Damascus, Aug 31, IRNA -- National soccer
squad of Jordan stunned the depleted side of Iran in the 2nd West Asian
event Friday.
Iranian striker Ali Karimi missed a penalty in the 8th minute but Mahmud
Shalbieh slotted home to put Jordan ahead two minutes later.
Jordan reduced to 10 men as Muhannad Mahadeen received his marching orders
in the 15th minute. Iran missed two goal scoring chances in the second half
and the Jordanian side possessed the ball and field to secure its victory
until the last minute.
To defend its championship, Iran faces a bumpy road and it will meet Lebanon
Tuesday.
Ebrahim Mirzapour, Sohrab Bakhtiarzadeh, Jalal Kameli, Ali Badavi, Mehdi
Amirabadi, Javad Nekounam, Ali Karimi, Alireza Nikbakht-Vahedi, Mohsen
Bayatinia (Javad Kazemian), Iman Mob'ali, and Saeid Lotfi (Moharram
Navidkia) played for Iran.
Talking to IRNA, Iran's Croat Head Coach Branko Ivankovic praised the spirit
and performance of the Jordanian side.
He said Iran missed good chances and the situation was aggravated when
Jordan netted. |