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AFC - Iran coach Branko Ivankovic sent out
a vote of thanks to his suspension- hit side as the three-time champions put
the problems of the past few days behind them to claim a 0-0 draw with Japan
that kept their Asian Cup hopes alive on a night when they very easily could
have been on the first flight back to Tehran.
“As you know, we had some problems before the match so I appreciate that my
players played very well,” said Ivankovic, who was without three
first-choice defenders who had been suspended following incidents in Iran’s
2-2 draw with Iran.
“With the exception of Ali Daei and Mehdi Mahdavakia, few of the players
have had the experience of this kind of game before. As you all saw this was
one of the most attractive matches so far, and both teams were tactically
sound.”
The four-match suspension of Mohammad Nosrati and the two-match bans for
Rahman Rezaei and Ali Badavi dominated the headlines in the build up to the
match, with many observers wondering in what mood the highly emotive
Iranians would enter the match.
As it transpired the sense of injustice prevalent in the camp seemed to
galvanise the squad as they sought to take all three points and avoid World
Cup semi-finalists Korea Republic in the quarter-finals.
“Iranians are famous for playing emotionally but the incidents of the Oman
game were forgotten,” said Ivankovic.
“As you saw nothing similar happened in this match and after sorting out the
suspension issue among ourselves, I was pleased that everything we talked
about off the pitch was applied on the pitch.”
Any thoughts of an intriguing clash between Ivankovic’s hastily reassembled
back line and Zico’s decimated forward line came to nought, as the Japanese
attack rarely clicked.
After holding the early initiative it was the Iran took a stranglehold of
the game as they charged forward at pace. A scenario that Zico had already
taken into account.
“Today Japan could have had two acceptable results,” said the Brazilian.
“The first was a win and the second was a draw. At first we wanted the win
but when Iran began attacking us strongly, we changed our plans as we didn’t
have to risk going forward and have the Iranians getting a goal on the
counter.
“This shows that this team can adapt and play to any situation.”
For the third successive Japan match, local fans unashamedly showed that
they are not exactly fans of the defending champions. But while every
blue-shirted player was roundly booed whenever they touched the ball, Zico
is more than happy to being staying in Chongqing as Group D winners.
“This was a very tough game and we achieved our goal in a difficult
situation,” said the Brazilian. “Our goal was to top the group and stay here
in Chongqing for the quarter-finals.
Japan await the arrival of Asian Cup surprise package Jordan, who finished
runners-up to Korea Republic in Group B, while the Iranians must head to
Jinan for a tough encounter against China 2004’s form horses, Korea. |
