Iran player shares thoughts after facing criticism over World Cup celebration
One of Iran’s goal scorers has shared why he celebrated the way he did after some people thought his gesture was controversial during their first World Cup game against New Zealand.
After a tough lead-up to the tournament, including visa issues and having to change their training base because of conflicts with the United States, Iran finally played at the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California on Monday.
Amir Ghalenoei’s team started Group G with a 2-2 draw against New Zealand, coming back twice to earn a point. Ramin Rezaeian and Mohammad Mohebi both scored for Iran, and after the game, FIFA president Gianni Infantino stopped by the dressing room.
When Mohebi scored in the 64th minute, he celebrated by putting two fingers on his arm and moving his hand in the air. Many people thought this was a gun gesture aimed at the crowd and linked to the conflict between Iran and the US.
This caused a lot of reactions on social media, but Mohebi quickly explained that his celebration was innocent, saying, “First, I want to thank all the Iranian fans who came to watch us in Los Angeles. They made a great atmosphere. The celebration just came to my mind at that moment. I do it like this [shows hand gesture], and I wanted to do it for the fans. It’s just a celebration, nothing more.”
While Mohebi denied any hidden meaning, Rezaeian said his own celebration was political. After scoring Iran’s first goal, he pulled his shirt over his face and said, “It’s something political. I don’t want to talk about it. We’re here to focus on football. Any problems between us Iranians are our own.”
Before the tournament, Iran asked to move their matches to Mexico but FIFA said no. However, they were allowed to move their training camp from Tucson, Arizona to Tijuana, Mexico.
Their first match was in Los Angeles, just about a one-hour flight from Tijuana. But instead of staying in California overnight to rest after the game, the team had to fly straight back to their base.
Coach Ghalenoei was shocked and upset by this, saying, “After the game, they told us, ‘You have to leave immediately.’ But recovery is very important for us. We’ve been forced to go back early, which makes things harder for us. But we won’t let that stop us from giving our best.”
He added, “We don’t really understand why they are sending us back so soon. It’s strange. We were supposed to arrive two days before the game, but they didn’t allow it. We should have stayed here to rest tonight and left tomorrow lunchtime.”
With all the challenges they’ve faced, Ghalenoei said his team feels like “the most oppressed in the whole World Cup,” pointing out that Iran’s federation, media, and management were not present.
Iran’s next game will also be at SoFi Stadium when they play Belgium on Sunday, and their final match is against Egypt on Friday, June 26 in Seattle.