Middle Eastern nation have not been given permission to remain in the US, so they are based in Mexico and have to cross the border for their games
Iran head coach Amir Ghalenoei says his side’s performances at the World Cup so far despite the “worst possible conditions” proves they have the mental strength to match the very best teams.
The Middle Eastern nation achieved a goalless draw with Belgium on Sunday, leaving them with two points from two Group G matches. It means they retain hopes of reaching the knockout stages for the first time in their footballing history.
Iran previously drew 2-2 with New Zealand a positive result against Egypt would mean they qualify for the next round.
“We came into the World Cup under the worst possible conditions and still we got a result against a great team and a great manager,” Ghalenoei said after his side’s game against Belgium.
Iran have not been given permission to remain in the US, so they are based in Tijuana, Mexico, and have to cross the border to play their games. Sunday’s game was played after a flight to Los Angeles, and after the game they had to quickly return to their camp.
“We need to recover and then we have to fly back,” Ghalenoei said. “We don’t even have enough time to recover. Tomorrow, we will look at [today’s] game and look at the game with Egypt.”
“Right now, we need recovery. Sixteen hours, two flights and a heavy game. I don’t think anyone could have endured this. And our players have given everything. What we need the most now is to recover.”
Winger Alireza Jahanbakhsh is disappointed with his side’s treatment but said they were drawing inspiration from it.
“This is part of our culture that in a difficult situation we perform better,” he said. “I think that united us even more, and that’s one of the things we showed today. We showed a great deal of character, and part of it comes from the situation we are in, obviously.”
