December 26-2014
The national soccer team, at a camp in South Africa to prepare for next month’s World Cup finals in Australia, has won the first two friendly matches it has played against South African clubs. The team defeated the Orlando Pirates 3-1 and the Kaizer Chiefs B team 2-0 this past week. Meanwhile, the Iranian Football Federation announced that Javad Nekounam will retire from the team after the Asian Cup, and will join the coaching staff. Ali Karimi joined the staff a few months ago. The federation said the aim was to add outstanding players to the staff as they retire so they can learn techniques from Coach Carlos Queiroz.