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Lisbon (AFP) – The emergence of Iranian Mehdi Taremi at European level has been delayed after arriving at Porto at the age of twenty-eight, and will be the most important offensive weapon for Portuguese coach Carlos Queiroz, in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, starting November 20.
The thirty-year-old is preparing for his second appearance at the world finals with “Tim Milli” after the World Cup in Russia, where he will carry the team’s attack on his shoulders, in light of the doubts about the participation of Bayer Leverkusen forward Sardar Azmoun, currently suffering from an injury that could keep him away from the final.
Taremi (60 appearances and 27 goals) will be the main weapon of the Portuguese coach, who returned to the helm of the Iranian national team last September, and for the third time in the final after 2014 in Brazil and 2018 in Russia.
Tarmi did not have a good relationship with the former Croatian coach Dragan Skocic, especially as the Porto player criticized the manager in public, which led to his exclusion from some matches of the qualifiers for the November 2021 World Cup against Lebanon. and Syria.
Taremi regularly expresses her views on social media in support of the protest movement in the country since the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini on September 16, three days after she was arrested by the moral police in Tehran for failing to comply with strict dress codes in the Islamic Republic. The popular game is to be fit in the Qatari finals.
Former Qatari striker Al Gharafa is performing an important performance this season for Porto, locally or continental, in the Champions League, having been named Player of the Month last September.
Last season, the Portuguese star managed to overcome his group in the prestigious continental league after a weak start in the second group with two defeats, before the team recovered with four consecutive victories, during which Tarmi contributed with seven goals, scoring five and overcoming two decisive balls.
Among the first in Europe
The Iranian international was chosen as the best player of the fifth round of the Champions League, after having played a good performance against Brugge (4-0), where Tarmi scored twice, and was the protagonist of the last match on Tuesday. that his team won over Atletico Madrid (2-1), where he paved the way to victory by opening the register. Numbers that confirm the player’s development since the 2018 World Cup, when he was still an Al Gharafa player.
Tarmi moved to the Portuguese league, after having played a good season in the Qatari league, the 2018-2019 season, during which he scored eight goals, and he realized his dream of playing in Europe, landing for free at Rio Ave.
And quickly, the Iranian showed special talent with the Northern Portugal side, scoring 18 goals that placed him in second place for the tournament’s top scorer. His former coach, Carlos Carvalale, said last summer in an interview with the Portuguese newspaper “A Bola”: “If Tarmi had arrived in Portugal at the age of twenty-four, he would now be in one of the biggest clubs in Europe. (…) He is a player of the highest level and he immediately proved it “.
smarter
Tarmi’s abundance of goals and his distinctive level attracted the attention of Porto, who spent around five million euros signing him a year after his arrival in Portugal.
Under the supervision of coach Sergio Conceicao, the Iranian did not take long to demonstrate his skills, reserving a key place in the attacking line of the “dragons”, regardless of the style of play adopted by the former international.
In addition to the ability to score goals (61 in 113 games with Porto), Tarmi excelled in passing decisive balls, passing 42 since wearing the blue and white shirt.
Conceicao said in a press interview about two months ago: “I have observed Tarmi closely over the past few years and I have had the feeling that although he does not have much speed, his intelligence is above average” and explained that ” its positioning is interesting. “
With its presence in Group B with England, the United States and Wales, Iran has never reached the second round of the World Cup in its previous five participations, and was close to missing the first round in the previous version of Russia against Portugal, when he missed a shot by a few centimeters. .
© 2022 AFP
