Intro:

Al Sadd of Qatar beat Iranian side Sepahan 3-1 in Group D of the AFC Champions League in Doha on Wednesday.

Script:

The first round of matches in AFC Champions League Group D got under way on Wednesday with Qatari Stars League champions Al Sadd hosting Sepahan of Iran.

Al Sadd dominated the first half and opened the scoring after just 17 minutes, Rodrigo Tabata's through ball found Khalfan Ibrahim, who provided the finish.

Despite Al Sadd's dominance, Sepahan were still in the match after they drew level in the 78th minute.

Hossein Papi's determination on the left got him behind the Al Sadd defense and Mehdi Sharifi arrived late to thump the ball past Saad Al Sheeb.

It seemed that Sepahan would leave Doha with a draw, but with just three minutes of normal time remaining, Al Sadd rediscovered their form.

Nadir Belhadj curled in beauty from the edge of the box to put Al Sadd 2-1 up.

Then, Tabata made it 3-1 in stoppage time with a perfectly-executed half-volley.

It finished 3-1 as Al Sadd got their Group D campaign off to the perfect start.