TEHRAN - The 2024/25 Iran’s Persian Gulf Professional League (PGPL) has taken a month-long break due to the FIFA international window, but the battle for the top spot has reached its peak.

Currently, Sepahan lead the table with 21 points, one game more than Persepolis and Tractor, who are one and two points behind, respectively. However, there is a possibility that the golden-clad team will lose their top spot in less than a month.

Persepolis, under the guidance of Spanish coach Juan Carlos Garrido, has had a relatively good season so far and are hoping to defend their league title.

On the other hand, Tractor, led by former Iranian national team coach Dragan Skocic and featuring foreign players like Tomislav Strkalj and Iranian internationals such as Alireza Beiranvand, Mehdi Torabi, and Shoja Khalilzadeh, have shown themselves to be a serious contenders for the title and aim to fulfill the long-standing dream of their passionate fans.

Despite being at the top, Sepahan have recently been left without a coach following the resignation of former Portuguese coach Jose Morais. The club’s management has yet to introduce a new coach, and this change could have a negative impact on the team's results.

Esteghlal, the runners-up of the previous season, have experienced their most challenging days this season and are currently in tenth place. Former coach Javad Nekounam was sacked after the fifth week of the league due to the poor results. He was temporarily replaced by Sohrab Bakhtiarizadeh, followed by South African coach Pitso Mosimane. Mosimane has a tough task ahead of him to bring Esteghlal back into the title contention this season.

In place of Esteghlal, a new team have emerged as a title contenders. Foolad, led by Yahya Golmohammadi, the successful former coach of Persepolis, who won the league title with the team, are now fourth in the table with 18 points and are waiting for the top teams to slip up.

The 2024/25 Iranian league is being followed with great excitement, and it seems that the title duel will continue until the final days, making it difficult to predict.