TEHRANTIMES - Esteghlal defeated Aluminum 2-0 on Wednesday to go three points clear at the top of the Iran Professional League (IPL).

New signing Iman Mousavi gave the visiting team the lead in the 15th minute, chipped the ball over the Aluminum goalkeeper.

Aluminum captain Mahmoud Tighnavard was shown a red card after he verbally abused referee Alireza Faghani in the 56th minute.

Aluminum dominated possession for much of the second half but Farzad Hatami extended Esteghlal’s lead in the 86th minute.

Esteghlal moved to top of the IPL standings table with 34 points, followed by Sepahan and Foolad with 31 and 30 points respectively.

Elsewhere, Saipa was held to a 2-2 draw by Traktorsazi. Saeid Daghighi scored twice for Saipa in the 47th and 64th minutes. Navid Khoshhava and Mehdi Seyed Salahi scored for Traktorsazi in the 50th and 51st minutes.

Video of Iran Pro League week 18