Iranian Trio Who Could Trouble England in 2022 World
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Sardar Azmoun, Mehdi Taremi and Saman Ghoddos are three players who could trouble England in the 2022 World Cup group stage.
Having been placed into Group B, Gareth Southgate's men will go up against Iran, the USA, and one of Scotland, Wales, or Ukraine, as they bid for global glory, planetsport.com reported.
But who should the Three Lions be keeping an eye on?
Azmoun:
Iran's main man in their World Cup quest will be Bayer Leverkusen striker Sardar Azmoun. The 27-year-old moved to Germany from Zenit St Petersburg in January after scoring 62 goals in 104 games for the Russian outfit, and was named Player of the Season in 2020/21.
He holds the record for most goals scored by an Iranian in the Champions League, with six, and alongside his domestic exploits, he also has 40 goals in 62 games for his country.
Taremi:
Another member of Iran's forward line who may have a part to play is Porto striker Mehdi Taremi. He moved to Portugal to join Rio Ave after spending the first nine years of his senior career with four different clubs in his homeland, before signing for Porto after one season.
He was nominated for the Puskas Award after scoring a bicycle kick against Chelsea in April 2021, and has totaled 41 goals in 87 games for the Dragoes.
Ghoddos:
A name who may be familiar to Premier League audiences is Brentford midfielder Saman Ghoddos, who initially played for Sweden, the country of his birth, before switching to Iran in 2017.
He came through the youth system of Malmo, and featured in Graham Potter's Ostersunds side, before joining the Bees in 2020. He has 73 career goals in 286 domestic games, and has been capped 31 times by Iran.
