2021 ACL (West) Round of 16: Iranians Discover Fate
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Three Iranian football teams Persepolis, Tractor and Esteghlal learned their rivals at the 2021 AFC Champions League (West) Round of 16.
As Groups A and C brought the thrilling group stage to a close on Friday, the final Round of 16 cast saw several of the continent's biggest club sides missing out.
The Round of 16 (West) match-ups will see Tajikistan's FC Istiklol taking on Iran's Persepolis FC, Sharjah playing Al-Wahda FSCC in an all-UAE affair, Iran's Esteghlal facing 2019 champion Al-Hilal SFC of Saudi Arabia and Al-Nassr of Saudi Arabia squaring off against Iran's Tractor FC.
Istiklol capped a dream debut AFC Champions League campaign by finishing top of Group A, edging 2019 winners Al-Hilal who, however, advanced as one of the three best runners-up from the five West groups.
Sharjah of the United Arab Emirates, who ended their group stage campaign with 11 points, advanced as the Group B winners with second-placed Tractor FC of Iran also going through.
Group C saw Esteghlal taking the sole ticket, with the Iran side finishing top with 11 points as Qatar's Al-Duhail SC and Saudi Arabia's Al-Ahli Saudi FC both crashed out.
Group D was topped by 2020 AFC Champions League semi-finalist Al-Nassr, with the Saudi Pro League side's two wins over Qatar's Al-Sadd proving crucial in their final haul of 11 points. Xavi's Al-Sadd failed to advance.
Iran's Persepolis FC, the runner-up in 2018 and 2020, won Group E with a haul of 15 points, with UAE's Al-Wahda also advancing as one of the three best runners-up.
The Round of 16 and quarter-finals are scheduled to be played as single leg affairs in September.
The semi-finals and final will be played on a home and away basis, with the last four ties scheduled for October and the final in November.
