Lima heads Al Ahli to 1-0 AFCCL quarter-final first-leg win

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  • Lima (#9) celebrates his goal with teammates.

    UAE forward Ahmed Khalil has warned his Al Ahli team-mates from taking their foot off the gas pedal after they claimed an important 1-0 away victory at Naft Tehran in a tension-fuelled first leg of the AFC Champions League quarter-finals.

    A second-half Lima header saw Ahli end Naft’s unbeaten run at home in the competition and was enough to give the Red Knights the advantage heading into the second leg at the Rashid Stadium in Dubai on September 16.

    “We did well today. Tehran were tough but we tried to close all gaps and didn’t give them much space,” said Khalil. “Thankfully we won but we must focus on the second leg and not rest on our laurels. We shouldn’t underestimate them. The job is far from over.”

    Naft, who are enjoying their first-ever Champions League campaign and are the only debutants to make the knockout stages this season, had the better start as a 23,000-strong home crowd cheered them on at the Azadi Stadium in the Iranian capital.

    Alireza Ezzati could have put the hosts in front in the 18th minute when a Vahid Amiri header landed at his feet right in front of the goal but he misfired over the bar.

    Payam Sadeghian was wreaking havoc in the Ahli box but his 22nd minute dive did not fool Japanese referee Minoru Tojo who denied him a penalty.

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    The visitors finally hit their stride on the half-hour mark with their first real chance coming through Ismail Al Hammadi, a hat-trick hero in Ahli’s 8-1 drubbing of Fujairah in their Arabian Gulf League opener last week.

    Khalil perfectly set up Al Hammadi on the edge of the box but the UAE striker’s effort rose over the bar.

    Just before the break, Naft’s Vahid Hamdinejad wasted a huge chance which prompted a swift Ahli counter-attack, masterminded by Everton Ribeiro, who sent over an inch-perfect cross to Lima. But the new Brazilian signing inexplicably headed wide as the first half ended in a stalemate.

    Three minutes after the restart, Sadeghian latched onto a slick pass from Amiri but his low effort from outside the box went wide. Tensions rose between the two sets of players and the referee had to intervene more than once to break up small brawls.

     

    The deadlock was finally broken in the 62nd minute when Habib Fardan headed a Ribeiro corner to Lima, who crouched to head home from close range.

    Late substitute Ossama Assaidi almost made it 2-0 in the 95th minute but Naft ‘keeper Ali Reza Beiranvand parried his drive from outside the area.

    Ahli team director Abdulmajeed Hussein said facing an Irani side is typically a difficult experience and was happy the Dubai club left Tehran with a lead.

    “We’re used to facing hostility when we come here. We heard terrible curse words from the Iranians in the stands today but our players responded with their football,” said Hussein.

    “We had a slow start in the first 30 minutes, playing away, in front of all these spectators but then we managed to get into it.”

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