TEHRANTIMES - Persepolis head coach Branko Ivankovic is satisfied with his players’ performance against Gostaresh Foolad and believes there is no successor for his side’s former captain Hadi Norouzi who died at the start of the season.

“I would like to congratulate my players as they took a big step towards winning the title. We had a brilliant performance against Gostaresh Foolad and now we have a great motivation to get the three points in our final game against Rah Ahan,” Branko told reporters.

“I believe that until the last seconds we cannot predict the title winner. Esteghlal Khuzestan will take on Zob Ahan which is a tough game for them and we need to win against Rah Ahan who is on the verge of relegating to the first division and will definitely fight until the end,” he added.

“There is no successor for Hadi Norouzi. He is part of this team and the trophy belongs to him but first we need to win the title,” the Croatian coach added.
Esteghlal Khuzestan sits top of the table ahead of Persepolis on goal difference.