Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei said other World Cup managers had not spoken out over travel restrictions that disrupted his team’s preparations.
Iran head coach Amir Ghalenoei criticized the silence of other World Cup managers over the travel restrictions imposed on his team before their second Group G match against Belgium.
Ghalenoei said he had not heard any public support from the other 47 managers at the tournament, although he added that he understood they were focused on preparing their own teams.
The comments came after Iran arrived in Los Angeles from their base in Tijuana, Mexico, less than 24 hours before facing Belgium.
Iran had asked to arrive two days before the match but were not allowed to do so. Ghalenoei said the restriction cut into the team’s preparation and left Iran with less training time than planned.
The Iranian coach said FIFA had tried to help, but said the process had still affected the team mentally and disrupted planning before the Belgium match.
Iran have been based in Mexico during the tournament and are commuting to the United States for their group-stage matches because of travel restrictions.
Ghalenoei said Iran had been told they would have more control over travel arrangements before their final Group G match against Egypt in Seattle, but questioned why the same flexibility was not granted for the first two matches.
The Iranian Football Federation had already said it would file a complaint with FIFA, arguing that the restrictions were inconsistent with equal conditions for participating teams.