May 29 (Reuters) – Iranian FA chief Mehdi Taj said on Thursday he was unaware of any plans to bring striker Sardar Azmoun into Iran’s World Cup squad despite an appeal for his recall from a vice president of the Islamic Republic.
Azmoun, who has scored 57 goals in 91 internationals, was left out of coach Amir Ghalenoei’s preliminary squad amid local media reports that he had been excluded for disloyalty to the government.
The 31-year-old issued an impassioned proclamation of his patriotism last week, triggering Monday’s appeal from Vice President Abdolkarim Hosseinzadeh.
“If possible, let us bring him back to the national team,” Hosseinzadeh wrote on X.
“This is not merely a sporting decision, but a message in favour of national unity.”
Taj, speaking to Iranian TV on Thursday, said he had no information about a call-up for Azmoun, adding when pressed on the issue: “This matter will be followed up through the proper discussions. As for Mr. Sardar, I’m not currently aware of his situation.”
According to media reports in Iran, Azmoun upset hardline government supporters when he posted a picture of a meeting with Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, shortly after the U.S. and Israel launched air strikes on Iran.
Iran considers the United Arab Emirates, where Azmoun plays his club football, a belligerent in the war that followed the air strikes.
VISA WAIT
The preliminary World Cup squad are currently at a training camp in Turkey but time is running out for Azmoun with the final 26-man line-up set to be decided before FIFA’s deadline on Monday.
The selected players will now travel to Tijuana, Mexico rather than Tucson, Arizona to set up their tournament base next week.
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo said on Monday FIFA had approached her government after U.S. authorities said they did not want Iran staying in the country during the June 11 to July 19 tournament.
Iran’s ambassador to Mexico, Abolfazl Pasandideh, visited Tijuana on Thursday and thanked Sheinbaum for hosting the squad after the United States “failed to do so”.
Although Mexico is co-hosting the World Cup with the U.S. and Canada, Iran will play two group matches in Los Angeles and the third in Seattle.
Pasandideh said that the squad still did not have visas to enter the U.S., however.
FFIRI President Taj, who was refused entry to Canada for the FIFA Congress in late April because of his links to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), said FIFA needed to guarantee U.S. visas.
“FIFA has to arrange multiple-entry visas so the players can travel back and forth,” said Taj, who served as a high-ranking IRGC official before moving into soccer administration.
“If they aren’t granted visas to enter the United States, then the consequences are pretty obvious.”
Both the U.S. and Canada classify the IRGC as a “terrorist entity” and have made it clear they will not admit people with links to the elite military force.
Taj earlier said some of the squad and technical staff had also served in the IRGC when completing their mandatory national service.
Iran are scheduled to play New Zealand in their tournament opener on June 15.
(Reporting by Nick Mulvenney in Sydney; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
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