Iran defeated Wales in a big game with major ramifications for Group B. Gareth Bale said the loss was “difficult to take”.
All anyone — Iranian or otherwise — is really thinking about is that final Group B match against the United States. But Iran might have something to offer before then, with Carlos Queiroz, formerly of Manchester United and Real Madrid, back in charge for his fourth World Cup. Plus they have the goalkeeper with football’s longest throw…
The manager
Iran head coach Queiroz has an impressive record. He guided South Africa to qualification for the 2002 World Cup finals but resigned before the tournament, before the first of two stints as Sir Alex Ferguson’s assistant at Manchester United. He coached Real Madrid in 2003-04, and managed Portugal at the 2010 World Cup. He masterminded Iran’s 2014 and 2018 World Cup campaigns during an eight-year tenure that made him the longest-serving and most successful coach in the history of “Team Melli” (national team in Farsi).
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Three years and two failed spells with Colombia and Egypt later, the Mozambique-born coach returned to Iran in September to replace Croatian Dragan Skocic, who had steered the team to qualification.
After Iran and the United States were drawn together in Group B, Queiroz’s name re-entered the conversation. In 1998, Queiroz wrote a report for US Soccer’s Project 2010, a plan to guide the US to win the World Cup by 2010. With an established relationship with the president of the Iranian FA, Mehdi Taj, Queiroz returned to the job.
His football style is organised, solid and uncompromisingly defensive, with a hardworking midfield that creates opportunities for the front players. His most common formation is 4-1-4-1, which can shift to 4-2-3-1 or 4-4-1-1.
Queiroz is very popular in Iran. Throughout the years, despite media criticism about his football at times, Queiroz has understood the suffering of Iranians and managed to charm them. That helped him instil an underdog mentality that united the players, fans and nation. Amid ongoing tension with the US and the West, plus social turmoil, Queiroz’s philosophy — “us against the world” — fits Iran like a glove. For the match against the USMNT and those against England and Wales, expect this motivation to be used as the glue for Queiroz’s squad.
The household name you haven’t heard of yet
Goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand of Tehran-based side Persepolis has quite a story. Born to a nomadic family in the Zagros Mountains in western Iran, Beiranvand worked as a shepherd. In his free time, he played football and a local game called del Paran, which involves throwing stones for the furthest distance possible.
That might explain his ability to throw balls to great lengths during matches. Beiranvand holds the Guinness World Record for the longest throw of a ball in a professional football match. In 2016, in a game against South Korea, he recorded a throw of 61.26m.
Alireza Beiranvand, the goalkeeper of Iran national team & @boavistaoficial, has achieved @GWR world record of "Farthest distance throw of a football in a competitive match" for his 61-meter throw during a 2016 match between Iran & South Korea at the 100,000 seater Azadi stadium pic.twitter.com/Rt6l6lgq8R
— Iran International English (@IranIntl_En) November 25, 2021
As a teenager, he was homeless in Tehran for a short period while trialling for a few local teams. After establishing himself as a professional footballer, he made it to the World Cup in 2018 and was in goal for Iran’s match against Portugal, during which he saved a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo. Harry Kane, beware.
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Strengths
With Mehdi Taremi, Sardar Azmoun and Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Iran has an impressive attacking unit. With Queiroz back at the helm, they should be incredibly well-drilled tactically. The impact of his return was evident in the friendlies against Uruguay and Senegal (a 1-0 win and a 1-1 draw).
They played with a variety of defensive patterns at the back and increased pressure up front, with the midfield players running and covering spaces like madmen. Saeid Ezatolahi alone covered nearly 13km against African champions Senegal. With an energetic midfield and lethal forwards waiting for counter-attacks, Iran can also be deadly in transitions.
Weaknesses
Iran is likely to miss Hull City’s Allahyar Sayyadmanesh. His injury is a serious blow as he has great pace and usually adds a lot of flair to Iran’s game, especially on the counter-attack.
Team Melli’s weakest position is left-back. Ehsan Hajsafi, now 32 years old, can’t play the role to the same level as in previous tournaments, and the next option is the more modest Abolfazl Jalali from Tehran side Esteghlal. Hopefully, the stage won’t be too big for the 24-year-old.
A final weakness is the lack of leadership in the dressing room. As names such as Masoud Shojaei and Ashkan Dejagah are no longer part of the team, Hajsafi is the captain, but he lacks the leadership skills the latter had. Queiroz obviously will take a lot on himself, but considering there are tensions between different groups within the team that were present during Skocic’s era, that leadership gap might become a critical issue.
Local knowledge
Team Melli has a proper culture around it. Aside from the fantastic, noisy fans, traditionally, during World Cups, Iranian artists produce songs that accompany the team during the games and after. In 2014, Gole Iran by Ajam became a hit so popular that it had a resurgence during the 2018 tournament.
This time around, with the current social atmosphere, it is unclear whether there will be songs or if the national team will be celebrated in the same manner. In early September this year, Mahsa Amini, a young woman, died after being detained by Tehran’s morality police. Her death prompted a wave of mass protests for freedom, women and human rights all over the country.
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In 1998, when Iran played the US at the France World Cup, activists of Mujahideen-e Khalq, an Iranian opposition movement, displayed photos of the opposition leader, Maryam Rajavi. During Iran’s match against the USA in Qatar, there may be some display by opposition movements, perhaps including tributes to Mahsa Amini, supporting the battle for freedom in Iran.
Expectations back home
Put simply: dream big and beat the US. Traditionally, the media in Iran aim high and assert a lot of pressure, while fans are more realistic and supportive. Queiroz’s return changed the narrative a little, and now expectations of both fans and media have been cranked up a little higher.
Iranians know England and Wales are superior but believe that on their day, with a good performance, they could grab a point off either — or even both. Regardless, Iran’s top priority in this World Cup is to beat the US in the final group match.
This game goes way beyond football. A loss will see Iranian fans will grieve and grill Queiroz and his players. A win, and the celebrations in Tehran will rock, and for a second or two maybe also bring a pause in protests or the authorities’ violence towards protestors.
Read more: See the rest of The Athletic’s World Cup 2022 squad guides
(Photos: Getty Images; design: Sam Richardson)