06.04.2025 14:20
Persepolis, managed by Ismail Kartal, drew 0-0 with Esteghlal Khuzestan in the league, complicating their chances of winning the championship. After the match, Kartal stated that the team is going through tough times due to an outbreak of illness. The experienced coach said, "In the last 12 days, 25 of our staff and 12-13 players have fallen ill. As far as I understand, this illness has spread throughout Iran and its surroundings."
Persepolis, the Iranian team coached by İsmail Kartal, drew 0-0 with Esteghlal Khuzestan in the 25th week of the league. After the match, Kartal expressed the significant difficulties within the team.
"25 STAFF, 12-13 PLAYERS FELL ILL"
Speaking at the press conference held after the match, İsmail Kartal said, "I can't talk much about the match because in the last 12 days, 25 of our staff and 12-13 of our players have fallen ill. As far as I understand, this illness has spread in Iran and its surroundings. Despite this situation, I thank my players for their efforts."
"I THANK THE DOCTORS WORKING DAY AND NIGHT"
The experienced coach, who stated that they have been struggling with illnesses since last week, said, "I want to thank the doctors who have been working day and night to get the kids to the match. They did everything they could to keep the kids on their feet."
"WE LEARN THAT 2-3 PEOPLE ARE SICK IN EVERY TRAINING"
Kartal mentioned, "Every day we learn that 2-3 people are sick in training and we send them home. This morning, we sent 2-3 people home as well, and we did not allow two or three to play. We tried to keep control from the beginning to the end of the match. We shot and passed, but we couldn't score a goal."
"WE COULDN'T EXPECT MORE FROM THE PLAYERS"
The Persepolis coach stated, "In a team in this situation, we couldn't expect more from the players. I congratulate the opposing team. Something happened in the midfield, the opposing coach apologized, and I accept that. These things happen in football."
HE WAS SICK TOO, DID NOT TAKE QUESTIONS
After his statements about the match, İsmail Kartal left the press conference due to his illness and did not answer questions from journalists. At the end of the press conference, after standing up, he said, "We are all sick; I came to the meeting out of respect for you. I wish I were healthy so I could answer your questions. We could have won the match, good or bad. I always congratulate the opposing team's coach. Thank you all. Hopefully, we will perform well in the next match, and then we can talk here."
CHAMPIONSHIP LEFT TO MIRACLES
Serdar Dursun, who plays for Persepolis, started the match in the starting 11 and was replaced by Issa Alkasir in the 74th minute. Meanwhile, following this result, Kartal's team's hopes for the championship in the league have significantly decreased with 5 weeks remaining. Persepolis, which raised its points to 48 and is in 3rd place, is 6 points behind the leader Tractor, who has one match in hand.