Iran is the first Asian nation to qualify for the 2018 World Cup
Iran’s qualification is the second after Brazil’s. Yesterday’s 2-0 win over Uzbekistan at Teheran's Azadi Stadium is the sixth in eight matches in Group A, where Iran leads with 20 points and have not conceded a single goal. For the Islamic Republic, this is the fifth appearance in football’s foremost tournament.
Tehran (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Iran is the first Asian nation (and the second in the world after Brazil) to qualify for the 2018 World Cup finals in Russia.
Iran’s victory came yesterday in a match against Uzbekistan amid the friendly crowds of the Azadi Stadium in Tehran with Sardar Azmoun and Mehdi Taremi scoring for the home team.
It was Iran's sixth win in eight matches in Group A, which took them to 20 points, whilst South Korea are second on 13 ahead of their match against Qatar today.
Iran are still unbeaten in the third stage of qualifying and amazingly have not conceded a single goal, thus underlining their credentials as one of Asia's football giants.
On Monday, Iran were clearly the dominant side in front of their home fans, taking three points on the road to Russia, and could have easily emerged winners with an even more impressive score-line but for some lackluster finishing.
Iran, managed by former Real Madrid and Portugal coach Carlos Queiroz since 2011, have played in the World Cup finals four times in the past – in 1978 (Argentina), 1998 (France), 2006 (Germany) and 2014 (Brazil) – whilst Uzbekistan are still seeking their first ever qualification.
The World Cup runs from 14 June to 15 July 2018.
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