Al Nassr taste victory over Persepolis in AFC Champions League opener

TEHRAN, IRAN - SEPTEMBER 19: Saudi Arabia's Al Nassr kicked off their AFC Champions League season with a 2-0 victory against Iran's Persepolis FC on Tuesday (Sep. 19). Neither team was able to produce a goal in the first 45 minutes at Tehran's Azadi Stadium and Persepolis were down to 10 men after Milad Sarlak received a red card. Midfielder Sarlak brought down Cristiano Ronaldo in the 52nd minute. Danial Esmaeilifar scored a 62-minute own goal and Mohammed Qassem netted in the 72nd minute as the match ended 2-0 in favor of the Saudi club. The clash was played behind closed doors due to a ban imposed by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) on Persepolis as a penalty for sharing a controversial post on social media about India. The AFC decided on a formal complaint of FC Goa, a professional football club in the Indian Super League, objecting to the Iranian club's post glorifying the invasion of India before their match against the Indian club in 2021. (Footage by Eisa Mohammadi/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)