A key defender in Iran’s national team, Hossein Abarghouieh has declared that the squad will not be under pressure against Nigeria’s Super Eagles on Friday, because they have been training individually in order to remain fit.
Sports247 gathered that, in contrast with widespread belief that Iran’s players would be out of shape on account of the military bombardment their country is facing from USA and Israel, Abarghouieh assured that they are all in top physical form.
Abarghouieh, who plays for Persepolis in Iran’s Persian Gulf Pro League, added that all the players are determined to make an impression in Friday’s game, as they want to prove a point about the values of football in their country.
He add that they are true professionals who know the essence of keeping fit all the time and they all arrived at the national camp with a shared aura of determination to achieve great results in their build-up to the World Cup.
Abarghouei said, “I hope we can bring joy to our supporters by achieving favourable results against Nigeria and Costa Rica, as these matches represent a significant step towards our World Cup aspirations.
“We are grateful that our training sessions are progressing well, and we have established an excellent camp. We have trained effectively. All national team members are professionals.”
Abarghouei, who started playing football actively with Parseh Tehran’s academy, before moving to Esteghlal in 2016, started his senior career in 2017, when he signed to play for Gostaresh Foulad in Persian Gulf Pro League.
He earlier moved to Oghab Teheran to complete his mandatory military service, following which he joined Vista Toorbin and made his Azadegan League debut for the club in a 1–0 defeat against Khooshe Talaei on the 25th of July, 2011.
Despite the ongoing conflict rocking his country, which caused the relocation of Friday’s match from Jordan to Antalya in Turkey, Abarghouei stressed that Iran’s players are fully focused on maintaining their football careers.
“It is not as if they have just been resting since the onset of the conflict. All the players have been training individually. Our physical condition is satisfactory, and we are prepared to compete with Nigeria,” Abarghouei posited.
