Iran U-17 soccer team thrashes Moldova 5-0 in Granatkin Memorial
Iran national under-17 football team, more commonly known as Nojavanan, has pulled off an emphatic victory in the group stage of the 2017 Granatkin Memorial International Youth Football Tournament in Russia, trouncing the Moldovan side.
The Persians placed their Eastern European opponents’ goal under pressure ever since the referee blew his whistle and signaled the start of the Group D game in the northwestern Russian city of Saint Petersburg on Friday, and clinched a 5-0 win at last.
Forward Younes Delfi scored a hat trick, putting the ball in the back of the opposite side’s net in the 31st, 65th and 81st minutes.
Mohammad Ghaderi and Mohammad Reza Ghobeishavi added two more goals for the Iranian team against Moldova in the 60th and 89th minutes respectively.
Ghobeishavi, who dons the captain's armband in the Iran U-17 team, was named the Man of the Match at the end of the game.
Iran will take on Azerbaijan in its next fixture on Sunday afternoon for a ninth-to-sixteenth-place match.
The 2017 Granatkin Memorial International Youth Football Tournament kicked off in Saint Petersburg, Russia, on January 8 and will conclude on January 21.
The Iranian outfit had joined Moldova, Zenit Saint Petersburg and Slovenia in Group D of the event.
Bulgaria, Estonia, Greece and Tajikistan formed Group A. Belarus was put in Group B, and joined squads from India, Latvia and Russia. Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Lithuania and Slovakia shaped Group C.
Iran started the campaign with a 2-1 loss to Zenit Saint Petersburg and was held to a 1-1 draw by Slovenia.
The first edition of the Granatkin Memorial, which is an annual youth association football tournament in memory of the first FIFA Vice-President Valentin Granatkin, was held in 1981, and West Germany became the champion.
Soviet Union-1 finished as the runner-up and Spain landed in the third place.
Slovenia, Saint Petersburg and Russia claimed the top three spots of the previous edition.
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