World Cup 2022: England vs Iran Match Preview
One of the tournament favorites, England, will start the World Cup 2022 with the match against Iran at the Khalifa International Stadium.
England reached the World Cup 2018 semi-finals, losing it to Croatia, and during the EURO 2020 last year, they reached the final, where Italy won 3–2 on penalties.
They breezed through qualifying for Qatar 2022 with the best goal difference in the group stage of European qualifiers, scoring 39 and conceding only 3.
In the meantime, Iran are competing in the World Cup final tournaments for the third time in a row but are facing an uphill battle to finally progress beyond the group stage.
So, let’s have a closer look at this match, what to expect from it, who has better chances to win, etc.
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World Cup 2022, Group Stage, Group B, England vs Iran
21 November, 2022, Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan
World Cup 2022: England National
England has competed at the World Cup since 1950, and since played all the 18 subsequent tournaments. They didn’t qualify for the finals 3 times in 1974, 1978 and 1994, and didn’t advance from the group stage in 1950, 1958 and 2014.
Their best ever performance is winning the cup in the 1966 tournament held in England; they also finished in fourth place in 1990 and in 2018.
England Journey to the World Cup 2022
England were drawn in Group I of UEFA’s FIFA World Cup qualification round.
In 10 matches, England won 8, played 2 draws, and with 26 points finished the group on the first place.
March 25 England 5-0 San Marino
March 28 Albania 0-2 England
March 31 England 2-1 Poland
September 2 Hungary 0-4 England
September 5 England 4-0 Andorra
September 8 Poland 1-1 England
October 9 Andorra 0-5 England
October 12 England 1-1 Hungary
October 12 England 5-0 Albania
October 15 San Marino 10-0 England
England Squad for the World Cup 2022
Coach: Gareth Southgate
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Aaron Ramsdale.
Defenders: Harry Maguire, Kyle Walker, Eric Dier, Luke Shaw, Kieran Trippier, Ben White, John Stones, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Conor Coady.
Midfielders: Declan Rice, Jordan Henderson, Jude Bellingham, Kalvin Phillips, James Maddison, Mason Mount, Conor Gallagher.
Forwards: Harry Kane, Callum Wilson, Phil Foden, Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka, Raheem Sterling, Jack Grealish.
England’s Group B fixtures
England vs Iran – November 21
England vs United States – November 26
England vs Wales – November 30
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World Cup 2022: Iran National
Iran played in 6 World Cup final tournaments in 1978, 1998, 2006, 2014, 2018 and 2022. They never managed to get through the group stage.
Iran Journey to the World Cup 2022
Unbeaten in Group A, Iran finished the group with 18 points. In 8 played matches, Iran won 6 and lost 2 matches.
10 September 2019 Hong Kong 0–2 Iran
10 October 2019 Iran 14–0 Cambodia
5 October 2019 Bahrain 1–0 Iran
14 November 2019 Iraq 2–1 Iran
3 June 2021 Iran 3–1 Hong Kong
7 June 2021 Iran 3–0 Bahrain
11 June 2021 Cambodia 0–10 Iran
15 June 2021 Iran 1–0 Iraq
Iran Squad for the World Cup 2022
Coach: Carlos Queiroz
Goalkeepers: Alireza Beyranvand, Amir Abedzadeh, Payam Niazmand, Hossein Hosseini
Defenders: Majid Hosseini, Mohammad Hossein Kanaanizadegan, Shojae Khalilzadeh, Morteza Pouraliganji, Sadegh Moharrami, Ramin Rezaeian, Milad Mohammadi, Abolfazl Jalali
Midfielders: Saeid Ezatollahi, Ehsan Hajsafi, Rouzbeh Cheshmi, Ahmad Nourollahi, Ali Karimi, Saman Ghoddos, Vahid Amiri
Forwards: Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Ali Gholizadeh, Mehdi Taremi, Mehdi Torabi, Karim Ansarifard, Sardar Azmoun
Iran’s Group B fixtures
Mon, Nov. 21, England vs Iran, Khalifa Int’l Stadium
Fri, Nov. 25, Wales vs Iran, Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium
ues, Nov. 29, Iran vs USA, Al Thumama Stadium
World Cup 2022 England vs Iran: Predictions
England are obvious favorites, and not only to win the match against Iran, but also to win the tournament.
Thanks to the results in the last 2 top tournaments, confidence is high that England can get going with three points.
However, beating Iran will not be an easy task, especially considering their results during the qualification round.
What about you? What do you think, how will this match end? Let us know in the comments!
