Iran’s Mes Sungun Varzaghan marches into 2018 AFC Futsal Club Championship final
Iranian futsal club Mes Sungun Varzaghan has overcome a stiff challenge to earn itself a place in the final showdown of the 2018 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Futsal Club Championship, after it could defeat Naft al-Wasat of Iraq in a competitive meet.
On Friday, the Iranian team managed to move past the Iraqi side 3-2 in a semifinal match played at the multi-purpose GOR UNY stadium in the Indonesian city of Yogyakarta.
Mes Sungun started the match in a better fashion, and Farhad Fakhimzadeh together with Hossein Tayyebi came close to opening the scoring.
Naft al-Wasat goalkeeper Yahya Abdulnoor Raheem, however, did not flinch as he parried their shots.
The Iranian side’s persistence finally paid off and Ali Asghar Hassanzadeh Navlighi connected to Abolqasem Orouji’s delivery from the right, and put the ball at the back of the net in the 16th minute.
The Iraqis responded immediately and intensified pressure. Mes Sungun could not cope with the strain and cracked. Salim Faisal took up a marvelous opportunity in the 20th minute and leveled the score at 1-1.
Naft sought not to give its opponent room to operate as the second half began.
In the 27th minute, Mes Sungun grasped an excellent chance and Hassanzadeh scored from the top of the arc.
Naft applied pressure later on and ran the ball down the other side of the field, but lost the possession midway. Fakhimzadeh punished the Iraqi team with Mes Sungun’s third goal in the 37th minute.
Iranian futsal player Qodrat Bahadori pulled one back for Naft shortly afterwards, but it was not enough as Mes Sungun was strong-minded for a spot in the finale.
Mes Sungun will take on Thái Sơn Nam of Vietnam in the title showdown on Sunday.
Lebanon’s Bank of Beirut will play against Naft al-Wasat in the third-place play-off.
The 2018 AFC Futsal Club Championship, which is the 9th edition of the AFC Futsal Club Championship, started on August 1 and will finish on August 12, 2018.
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