FRANCE 98 – Match Summary n°12
A serious blunder by Iran’s stand-in goalkeeper Nima Nakisa spared Yugoslavia’s blushes on their return to the World Cup finals after six years in the international wilderness.
Nakisa, 23 and playing in only his eighth international in place of the injured Ahmad Abedzadeh, was caught badly out of position 18 minutes from the end as Sinisa Mihajlovic’s 22-metre (25-yard) freekick whistled past him into the net.
Mihajlovic, a defender with Sampdoria in Italy’s Serie A, specialises in curling shots from set pieces.But his effort on this occasion only found the back of the net because Nakisa moved-the wrong way-before he struck it. It was a heart-breaking blow for the Iranians who had until then comfortably matched the highly-rated Yugoslavs and looked set to secure an unexpected draw in their first World Cup finals appearance since 1978.
Despite the setback, Iran battled until the end and they twice went close to snatching what would have been a deserved equaliser in the closing minutes. Only a last-minute lunge by Goran Djorovic blocked Mehdi Mahdavikia from firing home after being put clear in the box by Cologne striker Khodadad Azizi. Then, with just minutes left, Ali Daei rose magnificently above the Yugoslav defence only to see his textbook header bounce straight into the arms of FC Porto’s new signing Ivica Kralj.
Iranian coach Jalal Talebi refused to blame his young keeper for the defeat.” He is still very young and if we lost today it was because of the inexperience throughout the team not just him, “ Talebi said. Despite the defeat, Iran’s solid performance leaves them with grounds for optimism going into their politically-charged second match against the United States next Sunday. ” We showed that we can hold our own against one of the best teams in the world and we will fight all the way, “ Talebi said. ” If we are going to go down, we will go down fighting. “
In contrast, Yugoslavia, who have been tipping themselves to cruise into the quarter-finals, will have to sharpen up considerably if they are to translate their outstanding collection of individual talents into an effective team performance in their second match against Germany. Coach Slobodan Santrac, clearly furious with his side’s lacklustre performance, accused his players of failing to heed his warnings not to underestimate the Iranians. ” I am satisfied that we won but I am not satisfied with the performance of my team, “ he said. ” I told them Iran was a strong team but nobody believed me. “
For Santrac, the biggest cause for concern was the poor performance of playmaker Dragan Stojkovic, who was completely outshone by the impressive Karim Bagheri in midfield and was substituted 20 minutes from the end. Striker Savo Milosevic said the side’s chances of going far in the tournament should not be written off just because of one below-par performance. ” We were quite lucky to win but we’ve got the three points and that is what counts. ” ” The first game is always difficult especially if you are playing a team that gets eight or nine players behind the ball. “Milosevic admitted that Yugoslavia would have to be sharper for their next clash, against Germany. But he added: ” Sometimes it is easier to play against good teams. “ Yugoslavia dominated the early exchanges and went close to opening the score in the 15th minute when big defender Djorovic met Stojkovic’s corner with a looping header that bounced off the bar with Nakisa stranded.
But after overcoming their early nerves the Iranians settled down and began to push forward as the Yugoslavs struggled to find their rhythm. Bhagari combined sweetly with Azizi down the right to create an opening for Mehdi Mahdavikia, who blasted the ball straight at Ivica Kralj in the Yugoslav goal. The best chance of the opening period fell to Mehrdad Minavand Chal.
Daei and Azizi combined to send the midfielder into the box on the left then watched in dismay as he failed to hit the target from close range.