TEHRAN – Iran head coach Amir Ghalehnoei says that the match against Japan could have been the final but two teams must encounter in the 2023 AFC Asian Cup quarterfinals.

The match will be held on Saturday at the Education City Stadium.

Team Melli were pushed to the limit by Syria before winning their Round of 16 tie on penalties, with recovery being the main focus for the 60-year-old former Esteghlal FC head coach.

“This could have been the final but now we face off in the quarter-final,” said Ghalehnoy. “Japan are a very good team and now, in the knockout stage, they are showing a much better performance than they showed in the group stage."

“But Iran are a good team as well. We did really well against Syria. In the group stage, they only allowed four shots in the three matches but we managed to produce 11 shots against them. 

“For tomorrow's match, we have less recovery than Japan. We could have finished the match early against Syria but we lost a lot of opportunities. We tried to make the recovery from two aspects, in terms of supplements as well as mentally.

“Eighty million people are following the result of the national team and the players know that. We will give everything for the national team.”