2022 Asian Qualifiers: Iran vs Iraq [Preview]

Sportskeeda – ARAD, Iran will continue their hunt for a place in the next round of the Asian qualifiers for the 2022 FIFA World Cup when they take on Iraq in Group C on Tuesday.

Iraq made it 19 games without defeat last time out and will be aiming to maintain this impressive form. The game will be played at Sheikh Ali bin Mohammed Al Khalifa Stadium.

Iran kept their hopes of qualifying for the next round alive when they humiliated Cambodia 10-0 last Friday. They had eight different goalscorers as they simply ran riot against their Cambodian counterparts.

Iran have now picked up seven straight wins across all competitions, scoring 23 goals and conceding just two.

The upturn in form in recent weeks has helped Dragan Skočić’s men surge to second place in Group C, two points behind leaders Iraq.

Iraq, meanwhile, continued their superb run in the qualifiers last time out when they claimed a 1-0 win over Hong Kong.

Mohammed Qasim Majid scored the only goal of the game in the 11th minute to hand Iraq a second straight win over Hong Kong.

Srečko Katanec’s men have now gone 19 games without tasting defeat, dating back to a 1-0 loss to Bahrain in the WAFF Championship back in 2019.

With 17 points from seven games, Iraq sit at the top of Group C, two points above Tuesday’s hosts.

Head-To-Head

Iran have been the superior side in this fixture, claiming 12 wins from 24 meetings with Iraq. Iraq, meanwhile, have picked up six wins, while six games have ended all square.

Iraq are currently on a four-game unbeaten streak against Iran. Their last encounter came back in 2019, when Iraq claimed a 2-1 win over the Iranians.

Iran Form Guide (all competitions): W-W-W-W-W

Iraq Form Guide (all competitions): W-W-D-W-W

Team News

Iran

Barring any late fitness or injury woes, Iran have a fully fit squad heading into Tuesday’s showdown.

Injured: None

Suspended: None

Iraq

Similarly, Iraq have a clean bill of health and there are no suspension concerns. Head coach Srečko Katanec has a full strength squad to select from on Tuesday.

Injured: None

Suspended: None

Predicted XI

Iran Predicted XI (4-4-2): Alireza Beiranvand; Sadegh Moharrami, Shoja Khalilzadeh, Hossein Kanani, Milad Mohammadi; Ali Gholizadeh, Ahmad Nourollahi, Vahid Amiri, Ehsan Hajsafi; Sardar Azmoun, Mehdi Taremi.

Iraq Predicted XI (4-1-3-2): Jalal Hassan; Alaa Ali Mhawi, Ahmed Ibrahim, Maytham Jabbar, Ali Adnan; Amjad Attwan; Hussein Ali, Bashar Resan, Humam Tariq; Mohanad Ali, Ayman Hussein

Prediction

Both sides head into this game in superb form and it should be an entertaining contest on Tuesday.

However, we predict Iraq will claim a narrow win as Iran have struggled for results against them in their recent encounters.

Prediction: Iran 1-2 Iraq