Al Sadd Determined to Come Away from Azadi with Win: Bounedjah


Al Sadd Determined to Come Away from Azadi with Win: Bounedjah

TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Al Sadd Algerian striker Baghdad Bounedjah is hoping that their attacking style of play can help them side recover a one-goal deficit against Persepolis in the AFC Champions League semi-final second leg on Tuesday and see them advance to a first final since 2011.

Persepolis boasts a 100 per cent home record on the continent this year, including victory over Al Sadd in the group stage, but the Qatari side will travel to Azadi Stadium with confidence having defeated another Tehran side, Esteghlal, at the same venue in the quarter-final in a game that saw Bounedjah bag a brace.

“It will be a difficult match with very few chances, so it’s up to us, and me personally, to score whatever chances fall my way,” said Bounedjah, who has scored twice in each away game in the knockout rounds.

“We have played three times against Persepolis, they beat us twice and we beat them once. In this match we will be fully focused to come back for the win.

“Persepolis always defend as a unit, they all defend together. We have strong attacking abilities and I hope we will score and we win the game. We are determined to come away from Azadi Stadium with the victory,” the Algerian added.

Bounedjah has netted seven in the group stage and a further five in the knockout rounds.

With 12 goals to his name, the prolific marksman is now just one goal behind the tournament’s all-time leading scorers for a single campaign – Brazilians Muriqui and Adriano, who netted 13 for Guangzhou Evergrande in 2013 and FC Seoul in 2016 respectively.

And while individual records may not yet be at the forefront of his mind, Bounedjah knows exactly how to silence Azadi Stadium and will aim to do just that when the sides clash for a fourth time in the current campaign.

“I’m not too bothered about finishing as the top scorer, the most important thing is for Al Sadd to win so we can reach the final,” admitted Bounedjah. “But, if I get to score, it will be great to be the highest ever goal scorer in one season.”

Most Visited in Sports
Top Sports stories
Top Stories