Historically, Iran has won the AFC U19/U20 Championship four times in a row from 1973 to 1976. However, recently, Iranian youth football has shown signs of decline. In the last 10 tournaments, the Iranian U20 team has reached the semi-finals twice, the quarter-finals once, and has been eliminated in the group stage seven times.
In the AFC U20 Asian Championship, Iran's U20 team has played two matches with a record of one win and one loss. This result puts them in a precarious situation, forcing them to win against Vietnam in the final match to guarantee qualification.
Iran U20 2-3 Australia U20
Prior to the tournament, the Iranian U20 team did not have the best preparation. Former Iranian U20 coach, Korosh Barmak, pointed out the limitations in the Iranian Football Federation's policies, which have led to a decline in the performance of youth teams.
"The Iranian Football Federation's scouts lack a consistent vision. They select players based on personal philosophy and opinions, without uniformity. Therefore, it is very difficult for the national team coaches to choose the personnel they are satisfied with."
Furthermore, the Football Association did not provide the best training conditions. They once said they would support all our plans, but on the condition that the team find its own funding to cover the travel expenses.
Now, as everyone can see, despite having many opportunities, the Iranian U20 team often fails to capitalize on them. This is a consequence of their lack of international friendly matches before the tournament. They only played a few training matches with clubs in Tehran (the capital of Iran). That was the worst preparation, especially when we had to face strong teams like Vietnam or Australia,” Korosh Barmak shared with Iranian media.
Despite some limitations in their preparation and an unsatisfactory result against Australia, the Iranian U20 team remains a formidable opponent for the Vietnamese U20 team. In the U20 Asian Championship qualifiers, the Iranian U20 team won all their matches against the UAE, Kyrgyzstan, and Brunei U20 teams, scoring 11 goals and keeping a clean sheet.
Iran U20 must beat Vietnam U20.
In the first two matches, coach Samad Marfavi maintained the 4-5-1 formation. His starting lineup consisted of 11 players: goalkeeper Adib Zarei; defenders Amin Pilali, Mersad Seifi, Amin Hazbavi, captain Milad Kor; midfielders Erfan Ghorbani, Alireza Enayatzadeh, Mohammadreza Torabi, Amirreza Eslamtalab, Farhad Zavoshi and striker Saeid Saharkhizanc.
The three players who scored for Iran in the last two matches were spread across all positions: defender Amin Hazbavi, forward Amirreza Eslamtalab, and midfielder Alireza Enayatzadeh.
Like their senior counterparts in the national team, the Iranian U20 team often utilizes their strength and speed, characteristics typical of West Asian players, to penetrate the opponent's flanks. The Vietnamese U20 team needs to be highly focused and manage their physical condition effectively to withstand the Iranian U20 team.
Iran U20 enters the match under pressure to win. Coach Samad Marfavi will instruct his team to play offensively in the hope of scoring early. Iran U20 is a strong team. Even when they lost to Australia U20, they were still able to control the game and constantly put the opponent's goal under threat. It can be predicted that the Vietnam U20 defense will face significant pressure in this match.
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