World Cup preview: Iran
The Asian nation is participating in its third consecutive World Cup
Previous World Cup appearances: 1978, 1998, 2006, 2014, 2018
Best finish: Group stage (1978, 1998, 2006, 2014, 2018)
Group stage schedule: vs. England (Nov. 21), vs. Wales (Nov. 25), vs. USA (Nov. 29)
Note: All stats accurate as of the end of the 2021-22 European season.
The breakdown
How they qualified: Iran entered in the second round of Asian Football Confederation (AFC) qualifying. They outscored opponents 34-4 over their eight games yet only won their group by a single point. In the third round of qualifying, they topped a group that included South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon by taking 25 points from 10 games to secure their place in Qatar.
Names to know:
Sardar Azmoun (Bayer Leverkusen) — Azmoun was Iran’s most productive player during qualifying, recording 10 goals and four assists in 14 games1. He also scored a team-high four goals at the 2019 Asian Cup2. The 27-year-old spent his entire career in Russia before joining Bayer Leverkusen in January. He contributed a goal and an assist in his second Bundesliga start, a 4-1 win over Greuther Fürth. Two more international goals will move Azmoun into sole possession of second place on Iran’s all-time list3.
Alireza Jahanbakhsh (Feyenoord) — Best known for his bicycle-kick equalizer for Brighton against Chelsea on New Year’s Day 2020, Jahanbakhsh recorded two goals and an assist in 50 Premier League appearances with the Seagulls. Before moving to England, he led the Eredivisie in goal involvements (21 goals, 12 assists) in 2017-18 as a member of AZ Alkmaar4. The 28-year-old returned to the Netherlands last season and found the back of the net five times in 12 games during World Cup qualifying.
Hossein Kanaanizadegan (Al Ahli) — Kanaanizadegan logged the most minutes and made the most starts of any Iranian player during qualifying, contributing a goal and two assists5. He won back-to-back Persian Gulf Pro League titles with Persepolis before moving to Al Ahli in the Qatar Stars League last year. Kanaanizadegan led his new team with 20 appearances6 and has been capped by his country 32 times7.
Ahmad Nourollahi (Shabab Al Ahli) — After five seasons in the Persian Gulf Pro League, Nourollahi joined Shabab Al Ahli of the Arabian Gulf League last season. He produced three goals and two assists in his debut campaign8. The 29-year-old scored three goals in Iran’s qualification campaign and ranked second on the team in both appearances and minutes played9. He got on the field once at the 2019 Gold Cup10.
Mehdi Taremi (Porto) — Only new Liverpool man Darwin Núñez was involved in more goals per 90 minutes in Portugal’s Primeira Liga than Taremi last season11. In two seasons at Porto, Taremi has 36 goals and 23 assists in league play plus another four goals and two assists in European competition12. He led Iran with five assists during qualifying and found the back of the net seven times13.
Potential breakout star: Mohammad Mohebi (Esteghlal)
Mohebi is the brightest young player on a veteran Iranian team. He only got 220 minutes of playing time during qualifying but still managed to be one of the five Iranian players with multiple goals and assists14. Mohebi’s scored twice and made four starts with Santa Clara in Portugal's top league in 2021-2215. He was loaned to Esteghlal in the Persian Gulf League for the 2022-23 season16.
Note: Mohebi did not make the Iran World Cup squad.
The bottom line
Reason for optimism: The stars are in their prime
When the World Cup kicks off, Azmoun will be 27, Jahanbakhsh 29 and Taremi 30. All three of them were part of the 2018 squad that finished one point behind Spain and Portugal in a difficult group. That was before Azmoun was playing in the Bundesliga or Jahanbakhsh and Taremi were scoring stunners against Chelsea.
Biggest question: Can they create enough offensively?
Iran scored twice at the 2018 World Cup and never until stoppage time. One was an own goal, and the other was a penalty. They had the best defensive record in their group yet only managed a third-place finish. Two goals is not going to cut it with the amount of individual attacking talent in this group.
Here’s the deal:
Iran proved in 2018 the defensive structure is there. In theory, they should be much improved going forward with the emergence of the attacking trio and the experienced Karim Ansarifard. That improvement must be substantial if they are going to reach the knockout stage though.