Aluminium Arak secured a narrow 2-1 victory over Shams Azar Kazvin in the Persian Gulf Pro-League's third round on Sunday. The visitors trailed at one point before A. A. Chegini's 89th-minute strike rescued a point. M. Mahdavi had fired the hosts into a commanding position with three goals of his own.
And here's the thing about the opening exchanges — Shams Azar seized control almost immediately. Mahdavi doubled his tally within three minutes, putting the home side ahead 2-0. Then came the confusion, with M. Khalifeh scoring two own goals in quick succession around the 44th and 45th minute marks. The visitors were suddenly ahead, but only briefly.
By then the match had settled into something more familiar, a game where momentum shifted without warning. Mahdavi completed his hat-trick in the 82nd minute, and it looked as though the hosts would extend their unbeaten run to eight. Then Chegini rose highest at the far post, and the visitors camped in the final third for a payoff.
Shams Azar registered more yellow cards than you might expect — one compared to the visitors' three — but that tells only part of the story. Five substitutions were made across the second half, with both managers looking for something different. B. Goudarzi entered twice, which suggests either fatigue or tactical experimentation.
The statistics don't paint a pretty picture for the home side. Shams Azar had dominated possession and created chances, but three goals from one player and two own goals don't tell you much about sustained pressure. The visitors reached for their pocket after the break and extended their unbeaten run to eight matches across all competitions.
This result leaves Shams Azar in 11th place with five points from five games, while Aluminium Arak move up to third with 11 points. The gap between them is significant, and for the hosts, the table goes out of the window in these games. They have not won since the opening weekend, and the pressure is mounting.