Pitso Mosimane’s Esteghlal ended with 10 men but managed to hold out for a 2-2 draw against his former team Al Ahli on Monday in their AFC Champions League Elite league stage fixture at King Abdullah Sports City.
It was Ahli with the better chances in the first half, but it was Esteghlal who took the lead in the 43rd minute when Raphael Silva fired in.
It looked like Mosimane would take the lead into the break, but it was an action packed stoppage time. First Riyad Mahrez hit the woodwork, then Ahli were awarded a penalty and James Toney converted to level matters.
Ahli had early chances in the second half, but it was Mosimane’s boys who went in front in the 51st minute as Mohammadhossein Eslami fired in from outside the box.
Now trailing, Ahli up the tempo but the Esteghlal team stood firm, looking to hold out for the win.
But with ten minutes to go, things went south, as first Eslami was shown a red card and moments later Al Ahli were awarded a second penalty of the game, after a foul by Mohammad Niknafs on Toney.
Toney stepped up to grab his second penalty in the 86th minute.
In the 90th minute, Feras Al Brikan had the ball in the back of the net for Al Ahli, but VAR overturned it for an earlier offside.
It was a tense and heated eight minutes of stoppage time as Esteghlal looked to hold on, and while they did, Mosimane will rue those final minutes after being in a winning position.
