The Iranian national team star highlights the spirit of the Persian team ahead of the Huawei Intercontinental Cup Dubai 2018
After finishing last year in second position, Iran are ready to take on the challenge of unseating Brazil as defending champions of the Huawei Intercontinental Beach Soccer Cup and seize back the crown they won in 2013.
Last year Iran made a great leap forwards. Besides making it to the final of the Huawei Intercontinental Cup 2017, the Persians also finished in third position in the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, their highest finish ever. On top of that, many players collected individual awards over the season, confirming the growth of Iranian beach soccer.
One of those players accumulating international recognition was star goalkeeper Peyman Hosseini, awarded as the best goalkeeper in the world in the Beach Soccer Stars 2017.
Acknowledging that they have a real chance this year, Iran has been engaging in an intense training camp in Portugal over the past few weeks to get to the Huawei Intercontinental Cup in the best possible condition. And the team now feel more ready than ever: “We come to Dubai with one idea in mind: winning the Cup. We have one goal and we are focused to accomplish it”, said Hosseini.
Talking about how his team will perform, the Iranian star revealed that many new faces will make their international debut at the event: “The team will come to Dubai with many young players, but with the same experienced core and our experienced coach, Marco Octavio, that have helped us achieve a new level in beach soccer”.
Iran will face tough opposition, and both Hosseini and the rest of the team know that, but they firmly belief that if they keep doing things as they have been doing so far, the chances of success are high: “Iran has made significant growth in the last years. Now we have a much more professional approach, on all levels. Of course we respect all teams above all, but we also feel that we are ready to contest against anyone”, he assured.
Iran will soon be put to the test in the competition, as they will be taking on USA, Tahiti and Russia in the group stage of the competition. They are regarded as one of the main favourites, but there is no room for error in such a terrifically competitive fight. And only the top two teams will progress to the semi-finals…
