Not a difficult group for Iran: Asghar Maziar

Tehran Times – TEHRAN, Football expert Asghar Maziar says that the Iran football team has been put into a really good group in the 2022 World Cup qualification Round 3.

Iran are drawn alongside Korea Republic, the UAE, Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon in Group A of the final phase of Asian zone qualifying. Group B consists of Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia, China, Vietnam and Oman.

The AFC’s Technical Study Group member believes that Iran can qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

“In my opinion, South Korea are very strong in our group, while in Group B there are teams such as Japan, Australia, and Saudi Arabia. So, we can say that Iran have been drawn in the better group,” the current coach of Saipa football team told Tehran Times.

“Of course, teams such as Iraq and the UAE also finished their groups as the third team and can make problems for both Iran and Korea. Given the number of teams who can qualify for the World Cup, it’s undoubtedly an easier path for the Iranian national team to secure first or second place in the group. However, it is still fraught with danger, and the pressure will be on for the nation to reach their third consecutive World Cup,” he added.

He also talked about the Iranian football federation’s decision to keep Dragan Skocic as the head coach of the Iran national team.

“My personal opinion was that we could have brought a better coach in terms of the experiences and coaching career to replace Skocic for the next round of the World Cup qualifiers.

“Even though Iran got good results in the second round, the national team’s style of play and the tactical performance were not at a satisfying level. It seemed that Skocic couldn’t affect the team in terms of tactical issues, and the players achieved these results with their individual abilities and talents,” Maziar said.

“Skocic is a good coach, but for the World Cup, we need a more well-known and more experienced manager. However, now, we all will support Skocic and our national team to secure victories over rivals,” Maziar concluded.

 Iran will start the 2022 World Cup qualification Round 3 with a match against Syria on Sept. 2.