Tehran Times - Persepolis new signing Soroush Rafiei showed an eye-catching performance as the Reds sealed an easy dominant 3-0 win over their closest rivals Tractror Sazi in the 20th week of Iran Professional League in front of more than 65,000 fans at Tehran’s Azadi Stadium on Sunday.
Two minutes into the game Rafiei’s wonderful pass behind Tractor Sazi’s defense put Mehdi Taremi in a one-on-one situation and he put the ball into the back of the net after beating keeper Mohammadreza Akhbari.
Twenty minutes later Ramin Rezaeian doubled the lead for Persepolis with an accurate shot from inside the box after Akhabari blocked Vahid Amiri’s effort.
Soroush Rafiei was again the architect as his fantastic cross from edge of the box converted with a great header by Vahid Amiri as the striker made it 3-0.
Persepolis’ defensive midfielder Kamal Kamyabinia was shown a red card in the 87th minute after receiving his second yellow card. He will miss next week’s important game against arch rivals Esteghlal.
Farzad Hatami was also sent off after receiving his second yellow card.
Branko Ivankovic men went nine points clear at the top of the IPL table with win over Tractor Sazi while the Tabriz based club, who have suffered a huge blow in the winter transfer market by FIFA, are in the second.