World Cup qualification is still in our hands, Iran coach says

Tehran Times – TEHRAN, Iran football coach Carlos Queiroz says the team will qualify for the 2014 World Cup if the players get united.

“Three crucial matches are ahead of us. We will reach our goal or lose everything,” Queiroz said in a news conference on Saturday.

“Unfortunately, we could not take advantage of our opportunities so far. Some off-field problems happened to us and made trouble for us,” he added.

“Referee mistakes cost us the games, especially in our last two matches, however, there is no excuse and I accept the consequences of my work,” the 60-year-old added.

“Our dream will come true and it’s time to be united in order to advance to the 2014 World Cup. My message to you is ‘fight in the fields’. We have to keep our faith,” he added.

“I’ve worked at football for 33 years and I’m open to criticism, otherwise I was dead. You can learn from the criticism, but on some occasions some persons are going to harm your team for personal benefits,” the former Real Madrid coach stated.

“In my opinion, to advance to World Cup is a war and we have to be united if we want to be winner at this war,” Carlos Queiroz concluded.

Iran will face Qatar in a must-win game on June 4 in the Qatari capital Doha. The Persians will also play Lebanon and South Korea on June 11 and 18 respectively.

Iran is third in Group A with seven points. Uzbekistan leads the group with 11 points with one game more, followed by South Korea with 10 points.