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Brazilian Luciano Pereira, also known as Chiba, scored an absolute wonder goal for Sepahan, an Iranian club, against Al-Nasr of the United Arab Emirates in their opening Asian Champions League group match. It took all of 14 minutes for Pereira to smash this 30 yard golazo and send Sepahan on their way to a comprehensive 2-0 victory.
Collecting the ball centrally, Pereira created some space for the shot with an elegant Cruyff turn that left one defender in his wake. Two quick touches later, Pereira launched a screamer that kissed the underside of the crossbar before finding the net. International goal of the month material? Certainly.
This checks all the boxes for one of the greatest goals we've seen all month. A Cruyff turn? Yes. A screamer from 30 yards? Yup. Ultimately glancing in off the crossbar near the corner of the goal? Sure thing. Aesthetically, it doesn’t get much better than this. The way the ball bounces back up to strike the crossbar a second time lets you know just how much violence Pereira put behind this shot.
Pereira is a 32-year-old striker who spent his early career bouncing around Brazilian clubs including Dom Pedro, Botafogo and Linense. He transferred to the Iranian Premier League in 2012, signing for Foolad.
Two successful seasons at the club saw him transfer to Sepahan, the most successful Iranian club since the establishment of the Iran professional league. With an annual salary of $1 million per year, Pereira is one of the most prized assets of the Iranian Premier League.
Sepahan will once again meet Al-Nasr in their next AFC Champions League group match on Tuesday, March 1. Sepahan were the first Iranian club to reach the AFC Champions League final, having done so in 2007. They also participated in the 2007 FIFA Club World Cup, reaching the quarterfinals before losing to Urawa Red Diamonds of Japan.
