AFC Beach Soccer Asian Cup:
Iran to chase record fourth title in Thailand
Iran will be the clear favorite to lift a record-breaking trophy at the AFC Beach Soccer Asian Cup when the flagship event gets underway in Pattaya, Thailand, on Thursday.
Stepping into the competition as the reigning champion and the World Cup bronze medalist, Iran is drawn in Group C alongside two-time champion United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, and Indonesia.
Iran played Russia in a couple of friendlies in Bushehr last week, suffering defeat on both occasions.
Mohammad Naderi’s men were beaten 5-1 in the first game and then shared the spoils with the European opponent in 3-3 draw before Russia came out on top 4-3 in the shootout.
Naderi has made four changes to the squad that won a prestigious bronze medal in last year’s World Cup in the UAE, with former skipper Moslem Mesigar playing no part for Team Melli after calling time on his illustrious career following a friendly outing against Belarus in January.
Seyyed Mahdi Mirjalili, Abbas Rezaei, Reza Amirizadeh, Saeid Piramoun, Seyyed Ali Nazem, Mahdi Shirmohammadi, Ali Mirshekari, Movahed Mohammadpour, Mohammad-Ali Mokhtari, Mohammad-Ali Nazarzadeh, Mohammad Ma’soumizadeh, and Seyyed Mohammad Dastan are the 12 players in the Iranian squad for the visit to Pattaya.
Iran will begin its title defense against Indonesia on Friday, before taking on Afghanistan two days later at the Jomtien Beach Arena.
The final round of the group fixtures will see Iran square off against the UAE on March 25.
The top two of the group will progress to the last-eight of the 11-day tournament.
Host Thailand is joined by Kuwait, Lebanon, and India in Group A of the competition, while Japan – also a three-time champion – is in Group B with China, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq.
In Group D, Bahrain – the inaugural champion in 2006 – and 2015 winner Oman will vie for a top-two finish along with Malaysia and Vietnam.
The top three teams of the competition will qualify for the 2025 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup – starting May 1 in Victoria, Seychelles.