Iran’s fox world cup trip changed fast after a 2-2 draw with New Zealand on Monday night. The team had planned to spend the night in Los Angeles, but instead was told to leave the United States and return to Tijuana within hours of the opener.
Amir Ghalenoei said the order came after the match, cutting off the recovery window Iran expected to have in California. The coach said the team was sent back to its training base in Mexico even though it had prepared for an overnight stay after the game.
Ghalenoei on the sudden return
“After the game today, they said to us, ‘You have to leave immediately.’” Ghalenoei said through an interpreter. He added, “They didn’t even give us time to recover,” and said the squad was asked to get on a plane for the 140-mile trip back to Tijuana only a few hours after the opener.
He said Iran had expected to stay in California to maximize the normal recovery process after its first game. Instead, the team had to shift back to its Mexico base on short notice after a politically charged match at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.
Taremi describes the travel burden
Mehdi Taremi said the team had already spent five hours traveling and passing through security checks on the trip from Tijuana to the Los Angeles area on Sunday. That made the turnaround after the opener even sharper, with the squad sent back across the same corridor before the group stage had fully settled.
“We don’t know why they are returning us, to be honest,” Taremi said. He also said, “I think FIFA have to help us more than this.... Everything is like a disaster, actually, for us,” underscoring how the team viewed the travel demands around the opener.
Belgium and Egypt ahead
Iran’s schedule now keeps the travel pressure close to the field. The team is due to face Belgium in Inglewood on Sunday and Egypt in Seattle next week, with both matches coming after the disrupted return to Tijuana.
Ghalenoei said, “I think it’s very strange. It seems like others are doing the planning for us. The decision-making for us is being made elsewhere. We were supposed to come two nights before the game, and we were supposed to stay tonight to recover and return tomorrow at lunchtime. We have no idea why.”
