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Josh Gross
Iran World Cup Team Preview
Iran
FIFA Ranking: 20
Manager: Carlos Queiroz
Federation: AFC
Group: England, USA, Wales, Iran
Odds to win World Cup: +75000, BetRivers
Odds to win Group B: +2000, Caesars
Odds to advance in Group B: +400, Caesars
How did Iran qualify for the World Cup?
The Asian Federation route to a World Cup is fairly grueling with Iran going 14-3-1 and dominating their third round winning eight of 10 matches. This will be Iran’s third straight World Cup birth.
Who is Iran’s most important player?
Mehdi Taremi
Taremi plays for Portuguese giants FC Porto where he has been in prolific form with over 20 goals in each of his last three seasons for the club. Iran is known for their defense, so if they are to advance, they will need Taremi to continue his club form and produce goals. Taremi is a big, strong striker with good pace, good dribbling, good finishing and great positioning in his ability to create chances. Many would consider Taremi to be a top 15, potentially even a top 10 striker in the world. Taremi is a legit talent in this world cup.
What are Iran’s strengths, weaknesses, style of play and form?
Iran are expected to play a 4-3-3 formation and overall are a defensive minded team.
Iran does not concede goals. Carlos Queiroz is an experienced coach who always preaches defense first. At the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Iran only conceded two goals in the group stage. During the Asian Cup in 2019, it took five matches for Iran to concede a goal.
Their biggest weakness is that they are known to park the bus, even when level with their opponents which has made them susceptible to late losses against the best teams. Being so defensive minded against top talent across the world means you can’t make a mistake the entire game. Although it’s their system, and it has worked well for them, I would like to see Iran play a more appealing style of football as they do possess a world-class talent at striker in Mehdi Taremi.
Iran have played two friendlies recently, beating Uruguay 1-0 and drawing 1-1 against Senegal. They rolled through World Cup qualifying with their only real blemish being a 2-0 defeat against South Korea.
What is Iran’s World Cup Outlook?
Considering the location of this World Cup being in the Middle East, I think Iran have a legitimate shot to qualify to the knockout stage. In my eyes, Iran are the more talented and better suited team to advance over Wales. Iran is going to make it extremely difficult for both the Welsh and the US to score goals, two teams that struggle to score. If they are able to limit goal differential or even steal a point against England, this team has a real shot to advance out of Group B.
Best Iran World Cup Bet
Iran to Advance out of Group B (+400, Caesars)
Iran has the recipe to be a surprise team to advance to the knockout stage. They are playing close to home, they have a world-class striker and they don’t concede goals. +400 to advance out of Group B is a good value when you consider the Welsh and the US at around +100. FIFA rankings don’t mean a ton, but the US rank 16th, Wales 19th and Iran 20th. This is a hyper competitive group outside of England that cater to Iran’s strengths.
Iran World Cup Roster
Goalkeepers: Alireza Beiranvand, Hossein Hosseini, Payam Niazmand, Amir Abedzadeh
Defenders: Ramin Rezaeian, Abolfazl Jalali, Hossein Kananizadegan, Shoja Khalilzadeh, Mortza Pouraliganji, Majid Hosseini, Sadegh Moharrami, Milad Mohammadi, Ehsan Hajisafi
Midfielders: Saeid Ezatolahi, Ahmad Nourollahi, Ali Karimi, Rouzbeh Cheshmi, Vahid Amiri, Mehdi Torabi, Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Ali Gholizadeh, Saman Ghoddos
Forwards: Sardar Azmoun, Karim Ansarifard, Mehdi Taremi
Group A | Ecuador Senegal Netherlands Qatar
Group B | Iran Wales USA England
Group C | Mexico Saudi Arabia Poland Argentina
Group D | Tunisia Denmark Australia France
Group E | Japan Germany Costa Rica Spain
Group F | Croatia Morocco Canada Belgium
