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PFDC - At the Asian Club
Championship finals, Esteghlal's Sirous Dinmohammadi aims to deliver a
message for all those who believe that West Asian sides are slipping
behind their East Asian cousins - 'Think again!'.
The Asian Football Magazine, FootballAsia has done an interview with the
star player of Iranian champions Esteghlal before their attempt to win
their third Asian Club Championship title on April 3-5.
Sirous believes his club can defy the odds and add to their previous Asian
Club titles. Esteghlal proved they were a class above their opponents when
they thrashed hosts Al-Wahda 5-3 and achieved a comfortable victory
against the Kuwaitis at 3-0. Esteghlal who eliminated Saudi giants Al-Ittehad
in their way to quarter-finals has singled them out as the 'best in the
west'.
"Although we could have done much better in the quarter-finals,
particularly in the second game, we have tremendous team unity and our
morale is very high. The expectations back in Iran are huge. The people
want to see Esteghlal as Asian champions again." says Dinmohammadi.
Esteghlal which lost the title in Tehran in 1998/99 to Japan's powerhouse
Iwata, will have another shot at the title in Tehran in front of a
120,000-packed stadium with blue-clad fans and therefore everything is set
to be the defending moment of Dinmohammadi's career.
"It's an honor to be a part of a team with a long history and millions of
supporters," he says.
"It's such a terrific feeling when you enter the field or when the team
scores. You can't compare it with anything else."
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