Essam Abdullah to Esteghlal FC Officials: “Al Ain FC is Unparalleled” “The Boss” to wear White T-shirt versus Esteghlal FC
The technical meeting of Esteghlal Tehran-Al Ain match was held yesterday under chairmanship of the match observer Tokayyef Kemel from Kyrgyzstan, and attended by officials those in charge of the match and representatives of the two teams.
The officials of Esteghlal Tehran FC refused to allocate a space for Al Ain Fans under the pretext that the match tickets were sold out, alleging that when UAE teams come to Iran, they do not ask for a space for their fans, but Essam Abdullah, Al Ain FC’s administrative officer replied to them saying: “Al Ain is a unique case because it has a large fans base everywhere, with a proof that in our last game in Isfahan, there are Arabian and Iranian fans supporting the team, so we adhere to our right set out in the Continental Championship’s regulation, and solicit the Asian Football Confederation not prevent any breach of the rights of the club”.
During the meeting, the match observer decided that a space should be allocated to Al Ain FC fans at the Stadium, a dedicated gate was identified for the supporters of the UAE team and the required protection be provided to them.
Also during the meeting, all organizational details related to the game were addressed, and the observer approved the colors of shirts of the two teams. Essam Abdullah asserted that his team will wear in tonight’s game a full white shirt with violet, while the goalkeeper will dress in full green dress, while the warm-up shirt will be yellow.
It was also decided that Esteghlal Tehran Team would wear full blue color, its goalkeeper will wear the black shirt in today’s match, while the warm-up shirt will be hot pink. Referees of the match will dress in full red color.
Facts from the Memory
The first game between the two teams took place on the First Edition 2003 when “The Boss” was crowned as the Champ of Asia; Al Ain FC got a 3-1 win over Esteghlal, within the groups round, and three goals of “The Boss” were scored by Faisal Ali, Gharib Hareb and Abu Bakr Sanghu, while the last match between the two teams ended in a 1-0 win of Esteghlal scored by Jawad Nikonam in 2013, and that was the last defeat experienced by Al Ain FC against the Iranian teams.
Over the past 14 years, Al Ain FC faced the Iranian teams 17 times, in which “The Boss” won 7 games, 8 games ended in a draw, and lost 2 games only. Al Ain FC scored 29 goals versus the Iranian teams, while its goal was struck with 19 goals over 17 games versus the Iranian teams. The last game of Al Ain FC in Iran ended in a 3-0 win of “The Boss” versus Zob Ahan Isfahan within the current edition of AFC Champions League’s Groups Stage.
The last game played by “The Boss” in the capital Tehran ended in 1-1 versus Naft Tehran.
