The stability and pragmatism of Carlos Queiroz’s seven year reign has firmly established Iran as Asia’s number one team. But the nation will go to the World Cup hoping to advance for the first time to the knockout phase..
IRAN FIFA Ranking : 36
Coach : Carlos Queiroz
Key Players : Sardar Azmoun, Alireza Jahanbakhsh
Sardar Azmoun is the heir apparent to Iranian great Ali Daei, the 23 year old has established himself as Iran’s leading forward since breaking into the team in the lead up to the 2015 Asian Cup finals.. Azmoun is backed up by the pace and trickery of Alireza Jahanbakhsh, who goes to Russia off the back of an impressive season for AZ Alkmaar in the Eredivisie, while Qatar based striker Mehdi Taremi adds another dimension to the attack..
Queiroz’s main concern has been the disparity in the fitness between those in his squad playing in Iran and those featuring overseas, with the country’s foreign based players key to hopes of success.. Principal among the weapons at Queiroz’s disposal is FC Rubin Kazan striker Sardar Azmoun, a forward whose goals were instrumental in Iran becoming the first Asian nation to qualify for the big event..
Previous Tournaments :
Iran will be appearing at the World Cup for the fifth time.. They previously played in 1978, 1998, 2006 and 2014.. The Iranians are still looking to progress to the knockout rounds for the first time and have won just one match, against the United States, in France in 1998..
Prospects :
Drawn in a challenging group with Morocco, Spain and Portugal, the Iranians will be looking to pick up a win in their opener against Morrocans to ensure their quest for a first ever place in the round of 16 stays alive..
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