Iran v New Zealand: World Cup 2026 – live
⚽️ Kick-off time: 6pm local/11am AEST/2am BST/9pm EDT ⚽️ Player guide Bracketology Wallchart Mail Martin Team Melli 1 Alireza Beiranvand (gk); 23 Ramin Rezaeian, 19
⚽️ Kick-off time: 6pm local/11am AEST/2am BST/9pm EDT ⚽️ Player guide Bracketology Wallchart Mail Martin Team Melli 1 Alireza Beiranvand (gk); 23 Ramin Rezaeian, 19 Ali Nemati, 4 Shoja Khalilzadeh, 5 Milad Mohammadi, 6 Saeid Ezatolahi, 14 Saman Ghoddos, 17 Aria Yousefi; 9 Mehdi Taremi (c), 8 Mohammad Mohebi, 20 Shahriar Moghanloo.
Coach Amir Ghalenoei pulls no punches with an XI expected to lineup in a 4-4-2. Captain Mehdi Taremi is the focal point up front alongside Shahriar Moghanloo who has parachuted into the team. AFC teams have in the past perhaps been guilty of lacking belief against Uefa sides, but no longer.
Japan celebrated the equaliser as any side that has snatched a draw should, but the disappointment when they fell behind was clear. First and second in this group play second and first in the Brazil, Morocco, Scotland, Haiti group. It’s an indication of how far both Morocco and Japan have come that it’s not at all clear that it would be easier to face them than Brazil or the Netherlands.
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