JEDDAH, SAUDI ARABIA (AP) — iran club tractor Arrived in Saudi Arabia amidst chaos war in the middle east On Monday, it was announced that he would be playing in the round of 16 of the AFC Champions League Elite.
west asia playoffs postponed in March after the United States and Israel launched a war against Iran. After the round of 16 was rescheduled, with the match between Iran and UAE’s Shabab Al Ahly moved to the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah, questions remained over whether 2025 Iranian league champions Tractor would feature.
Iran fired a missile at Saudi Arabia, an ally of the United States.
The tractor arrived in Jeddah on Sunday after a long journey. They will enter Turkey by land from Tabriz, their home base in northwestern Iran, and then fly from Istanbul.
“Our situation going into this match is complicated and the 90 minutes against Shabab Al Ahly will be difficult for us,” Tractors coach Mohammad Rabiei said in a press conference on Monday, the day before the match.
The team has not played an official game since February 28 as the Iranian league was suspended.
“We have high ambitions to win the upcoming matches and reach the Asian finals,” Rabiei added. “From tomorrow everyone will see the high level we have, despite the great challenges we have faced recently.”
on monday, karim benzema Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal defeated Qatar’s Al Sadd in the round of 16, finishing 3-3 after extra time, before losing the penalty shootout 4-2, resulting in a missed penalty shootout.
Four-time champions Al Hilal opened the scoring in the first half through Sergei Milinkovic-Savic, but Brazilian forward Clausinho equalized seven minutes later. Just after half-time, Salem Al Dausari put Al Hilal back in front and Rafa Mujica equalized again.
Marcos Leonardo restored the lead in the 67th minute, before former Liverpool forward Roberto Firmino made it 3-3 three minutes later, sending the match into extra time and penalties.
Elsewhere, Riyad Mahrez scored after 117 minutes as defending champions Al Ahly (Saudi Arabia) beat Al Duhail (Qatar) 1-0. Early in overtime, England striker Ivan Toney Missed Al Ahly’s penalty.
Jeddah will host the remaining matches of the tournament. The quarterfinals begin on Thursday, with the final scheduled for April 25th.
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