Well-drilled defence will be vital to last-16 chances

WORLDD CUP mainnstays Iran area prepaaring for thheir fifth finals since 1998, anda their third in a row, witth a familiar face in the duggout, trying to make history.

Carlos Queiroz, for mmany years Sir Alex Fergusonn’s trusted and influential lieutenant at Manchestter United, oversaw Iran aat the 2014 and 2018 World CCups and witnessed progress.

Now he’s back, reapppointed in September, to see if he can take the logical next steep and mastermind Team Mellli’s path to the knockout stages for the first time.

Clearly the draw couuld have been worse and Queiroz will believe that Wales and the United States are both beatable.

And with more and more of Iran’s players now earning a buck in some of Europe’s top leagues, there is a greater pool of talent to pick from than four years ago when the Iranians beat Morocco, lost narrowly to Spain and then drew with Portugal, earning plaudits galore but not that sought-after last-16 berth.

To make the next step Queiroz will need Iran’s famed defence, which is manned in numbers, to continue its good work. In the final round of qualifying, Iran conceded just four goals in ten matches and in September friendlies against

Uruguay and Senegal they shipped a solitary goal, and that was an own goal.

Sadegh Moharrami, Shoja Khalilzadeh and Hossein Kanaanizadegan are bedrocks of a solid defence which the meticulous Queiroz will have drilled impeccably.

In midfield they look light, hence the preference for playing on the counter and launching the ball quickly to Porto’s Mehdi Taremi, Bayer Leverkusen’s Sardar Azmoun and Alireza Jahanbakhsh of Feyenoord.

Success in front of goal is limited – 15 goals scored in those ten qualifiers is revealing – and that, ultimately, could be their undoing once again.

•

•

DLFormer Bundesliga defender Berhalter took the reins four years ago after shining in the MLS with Columbus Crew. He exorcised the ghosts of failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup and led his side to Nations League and Gold Cup glory last summer.

• The Adams-McKennie-Musah midfield axis is an area where the Americans look strong • Talented youngsters give Berhalter plenty of potential game-changers off the bench Pulisic is a matchwinner if the service is right

• No standout candidate for the central stiker role

Injured centre-back Miles Robinson has yet to be replaced • Inexperienced at this level

• Gareth Bale is a bona fide matchwinner – if he’s fit and firing

Big-league experience throughout the squad

• A well-trodden style and system

which the players are happy with

•

• A shortage of pace in midfield • One clean sheet in 11 hints at

vulnerability at the back

• Key men Bale, Allen and Ramsey are injury prone and have lacked much game time