Persepolis Players Who Could Decide ACL Final
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Hamed Lak, Saeid Aghaei and Bashar Resan are three Persepolis players who can make an impression in the title decider and boast the ability to tilt the ACL 2020 final game in their side's favor.
Iran's Persepolis and South Korea's Ulsan Hyundai will go head to head in the final of AFC Champions League 2020 at the Al Janoub Stadium in Qatar this Saturday to decide the new champions of Asia.
Ulsan booked a place in the final after a 2-1 win over Japan's Vissel Kobe in the East Zone semi-final last Sunday and earned the right to challenge Persepolis, who represent West Asia after defeating Saudi Arabia's Al Nassr FC in a penalty shoot-out in their last-four encounter back in October, ESPN reported.
Hamed Lak
30-year-old Hamed Lak has had huge shoes to fill at Persepolis following the departure of Alireza Beiranvand to Royal Antwerp. Arguably the best goalkeeper in Asia, Beiranvand completed his long-awaited move to Europe in January 2020, forcing Persepolis to find a new pair of hands for the AFC Champions League resumption.
They turned to local rival Machine Sazi for Lak in September and his displays have proven it has been an inspired choice. Having kept a tournament-high five clean sheets in seven matches so far in the Champions League, Persepolis will look to Lak for another solid performance.
Saeid Aghaei
Persepolis signed Saeid Aghaei during the AFC Champions League break and has been part of the solid backline for the Iranian outfit. The left-back has helped Lak keep four clean sheets and has also been instrumental with 25 crosses from open play -- the highest for a defender -- creating six chances and bagging an assist.
With veteran center-back Shoja Khalilzadeh leaving to join Qatar's Al-Rayyan SC after the semi-finals, 25-year-old Aghaei will be expected to play an even greater role in the Red Army's defense against Ulsan.
Bashar Resan
Persepolis will rely on 23-year-old Bashar Resan at the other end of the field to spark their attack after Issa Alekasir was slapped with a six-month ban by the AFC hours before the West Zone semifinal.
Head coach Yahya Golmohammadi will pin his hopes on midfielder Resan, who has one goal and two assists. Resan, who is set to leave the club after Saturday's match, was part of the losing side in the 2018 final against Kashima Antlers and will be hoping to put that memory behind him by getting his hands on the silverware.
