Tehran Times - Esteghlal football team displayed incredible consistency; they proved to be a Cohesive and Coachable Team with highly motivated players and technical staff.
Farhad Majidi, a proactive coach and effective communicator, was able to inspire Esteghlal players on and off the pitch. He was the primary source of adding an Italian football technician, Gabriele Pin, to the team's room technical staff as his advisor and assistant. The move paid off handsomely.
They reinforced their attacking line by signing two skillful and positionally intelligent attacking players, Rudy Gested, a former Aston Villa player as their front striker and physically aggressive striker, also a prolific goalscorer, Arthur Yamga, who managed to score 10 goals and acted as the main attacking initiator.
From the beginning, Esteghlal adopted a very flexible 3-4-3-1 formation; Majidi's side went on impressive unbeaten runs despite not being at their best in all their matches. Their defense has been superbly organized, which would have been unthinkable at the start of the season. Their defensive record of conceding only 10 goals was remarkable.
The back-three consisted of three central defenders, proved to be resilient and compact, and showed good understanding with their goalkeeper, Hossein Hosseini. They were ably supported by Esteghlal's disciplined midfield line.
Amirhossien Hosseinzadeh was Esteghlal's prodigy, naturally gifted player who represented Iran in the 2017 FIFA U17 World Cup in India.
It is tough to find a professional team that perform at a high level during every Pro League game. Still, Esteghlal's performance, team unity, and clear game model for different opponents were convincing and exceeded expectations.
Esteghlal went on to win the title without losing a single match; they achieved something many thought it would never happen.
Whether it was the greatest ever team in Iran Professional League history is up for debate, but Farhad Majidi's side achieved something that is yet to be matched.
Finally, this championship title hasn't been about the team's stars hitting their peak; it has been about good leadership, motivated squad, versatility and adaptability, and getting the job done.