It was a result which suited neither side with Esteghlal moving to four points and Pakhtakor one behind with only the top eight teams to advance to the knockout stage.
Esteghlal and Pakhtakor entered the game on the back of disappointing form in the competition with the Iranian side on a run of three consecutive defeats while Pakhtakor were without a win after four matches, leading to a cagey start.
Boosted by the substitutions, Esteghlal came close to taking the lead in the 68th minute when Abolfazl Jalali delivered a pinpoint cross into the box, however, Muhammadhossein Eslami jumped too early and could not make the right connection with the ball.
Esteghlal carved out another opening with four minutes of normal time left but Salimi’s downward header was well caught by Vladimir Nazarov as both teams settled for a point.
Matchday Six next week will see Esteghlal face Al Ahli Saudi on Monday while Pakhtakor meet Al Ain a day later.