LOS ANGELES, June 21– Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei said Saturday that he had been told his team would have greater travel flexibility ahead of its final Group G match at the FIFA World Cup.
Iran faces Belgium in its second group match on Sunday before taking on Egypt in Seattle next Friday. Iran opened its campaign with a 2-2 draw against New Zealand on June 15.
The team has been based in Mexico throughout the tournament, and has so far been required to travel to the United States one day before each match before returning to Mexico late on matchday.
Speaking at a pre-match news conference, Ghalenoei said organizers had indicated that different arrangements would be possible for the match in Seattle.
“They said in Seattle, you can do what you want, you can act the way you want to, and you can come earlier,” he said. “But my question is, why didn’t they let us come earlier for the first two games as well?” Ghalenoei said the repeated travel had taken a toll on the squad.
“I think, because we have been flying too much, commuting, as a result of this long commute, we’ve been tired,” he said. “That’s going to affect us mentally, especially me as a head coach, because I want to focus on technical stuff.”
Group G remains finely balanced after Belgium drew 1-1 with Egypt in the opening round. All four teams in the group have one point after one match. (Namibia Daily News / Xinhua)
