In Tabriz, Tractor Sazi entered their match against Al-Nasr on 24 May knowing that a 3-0 win would clinch a spot in the quarterfinals or a 4-1 win would take the second leg into extra time.
65,000 fans were in attendance to intimidate the visitors from Dubai but the first half did not go to plan as Salem Saleh – the man who scored two goals in the first leg – put Al-Nasr in front after sixteen minutes.
Al-Nasr took a 1-0 lead into the half and were feeling upbeat about their chances to advance to the quarterfinals.
The second half started off perfectly for Tractor as Farzad Hatami leveled the score two minutes after the restart.
Fourteen minutes later, right back Mohammad Iranpourian put Tractor in front 2-1. In the 73rd minute, Hatami added his second goal of the match to extend the lead to 3-1.
The fans in Tabriz at the Yadegar Emam Stadium were loud and hoping for another goal. They knew it could be done as there were fifteen minutes remaining plus stoppage time.
But the score remained the same at the final whistle as Tractor won 3-1 but lost 5-4 on aggregate. Al-Nasr of Dubai held on and celebrated while Amir Ghalenoei and Tractor Sazi could only rue their missed opportunities and talk about what went wrong one week earlier in Dubai.
On 25 May in Isfahan, Zob Ahan felt confident playing against Al-Ain in front of their home fans after earning a 1-1 draw on the road one week earlier.
Zob Ahan knew that a 0-0 draw would see them through to the quarterfinals on away goals but playing for a scoreless draw against Al-Ain definitely would not be the best strategy.
South Korean midfielder Lee Myung-joo gave Al-Ain the lead after twelve minutes. From that moment Zob Ahan knew they had a much more difficult task in front of them.
The second half didn’t get any better for Zob Ahan as Colombian winger Danilo Asprilla added a second goal for Al-Ain just after the hour mark to give his side a 2-0 lead.
The game ended 2-0 and Al-Ain booked a spot in the quarterfinals by winning 3-1 on aggregate. It was definitely a disappointing match for Zob Ahan as the home supporters and Iranian football fans expected better from a squad coached by former Team Melli center back Yahya Golmohammadi.