Zira secured a slender 1:0 victory over Neftchi Baku in the Azerbaijan Premier League's third round on Saturday evening, keeping their perfect start intact. The hosts moved clear at the top of the table with nine points from three games, while Neftchi dropped to second after their first defeat of the campaign.
The decisive moment came on the stroke of half-time when Q. Aliyev found the net in the 45th minute plus four. It was a tight affair from the outset, with I. Mathew picking up the first booking on just the fourth minute. To be fair, both sides knew each other's strengths well enough to keep things cautious in the opening exchanges.
By then the match had settled into a pattern of measured pressure rather than open attacking. E. Badalov's second yellow card in the 70th minute reshaped the contest entirely, leaving Neftchi to chase the game with ten men. The substitution of Guima for I. Mathew on the hour mark had already shifted things, though the red card changed everything.
The statistics tell a story of wasted opportunities on both sides. Zira registered four shots on target from 107 attacks, while Neftchi managed none from 112 attacks despite their superior possession at 48 per cent. And here's the thing — shots off target outnumbered shots on target for the visitors by seven to zero, which says something about the quality of their chances.
Zira had been on a run of three consecutive victories, beating Mil-Mugan 3:1 and Safa Baku 2:0 before this result. Neftchi's recent form included a dominant 5:0 victory over Araz, but they cannot forget the defeat to Osijek in their last outing. The gap between them now widens to three points in the standings.
The visitors still have work to do if they want to close the gap on their rivals. Eight substitutions across the match showed how both managers tried to find a way through, but in the end Zira held their nerve and saw it out.
