On Tuesday, the Iranian team will meet Pakhtakor in Group D of the competition in Tehran’s Azadi Stadium.

“First of all, I would like to say we are very happy to participate in the highest level of football in Asia. Many people think that Pakhtakor is a minnow but I have to say it is a strong tem. Pakhtakor takes advantage of eight Uzbekistan national team players,” Ivankovic said in the pre-match press conference.

“We are ready for a tough match against Pakhtakor. We are the only Asian team who has qualified for the ACL semi-finals for two successive years,” he added.

“We are ready to meet the expectations. Persepolis is going to win the match and the next matches. I believe in my team,” the Croat stated.

“We played well in our last match in Iran league against Sanat Naft. But we know that Pakhtakor is a strong team because I’ve seen its match against Al Nasr of the UAE in play-off,” Ivankovic concluded.