Mansourian Confident as Debutants Naft Tehran Eye Al Ain Upset

AFC – AL AIN, Iranian debutants Naft Tehran are boosted by the return of defender Vahid Hamdinejad as Alireza Mansourian’s side seek to join Al Ain in the last 16 of the AFC Champions League from Group B by claiming all three points against the recently crowned UAE champions at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium on Wednesday.

Naft is currently a point behind table-topping Al Ain heading into the final Matchday and will join the inaugural AFC Champions League winners in the knockout stage as group winners by claiming a third win of the campaign.

A draw could also be enough for Naft, who are currently level on points with Tractorsazi Tabriz at the top of the Iran domestic table with two games remaining, although Mansourian’s side would then require already-eliminated Al Shabab from Saudi Arabia to avoid defeat against third placed Pakhtakor of Uzbekistan.

“We came here looking for a win and hopefully we get a positive result following the draw that we had with Pakhtakor in the previous match,” said Naft coach Mansourian (pictured), who welcomes back Hamdinejad from suspension.

“We know that our opponents are a good team and they are quick on the attack. Therefore, we should give all our best in order to have a positive result and achieve our target of qualifying to the knockout stage.”​

Emirati champions Al Ain can drop no lower than second place in Group B even if Naft wins on Wednesday due to a superior head-to-head record over Pakhtakor, but Zlatko Dalic’s side still need to avoid defeat to top the table.

Dalic will again be without Slovakian midfielder Miroslav Stoch due to suspension, but forward Jires Kembo-Ekoko is eligible to return after missing last month’s 1-0 win over Al Shabab in Saudi Arabia.

“We are ready for the match whether mentally or physically and things are good especially after winning the local league title and securing our place in the knockout stage. We will be looking to play a good match and get the three points,” said Croatian coach Dalic, who led Al Ain to the semi-finals last year.

“The positive thing is that we avoided defeat in the previous matches while we defeated Al Shabab and Pakhtakor in two away matches.

“Our main target now is to win at home as we got two draws previously and we will try our best to please our fans with a win at home.”