TEHRAN - Veselin Vujovic, head coach of the Iran national handball team, talked about his side’s performance in the 2023 IHF Men's World Championship, believing that they could have performed better in some matches.

Iran earned a single win in six matches in the competition. They finished 24th in the tournament, a new low after finishing 21st in the previous edition in 2015 – with five losses against European sides like France, Spain, Montenegro, Poland and Slovenia.

“We didn't have the experience of playing in such a big tournament,” said the Montenegrin coach in his recent interview with reporters.

“Some of our players were nervous in this event, and others showed their quality in the games. Generally, I think we could have performed better in some matches and get more in the World Championship,” he added.

“It is true that we achieved our initial goal of qualifying for the main round instead of playing in the President Cup, but I always look for a better results and higher positions.

“Of course, you should not forget that it is not easy to play against strong teams like France, Spain and Slovenia. This event was like a great school for Iranian national players. From the day of signing my contract with the Iranian Handball Federation until the start of the IHF World Championship, I tried to prepare the players mentally and tactically for what awaited them in such prestigious tournament, but it seemed to me that some people did not take my words seriously until the start of the matches of the national team in the World Championship,” added the 62-year-old coach.

The 2023 IHF World Men's Handball Championship was the 28th such event held in Poland and Sweden from 11 to 29 January 2023.

Denmark became the first team in history to secure the trophy at the IHF Men’s World Championship three times in a row with an excellent win against France (34:29).