On June 27 (CEST), in Group G's matchday 3 of the FIFA World Cup, Egypt drew with Iran 1-1. Following the match, Iran striker Mehdi Taremi was interviewed in the mixed zone.

First, how do you feel about the dramatic outcome of this match?

Unfortunately, I feel sad, but we still have hope. People always have hope. We had a very good spirit in the dressing room after the match. So let's wait and see what happens next. We're looking forward to tomorrow's match and seeing the result.

Do you know if you have to return to Tijuana tonight?

Yes, we have to go back. We have complained about these things from the beginning.

This is a disastrous FIFA World Cup. I mean, FIFA should have solved all the problems here, but unfortunately, they haven't solved them from the start.

Infantino came to our team hotel during our first match and said this was just the beginning. But tomorrow the group stage ends, and our support staff aren't here—they don't have visas.

How can we always have to go to Tijuana? We love the Mexican people, we love Tijuana, it's a wonderful place, they are humble, we love them.

But as professional players, in a professional tournament, this is not right. Yes, this is our opinion. Because now we have to go to Tijuana again. No recovery, nothing—this is unfair. In our view, this is unfair. If FIFA thinks this is fair, then okay, congratulations to them. But this is not fair.

Who wants to help us? If they want us out, okay, then help us—let us out. But this is not fair. We have no recovery time. We don't have any support staff here to help us either. What else can we say? We have complained about these things, but no one helps. Not a single person.

You just complained about the travel issues. Now, in two consecutive matches, VAR disallowed your goals by just a few centimeters. After reviewing the slow-motion replays, what do you think about VAR disallowing your two goals in these two matches?

That's an issue related to football. But what we're complaining about are things outside of football, because those details also matter in football. You know, recovery is very important, and small details can affect a football match.

Yes, we just... we have hope, as I said, we have a very good spirit in the dressing room. We will keep moving forward and see what happens in tomorrow's match.

Sorry, there's nothing to look forward to in the match, because under these circumstances from the beginning until now, we have tried our best in 90 minutes. We are proud of ourselves. If anything went wrong, it's my responsibility because I missed a penalty. If the team can get through the group stage, thank God.

Do you think someone wants Iran to leave this tournament as soon as possible? Do you think it would be more convenient for FIFA and U.S. authorities if Iran weren't in the tournament? And do you feel, as a team, that you have to fight against all of this?

We have to fight against everything here. I don't know if people think that way, but from our perspective, yes, I think they want that.

How is it possible? You play 90 minutes under enormous pressure, and then we have to travel back. Imagine if we advance from the group stage tomorrow, if we're lucky and advance, but we have no recovery time—how is that possible?

Can you explain? Do you feel disappointed at this FIFA World Cup?

No, we have tried our best. We will always try our best. We are fighting for our people. We want to make them happy, we want to bring them joy. We want to send a message of peace to people inside and outside Iran, to FIFA, to everyone.

But what we receive from others is not peace. Who will help us solve this problem? Who? FIFA? I don't know. America? I don't know. Who? Give me a name.

Is there more Infantino could do to solve this problem?

As I said, Infantino came during our first match and said he would solve all the problems here. But in reality, nothing has been solved.

Our support staff aren't here. Look, we don't have our media staff—where is our media team? You can check; there is no media team here. None. I don't know where our equipment manager is. None. Where are the vice president and president? These people—where are they?

How much do you wish you could stand here and only talk about what happens on the pitch, instead of discussing all these off-field problems?

On the pitch? You mean this match? No, we have strength. As you saw, we played well—I think we fought hard for 90 minutes, and that was perfect. Yes, because of a few small details, we couldn't win the match.

But we are here, we are here, and we want to prove ourselves. As I said, we want to bring joy to our people. But I mean, small details affect the match, recovery is very important, a sharp mind is very important, but we don't have a sharp mind here.

You've mentioned many different situations. I want to ask—this match is called the "pride match," and there has been much discussion about it. How has this affected you?

In our religion, our religion doesn't accept this. But we respect all LGBT people. That's their personal opinion, and it has nothing to do with us. We are here to play football. We respect all these people. If you have questions about the match, I will answer them.

Can you talk about your relationship with your teammates in the dressing room? There is an online video of you speaking to the whole team. Tell us about your relationship and your desire to continue this journey with them.

Taremi's pre-match motivational speech: Don't lose your spirit when facing big stars; keep a clear mind and run with all your strength.

Yes, we want to continue our journey. We have good energy from within, but we also have to talk about those external circumstances. We have to speak about these things, because we can't always keep them to ourselves. Some people don't like us, but we feel that's unfair.

I think we have very good energy in the dressing room, positive energy. We will continue. Let's see what happens tomorrow.

One final question. Given everything you've experienced, what would it mean for Iranian football to advance to the next round?

Listen, honestly, we came here to make history. We're pursuing this goal. We have done everything for them.

I don't know what else I can say. We will wait for tomorrow. If our dream comes true, thank God; if not, I think we can still be proud of our performance, of our players. Because everything we have done in these three matches, we are proud of. Let's see what happens.

A message for FIFA.

FIFA is trying their best. We know they also have some problems they can't solve, you know.

But football should not be part of politics. It shouldn't be. This is what we want, this is the message we want to leave. That's all.

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