorer for the QSL (Started in 2008)?

Question 68: When was the last time the reigning Gulf Cup champions managed to progress from an Asian Cup group stage? A: Kuwait (2000)

Question 69: Who is the youngest player ever to play for KSA national team? (Ahmed Jamil Madani)

Question 70:  Who is Iran’s most capped international player? A: Javad Nekounam

Question 71: Which two clubs are by far the biggest in Lebanon? A: Al Ansar & Al Nejmeh

Question 72: Which Syrian footballer was offered a trial at Manchester City in 2004,but could not travel to England? A: Rafat Muhammad.

Question 73: Which three sons of a former Egyptian footballer played for one Middle Eastern national team (Not Egypt)? A: Hussein, Mohammed & Ahmed Yasser Mohammadi.

Question 74: Who were the first Emirati team win a FIFA Club World Cup match? A: Al-Wahda vs Hikari United (2010).

Question 75: Who is the only manager to ever win the AFC Asian Cup with two Middle Eastern national teams? A: Carlos Alberto Parreira (Kuwait & Saudi Arabia)

Question 76: Who is the all-time top scorer of the Jordan national football team? A: Hassan Abdelfattah

Question 77: Who holds the highest points record in the AGL in the PROFESSIONAL era (2008-09 and after)? A: Al-Ahli

Question 78: Which player scored a record 11 goals in one month for the Saudi National Team? A: Talal Al-Meshaal (February 2011)

Question 80 (Double Points): Can you name all FIVE Middle Eastern footballer who have been named World’s Best Top Goalscorer by the IFFHS? Ali Daei, Jasem Al-Huwaidi, Hani Al-Dhabit, Bader Al-Mutawa, Saeed Al-Owairan

Question 81: Who was the first European manager to win the league with Shabab Ordon? A: Florin Motroc.

Question 82: What is the only Gulf country where no team named Al-Ahli has played in the top tier in the past 5 years? A: Kuwait

Question 83: What is the Lebanese National Team’s unique nickname? A: The Cedars

Question 84: Who is the top goalscorer in the Tehran Derby? A: Safar Iranpak

Question 85: What is the only Emirate that has never had a team in the Arabian Gulf League? A: Umm Al-Quwain

Question 86: What is the only Gulf country that never had a club named after the country in the top division? Saudi Arabia.

Question 87:Who is the last Iranian footballer to win the Asian Player of the Year? A: Ali Karimi

Question 88: Which Qatari club was known as Ittihad until 2004 when it changed to its current name? A: Al-Gharrafa

Question 89: How many times have Qatar won the Gulf Cup? A: Three times

Question 90: I was the league’s top goal scorer, scored over a 100 goals for club & country, but my 1st headed goal only came at the age of 35. Who am I? A: Mohammed Al-Shalhoub.

Competition Rules:

1. We will post 200 questions about Middle Eastern football, ranging from pretty easy to nearly impossible to answer.
2. The questions will be posted every night at 14:00 UTC (18:00 Dubai time) except Fridays.
3. The questions will be posted only on this page link to the new question will be announced on Twitter & Facebook on a daily basis.
4. Participants can answer by replying to the question’s tweet/Facebook post or by replying to this thread citing the question number and date.
5. Participants do NOT have to answer all questions. However, answering most questions obviously gives you a bigger chance of accumulating most points and winning the competition.
6. The first FIVE correct answers will earn points starting from 5 points to the fastest down to 1 point to the fifth fastest.
7. To be eligible to earn the points, participants MUST retweet/share the question after answering.
8. Rankings based on accumulative points will be posted on this page and will be updated on a daily basis.
9. The player with the highest points total at the end of the competition will win the grand prize.
10. The prize is an all expenses paid trip to the Middle East to watch the AFC Champions League Final.
11. The prize includes, flights from the winner’s country of residence to the host country of the Final (West Asia), match ticket plus 3 nights hotel stay.
12. Potential destinations based on countries participating in the West Asia zone of the Champions League include: Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Iran, Jordan or Uzbekistan.
13. The winner will be responsible for arranging their own visa (If required). Failure to obtain visa at least 7 days prior to the match will result in cancellation of the trip.
14. The winner may be required to participate in promotional material for Ahdaaf and/or partners and shall consent to footage & information about their trip to be publishd by Ahdaaf and/or partners.
15. The winner MUST be at least 18 years of age. Fans below 18 years of age may participate but their prize award will be subject to parental/guardian consent and confirming they will be accompanied by a guardian during the trip. Expenses associated with additional traveler shall be 100% borne by the winner.

Arabian Gulf League

Dawry ALJ League

Persian Gulf Pro League

Arabian Gulf League – U.A.E

The Arabian Gulf League’s first week came to an end after a plethora of goals that were scored amongst all the matches. An average of 4 (!) goals per game topped the ALJ League in Saudi Arabia, which saw a very meagre goalscoring rate of 12 in 7 games compared to 28 in the AGL’s first week. We look at the games, the players, the goals and more. We also look at the effects of encryption towards attendances.

Game of the Week

Al-Jazira 1-2 Al-Wasl

Al-Jazira were tipped by most to return to title winning form under Abel Braga, but to lose it to a certainly rejuvenated Al-Wasl posed some questions to the Pride of Abu Dhabi, who played with a man down for almost 70 minutes. The attendance was embarrassing to start off with, as an opening week record-low for Al-Jazira saw 3,220 fans attend with reportedly more than 800 being Al-Wasl fans.

The problem was that Al-Wasl were missing goalkeeper Yousif Al-Zaabi – demanding a contract termination – and now permanent signing Caio Correa, however Hassan Ameen was among the astute performers against his former club Al-Jazira. Al-Wasl were organised, shrewd and no doubt the better team against a team filled with talent. Hugo Viana subsequently opened the scoring with a free-kick.

Al-Jazira then saw the sending off of Musallam Fayez for a rash challenge on Abdulla Saleh, before equalising through new signing Thiago Neves. Al-Wasl, though, were confident. Ali Salmin had the benefit of a pitch-wide view when his deflected pass reached the overlapping full back Yaser Salem, calmly chipping it over the former national team goalkeeper Ali Khaseif. Al-Wasl created chances however they weren’t able to fully execute as Edgar Bruno’s bicycle kick saw arguably their best chance.

Jefferson Farfan (left) against Hassan Ameen, formerly of Al-Jazira.

Gabriel Calderon continued his streak of no losses to Abel Braga, as Al-Wasl look forward to their tough schedule. They face Al-Ain at home in the ‘Clasico’, before meeting Dubai rivals Al-Nasr and Al-Ahli consecutively in the space of late September. Meanwhile for Al-Jazira, questions will be asked. Vucinic, Farfan, Neves and Park performed at a poor standard.

Rest of the Games

Al-Ahli are arguably back to their best after an 8-1 drubbing of Fujairah in front of 3,600 fans. Watching it live myself, it largely had to do with the quality of Al-Ahli tormenting the Fujairah defence. Rodrigo Lima and Everton Ribeiro formed a wonderful partnership once again with 2 goals and 2 assists each, while Hassan Maatouk was the shining star of the lacklustre Fujairah team.

Ismaeel Al-Hammadi (left) wows the Al-Ahli crowd.

Dibba returned to the AGL in poor fashion despite getting the better of Al-Wahda in the first half, ultimately losing 4-0. A great sign for Al-Wahda whose youngsters Badr Al-Harthi, Mohammad Al-Akbari and Khaled Bawazir heavily impressed once again. A brace from Sebastian Tagliablue proved that the striker still oozes goals.

Baniyas limited Al-Shaab’s midfield quality in Amro Al-Soulaya with Mark Milligan, who was arguably their best performer despite goals from new boys Larrivey and Belfodil to help them to a 2-0 away win. Al-Shabab’s first half performance against Sharjah was memorable, with Villanueva and Luvannor clicking seamlessly once again. Jo failed to impact the game, however Renato Caja of Sharjah will be on to watch as Al-Shabab’s sneaky 2-1 win at home was definitely not an indicator of their supreme quality. We’ve tipped Sharjah for relegation, and with a defence that includes the red-card loving Shahin Abdulrahman, there is a possibility.

Jo Alves contests a header in the air.

Champions Al-Ain convincingly defeated Al-Dhafra 3-1 with goals from Lee, Al-Kathiri and Rashed Essa as Hamad Raqe bagged a late consolation against his former club. In front of a dire attendance figure of nearly 3,000, one wonders where the Al-Ain fans have been as of late. Finally, Luis Jimenez scored a brace with the help of Mahmoud Khamis and Jires Kembo-Ekoko to help Al-Nasr overturn a 1-0 deficit against Emirates.

Dawry ALJ – Saudi Arabia

The ALJ League (“Dawry” means League in English) also began this week, with Super Cup and King Cup winners Al-Hilal taking the league by storm as they faced newly promoted Al-Wahda.

Game of the Week

Al-Hilal 2-0 Al-Wahda

This game was the best of a lacklustre week where we only saw 12 goals, but it’s not to take anything away from Al-Hilal who defeated Al-Wahda 2-0 courtesy of goals from the promising Kaabi and Ailton Almeida. Al-Braik, the player who created the second goal for Al-Hilal is also another promising player for the “Blue Wave”.

Yet it was Mohammad Al-Shalhoub, who created one of the goals and masterminded the other, who took the plaudits for the game with his intuition and tactical intelligence coming in handy against a team coming from the lower division who would have an emphasis on a 4-4-2 with man-marking across the pitch. This is what happened, and Al-Shalhoub committed himself to freeing up space for others – in these situations Kaabi and Al-Braik – to either score a long shot (Kaabi) or play in a powerful and accurate cross (Al-Braik).

Is it finally time for Al-Hilal to return to the top of the league? Let’s look at how the other teams fared.

Rest of the Games

Al-Ahli and Al-Nassr, both battling it out for the ALJ League title last season failed to produce anything of note as they faced Al-Taawon (the team that stopped Al-Ahli from winning the title last season) and Hajer respectively. Both games ended in drab 0-0 draws.

Mohammad Al-Sahlawi of Al-Nassr holds the ALJ League title pre-match.

Meanwhile, it was newly promoted Al-Qadisiyah who took the plaudits as they defeated Liviu Ciobotariu’s Al-Faisaly, 1-0, in front of a modest 182 fans. Hector Omar, who has now scored a goal and an assist for Al-Qadisiyah has started off with no qualms and has no doubt been a factor for Al-Qadisiyah’s progression to the next round of the Crown Prince Cup and a valuable 3 points against Al-Faisaly. One player that should definitely be mentioned is Faisal Masrahi, who produced a reliable performance in goal that helped Al-Qadisiyah to the best possible start to the league season.

In a game with more than one fantastic goal, Rafinha scored a brace for Al-Shabab in front of an abysmal fan attendance of 895 against Al-Ra’ed, who failed to provide any significant threat to a team now looking to forget the loss of Naif Hazazi to Al-Nassr by bringing in Alvaro Gutierrez as manager alongside former Stoke City player Diego Arismendi amongst others. The third goal for Al-Shabab however, was deemed a handball by analysts on “Action Ya Dawry”. Al-Ra’ed would have definitely felt hard done by for failing to come back due to an incorrect decision. Al-Shabab 3-1 Al-Ra’ed.

Elton shone once again for Al-Fateh against subsequent 10-man team Al-Khaleej who saw the sending off of Al-Zawahiri give Elton the chance to grab a deserved brace, however it was only his free-kick (his 14th ever in the ALJ League!) that caught the eye of the ALJ League onlookers. New signing Josimar also added his contribution as he scored a debut goal, enough for former Saudi League Champions to see off Al-Khaleej, 2-0.

Finally, we analyse the new-look Ittihad who fended off the challenge of Najran with ease, despite a rocky end to the game. Gelmin Rivas scored his first league goal for “Itti” while Sulley Muntari played his first game in the black and yellow colours of Ittihad. The fourth foreigner spot for Ittihad has understandable confusion surrounding it, with Sanmartean taking his chance this game through a beautiful free-kick to open the goalscoring despite his future being in doubt at the club. Wahibi bagged a late consolation for Najran, however it was a mere consolation only. A comeback was put out with Ittihad looking composed at the end.

Persian Gulf Pro League – Iran

Game Of the Week

Persepolis 1-2 Zob Ahan

Yahya Golmohammadi took his Zob Ahan team to Azadi Stadium to face his former emlpoyees, Persepolis. Persepolis who have had a very disappointing start to the season, only 1 point from 3 games, were at the foot of the table. Their chances were boosted by the return of midfielder Ahmad Nourollahi and first choice goalkeeper, Sosha Makani.

Persepolis started the game on the front foot, creating chances from the early stages of the game. Their game plan was based around using the pace of Omid Alishah, Farshad Ahmadzadeh and Mehdi Taremi. The visitors looked unable to cope with the attacking threat of the Reds in early stages. Taremi had a golden opportunity to give his team the lead on the 20 minute mark as he took advantage of the confusion between the Zob Ahan centre backs, he took the ball around the goalkeeper but saw his shot go above the bar. 5 minutes before the interval, Ali Hamam’s back pass was intercepted by Ahmadzadeh who read the game brilliantly and was through one on one with the keeper, but Mazaheri pulled off a fantastic save at his feet as the Persepolis players were asking for a penalty for the incident.

2^nd half started in the same manner, with Persepolis pressing for a goal which their performance had deserved. A long ball forward gave Persepolis their best chance to take the lead as Nejadmehdi pushed Taremi just as he tried to take control of the ball, and referee pointed to the penalty spot. Omid Alishah stepped up but saw his penalty saved fantastically by Mazaheri, though replays showed he was off his line a few steps before the penalty was taken but the referee failed to spot it. A few minutes later he was there to deny Alishah again as the Reds’ winger was through on goal but Mazaheri spread himself well to keep the scores level. They say Third Time’s a Charm, and Alishah proved it correct as he let fly from the edge of the box and his shot found its way in the corner of the Zob Ahan goal, Mazaheri was left flatfooted and deadlock was finally broken on 63^rd minute. The stage was set for Alishah to double his team’s lead as Taremi pulled the ball across the goal but Mazaheri was there again to save Alishah’s sidefooted shot at point blank range.

Stadium fell to absolute silence as Zob Ahan, against the run of play, equalised. A cross into the centre of the 18 yard box from the left by veteran, Mehdi Rajabzadeh, saw Makani make the wrong decision to come off his line before Kaveh Rezaei headed the ball into an empty net. As everyone thought the game was heading for a draw, Morteza Tabrizi received the ball from the left, went past Rezaeian easily and as he pulled the ball back, it was blocked by a sliding Bengar but the referee pointed to the spot for a Zob Ahan Penalty. It turned out to be a very controversial decision as replays proved that the ball had in fact hit Bengar’s chest. Masoud Hassanzadeh took advantage of this refereeing mistake as he sent Makani the wrong way and gave Zob Ahan the winner.

Branko Ivankovic’s men, who felt victimised by poor officiating and now rooted to the table, would surely rue their countless scoring opportunities as questions will be raised over the performance of referee Alireza Faghani and his assistants. On the other hand, Zob Ahan will be very pleased to leave Tehran with 6 points from 2 very tough games as they hope to carry this on and continue in the form which they ended last season with.

Rest Of The Games

Padideh welcomed title challengers, Tractor Sazi, in Mashhad. Their resolute performance kept Tractor Sazi at bay as a single goal by Mohsen Yousefi gave them a 1-0 win in what can be considered as upset of the week.

Elsewhere in Ahvaz, Esteghlal Khuzestan battled to a great 1-0 win over 10-men Saipa as they climb up to 2^nd in the table. Beyt Saeed was a star performer again while Seyfollahi scored the winner from the penalty spot.

Abdollah Karami scored for Sepahan against his former club, Foolad, as they played out a 1-1 draw in Isfahan. Sasan Ansari gave Foolad the lead initially before the Sepahan equaliser in 2^nd half.

590 spectators at the Takhti Stadium in Tehran witnessed a goal festival as 6 were scored in a 3-3 draw between Naft Tehran and Malavan. Centre Back, Ezzatolah Pourghaz scored two after Arash Afshin’s opener for Malavan. Hosseini, Amiri and Bouazar got on the score sheet for Naft Tehran.

A 93^rd minute winner from Meysam Majidi gave Esteghlal a hard earned 2-1 victory in Ahvaz against Esteghlal Ahvaz. Mohsen Karimi opened the scoring before Rikani equalised for Esteghlal Ahvaz with a sumptuous freekick.

Gostaresh recorded their first win of the season at home against Siah Jamegan, thanks to a first half winner from Dariush Shojaeian. This 1-0 defeat for Siah Jamegan forced Manager, Rasoul Khatibi, resigned from his role with his team dropping into the bottom two.

Mehrdad Mohammadi continued his fantastic form this season as he bagged all 3 points for Rah Ahan with a brace against Saba. Game ended 2-1 with Mohammad Ousani scored a consolation for Saba.

Around the Region

Jordan

The Jordanian Super Cup was played between two Jordanian giants in Al-Wehdat and Al-Faisaly, where the latter scored a late winner to snatch their 15th Super Cup title, alongside 15,000 Jordanian Dinars to help with financial problems for the new season.

Oman

Fanja are new winners of the Omani Super Cup by default after the withdrawal of Omani Premier League Champions Al-Orouba, who claimed that the Oman FA have failed to give them their prize money dating back to the 2014-15 season, standing at 87,000 Omani Riyals. Fanja should have taken a stance too, because now the Omani Super Cup prize money will not be handed to them considering Al-Orouba are suffering from the broken promises of the OFA.

Fanja celebrate the Omani Super Cup title in front of, literally, no one.

Ahdaaf Player of the Week

What a debut it was for Lima, who created two goals alongside scoring two goals against Fujairah, forming a prominent link with Everton Ribeiro; Al-Ahli’s best player. Lima has given the team hope, as what he offered to the Al-Ahli team was much more than goals. He played just off the striker, with brilliant movement towards the edge of the box throughout the game making him available for headers at the far post and crosses back inside. Is he the missing piece for Al-Ahli, one that will help them win the Asian Champions League?

Co-Written by Sina Saemian and Hamoudi Fayad

Game of the Week

Persepolis 2-2 Padideh

This was an interesting match in many ways. With Persepolis coming into the season on the back of a successful pre-season campaign, fans were beginning to raise their expectations in the hope of a much improved season in comparison to the last. Padideh, however, have had some major changes taking place at the club. A change of manager and a host of new names coming into the team, many eyes were on them to see how they get on in their first game.

The game got off to a blistering start when after only 6 minutes, a nice combination between Rezaeian and Norouzi resulted to a cross from the right which young striker, Ali Alipour, headed in with a diving header just outside the 8-yeard box. Padideh who looked unable to cope with the pressure, had their bar rattled minutes later from another header, this time from Milad Kamandani. As the stadium was expecting Persepolis to double their lead, a quick counter by Padideh took the Persepolis defence by surprise as Younes Shakeri tapped in a scuffed shot by Hossein Badamanki as Persepolis defenders were unable to clear the ball.

A minute later, as Persepolis players were beginning to recover from the equaliser, a great cross from deep by newly signed Mohsen Yousefi, was headed in by former Persepolis man, Hossein Badamaki, to make it 2-1. Ivankovic will be very disappointed with that defending as it was a combination of poor marking and a lack of understanding between Rezaeian and Maric who filled the offside. Persepolis began to find their feet again and after a couple of missed opportunities, new club captain, Hadi Norouzi, took the ball 30 yards out, and sent an incredible long-range missile towards the Padideh goal which went in after hitting the bar on its way. It was a spectacular effort on 26^th minute which brought the game level.

2^nd half was all Persepolis as they pushed for a winner, Ahmadzadeh was a threat all game for the Reds and managed to create a few opportunities but there was some good performances from Padideh at the back, Mahmoud Khamis and Meysam Naghizadeh in particular, as both teams played out a 2-2 draw.

This was a good result for both teams, with Persepolis missing 6-7 key players due to suspensions and injuries, it was a chance to see how the youngsters will do and they performed well in attack, although the defensive side of their game has room for improvement.

Rest of the Games

Esteghlal travelled to Mashhad to play newly promoted Siah Jamegan. Two goals by Sajjad Shahbazzadeh either side of a Alireza Naghizadeh goal, won Esteghlal the game by 2-1 as the Blues took the all-important 3 points.

Defending champions, Sepahan, got off to a winning start with prolific striker, Mehdi Sharifi, scoring a diving header to win the game for his team 1-0 against Esteghlal Khuzestan.

Ali Daei’s Saba Qom hosted newly promoted Esteghlal Ahvaz in an uneventful 0-0 draw with neither of them having much to offer in a dreadful game.

2013/14 champions, Foolad Khuzestan, battled back from 2-0 down to earn a crucial 2-2 draw against Rah-Ahan. All goals came in the second half, Mehrdad Mohammadi and Amin Manouchehri got on the scoresheet for Rah-Ahan before Mathias Chago reduced the deficit, and Mehdi Badrloo completed the comeback on 88^th minute with a fantastic free-kick.

Javad Nekounam was absent as his new teammates at Saipa played out a 0-0 draw at home against Gostaresh. The game was abandoned after 88 minutes due to light failure, which raised concerns from Saipa manager Majid Jalali, who has asked the League organisers to move the games to an earlier time to avoid such problems.

The much anticipated match between Naft Tehran and Tractor Sazi, wasn’t as exciting or controversial as the last time the two teams met. A 0-0 draw was contested as both teams had many new players to show.

Malavan pulled off a shock as they beat pre-season title contenders, Zob Ahan, 1-0 at home. An Arash Afshin goal in the 2^nd half completed a solid performance by Malavan and this result would mean many teams will now look at them as a bigger threat.

Ahdaaf Player of the Week:

Hossein Badamaki – Badamaki who moved to Padideh during the Summer window, captained his new team to a crucial 2-2 draw at Azadi Stadium against Persepolis. An assist and a goal, symbolised his great all-round performance as he led by example against the club whom he played for during 6 seasons.