Iran manager Amir Ghalenoei has publicly criticized the coaches of the other 47 teams at the World Cup for failing to support Iran's grievances against the United States over travel restrictions. Iran, forced to base their training in Mexico and subject to limited entry into the US, saw a request to fly early to Los Angeles for their second group match against Belgium denied.
Ghalenoei appeals for solidarity
After Iran's 2-2 draw with New Zealand, Ghalenoei described his team as "the most oppressed team in the whole World Cup" and filed a complaint with FIFA. He revealed that he reached out to other coaches for support but received no response. “I asked the other 47 coaches a question, and none of them have responded to me,” he said. “We are here for football, not politics, and we are saying that again. Our grievances are about the way they’ve behaved with us. I haven’t heard anything from other coaches (at the World Cup), and I’m sure they’re busy and preparing their own teams, and we never expect them to have a reaction. But if I had seen another team being treated the way we are being treated, I would say something.”
Travel restrictions impact preparation
Iran wanted to arrive in California two days before Sunday's game against Belgium to prepare, but US officials denied the request, limiting their stay to 24 hours around matches. “They said, ‘Sorry, we weren’t able to do that,’” Ghalenoei said. “And that’s going to affect us mentally, especially because as a head coach, I want to focus on technical things. I thank FIFA for that, but it doesn’t mean it’s succeeded. I just hope problems won’t occur in future World Cups.” He added: “We needed to have 24 hours (in Los Angeles), but they gave us less than 16 hours, and that is why we had to leave our training halfway. These constraints have made it very difficult for us.”
Players echo frustrations
Iran midfielder Saeid Ezatolahi echoed the coach's sentiments: “You cannot deny that our situation hasn’t been the same as all the other teams. All the other teams have managed to focus on our planning, whereas we have had to spend so much time just commuting.”
Future games uncertain
Despite the setbacks, Ghalenoei expressed hope that FIFA would resolve issues for their third Group G match against Egypt in Seattle. “For the third game, they said, ‘In Seattle, you can do what you want,’” he said. “You can act the way you want to, and you can come earlier. But my problem is, why didn’t they let us come earlier for the first two games as well? I just know for the last game they’ve allowed us to make our own decisions about planning the travel. But unfortunately for the first two games, others made these timing decisions for us.”
