Iran expert “Heung-min Son played like Liverpool” [카타르월드컵]

When Iran (21st in the world ranking) lost to Korea (29th) in a soccer match for the first time in 11 years, it was analyzed that “superstars like Son Heung-min (30, Tottenham) were pushed by the spirit of their desperate opponents.” Heung-Min Son contributed to Korea’s victory over Iran with the opening goal.

Bahman Portan (75) said in an article on the Iranian media ‘Bana News’ on the 27th, “Korea was more ambitious. Captain Son Heung-min played as if he was playing against Liverpool in the English Premier League (EPL).”

From 2010 to 2014, Portan was the manager of German club teams such as Berliner, Turkiyspor, and Chelendorf. Korea defeated Iran for the first time in 4080 days (11 years, 2 months and 3 days) since the 2011 Asian Football Federation (AFC) Asian Cup quarterfinals (1-0 win).

For 11 years, South Korea had 3 draws and 4 losses in 7 A matches against Iran. In 5 World Cup final qualifiers, they drew 2 and lost 3, and in the 2 evaluation matches, they had only 1 draw and 1 loss.

“It was clear which team needed and desperately wanted to win more,” Portan said. Korea had a great desire to escape. On the other hand, in Iran, no one was properly prepared.”

According to ‘Bana News’, 30 million Iranian viewers (the maximum at the moment) watched the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar Asian final qualifying round 9 away to Korea. Porutan pointed out, “Even if they had been confirmed to advance to the finals prior to the match, they were not well prepared for an important national competition.”

[박찬형 MK스포츠 기자]
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