AFC - Esteghlal boss Samad Marfavi remains unconcerned by a lengthy injury list ahead of his side’s AFC Champions League Group A clash with Al Jazira at the Azadi Stadium on Tuesday.
Marfavi will have a quartet of players unavailable to face the UAE side but has at least been boosted by the return of key striker Arash Borhani.
“Hashem Beikzadeh, Hadi Shakouri, Rinaldo and our young talent Omid Ravankhah can not play as they need to be given more time to recover from their injuries,” he said.
“But I’m not worried about missing them as I believe I have some other boys who can cover their absence and do well for us.”
The hosts kicked off their campaign with a useful 2-1 win at Al Ahli (pictured) last time out and the Iranians and Al Jazira will renew acquaintances on Tuesday having been paired together in last year’s group stages, with the game in Tehran ending in a 1-1 draw.
“We have to produce an intelligence performance to defeat Al Jazira,” Marfavi added.
“Fortunately, I know many things about our opponents as we played against them last year, although they have changed some of their players and playing formations and their playing style is a bit different from last year.”
However, Marfavi was quick to point out that the group will still be wide open regardless of Tuesday’s results.
“I would say even Al Ahli, who lost their opening match against us, still are in a position to qualify to the next phase,” he stressed.
“We’ve been slotted in a tough group and each team has their own chance to qualify. I personally believe that the teams that play using their heads will come out on top.
“The Champions League is an arena where no one must be proud of their success in prior editions or earlier weeks until they reach their final goal in the tournament.
“I’ve drilled this fact into my players’ minds that they should play with their full strength and refrain from being arrogant. They know this well and I am hopeful they’ll play with high motivation.”
Al Jazira manager Abel Braga, meanwhile, is keen for his side to put their opening 2-1 home defeat to Al Gharafa firmly behind them when they face the Iranians.
“It’s true that we lost our first match but we are not frustrated by this loss,” insisted the Brazilian.
“We still have opportunities to qualify for the next round, and in order to do that, we’ll do our best.”
Like Marfavi, Braga also has to juggle his line-up but is still targeting a maximum return from the encounter.
“Unfortunately we have some players suffering from injuries but I have pondered this and know the replacements,” added the 57-year-old.
“I’m certain we will play in an offensive fashion from the opening moments, we are not going to rely on counter attacks at all. What we want from tomorrow’s match is the most possible points.
“I know well that they are one of the most popular and strongest teams in Asia and that they have a powerful attack line.
“An example is Farhad Majidi, who is one of the most prepared players in Iran, but we are determined to go back home with a good result from this game.”