Dragan Skocic

PLDC - Dragan Skocic, former coach of Team Melli, has expressed surprise over the line-up that Carlos Queiroz introduced for the match against the US at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Iran lost the match 1-0 on Tuesday while even a draw would secure their berth in the Round of 16.

Reacting to the game, Skocic said he had watched the game and that “there were many changes.”

He noted that he could have not guessed this line-up even if was supposed to write down 10 probable plans for this match.

“I was there for three years,” he said, adding that some players that played for Iran at the World Cup finals had not even played a single game in the qualifiers.

He also said that the style that Iran showcased in the match against Wales was close to the style that the team played during his realm.

“Watching Iran’s games was difficult,” said the Croat who was fired from the Iranian team after Mehdi Taj returned to lead Iran’s Football Federation.

Skocic accepted to manage the team when the chances were low for Team Melli’s advancement to the second round of qualifiers. However, his team eventually became the first Asian team to book tickets to Qatar.

Skocic was replaced with Carlos Queiroz two months ago in a move that brought mixed reactions in the Iranian football community as some experts believed the Croatian was doing well and should have continued the job and some others believe Queiroz can attain better results in the 2022 World Cup.

Iran lost two matches against England (6-2) and the USA (1-0) and gained one victory (2-0) against Wales in Group B of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

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