The Iranian giant is scheduled to meet Xavi’s Al Sadd at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on Tuesday.
Al Sadd is the only side left in the competition to have won the AFC Champions League, while it was also the last team from West Asia to lift the coveted trophy when it defeated Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in the 2011 final.
The Doha team has overcome Saudi Arabia’s Al Ahli and Iran’s Esteghlal in the knockout rounds and has not lost since the group stage as it aims to repeat the feat of seven years ago and end East Asian dominance.
But its last defeat was to Tuesday’s opponent when Persepolis secured a 1-0 win in Tehran to top Group C, before the Iranian side knocked out Al Jazira in the last 16 and claimed a remarkable come-from-behind victory over another Qatari team, Al Duhail, in the quarter-final.
Persepolis is appearing in its second successive semi-final after advancing for the first time last year, before eventually losing to Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal.
Persepolis will return full of belief after ousting a side who had previously won all nine of its matches on the continent, the-afc.com reported.