FRANCE 98 – Match preview n°30

The politics that have seen the US-Iran clash billed as the “mother of all football matches” will be forgotten here on Sunday as the two sides scrap for World Cup survival.

“If we do not beat Iran I think we can forget about reaching the second round,” admitted US skipper Thomas Dooley. US Coach Steve Sampson was furious at his players for allowing themselves to be overawed by Germany in Monday’s 2-0 defeat in Paris. But he is confident that his side have learned their lesson. “We have had some time to pick up the pieces and we are ready for Iran,” he said.

After watching Yugoslavia struggle to beat Iran 1-0 in the other opening match in group F, Sampson believes that the US has a realistic prospect of matching their performance on home soil in 1994 by reaching the second round here. “Both Iran and Yugoslavia are beatable,” he said.

While all the fuss surrounding the match seems to have had more effect on the Iranians than their American rivals, its is Jalal Talebi’s side that emerged from their first group F match with greater confidence.

The Iranians were desperately unlucky to lose the match to a late free-kick that should have been saved and their two German-based strikers Khodadad Azizi and Ali Dai gave the Yugoslav defence serious problems. Karim Bagheri also played impressively through the middle and the Americans know they will have to pick up his powerful runs.

“There are about three or four players who we need to watch closely,” Dooley said. “If we manage to close them down we can dominate.” Talebi will be hoping that his regular goalkeeper Ahmad Abedzadeh will have recovered sufficient fitness to start in place of the inexperienced Nima Nakissa, whose positioning was at fault on the Yugoslav goal.

Apart from that, neither side has any injury worries. Talebi is expected to field the same line-up of outfield players but there could be a number of changes on the American side. Tab Ramos, one of the veterans of the US squads that competed in the 1990 and 1994 finals, and the exciting young midfielder Frankie Hejduk, are set to come into the midfield as Sampson looks to give his side, which plays in a defence-minded 3-6-1 formation, more attacking options. Hejduk, 23, looks like the California surfer-boy that he is. But the laid-back style is deceptive. On the field his blistering pace and apparently limitless capacity to make forward runs make him one of the most dangerous American players. South African-born Roy Wegerle may also start after a disappointing display by Eric Wynalda in the solo striker’s spot against Germany.

Players on both sides have said they want to exchange jersies at the end of the match-a gesture that will be a powerful symbol of football’s capacity to overcome barriers and help boost the political reconciliation that both the US and Iranian governments now say they want.

The Iranians have also promised some other “special gesture,” of friendship.