Striker Karim Ansarifard hopes his time at Nottingham Forest will help Iran as they try to get the better of England in this afternoon’s World Cup clash.
The 32-year-old had a short spell at the City Ground from 2018 to 2019, after leaving fellow Evangelos Marinakis-owned side Olympiacos. He struggled to make much of an impact with the Reds, making just 12 appearances and scoring twice.
But the front man, who is now with Cypriot outfit Omonia Nicosia, will draw upon his experiences of English football as he represents his country in Qatar. This is Ansarifard’s third World Cup, with Iran facing the Three Lions in today’s Group B opener (1pm kick-off, UK time).
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"We are here to qualify for the knockout stages. Hopefully until the very last second of our third group game, we will fight until the very end to fulfil this huge dream," he told Reuters.
"I'm relatively familiar with English football... England has one of the best leagues and some of the world's best players. I've always tried to pass on my interpretations of English football to my teammates."
Later on today, Forest trio Brennan Johnson, Neco Williams and Wayne Hennessey will hope to line up for Wales in the other Group B fixture, against USA (7pm KO). On the opposite side, goalkeeper Ethan Horvath, who is spending the season on loan at Luton Town, is in the USA squad which has made the trip.
Ten Reds players are currently in Qatar for the tournament. They are Cheikhou Kouyate (Senegal), Remo Freuler (Switzerland), Mohamed Drager (Tunisia), Brandon Aguilera (Costa Rica), Richie Laryea (Canada) and Hwang Ui-jo (South Korea), in addition to Johnson, Williams, Hennessey and Horvath.
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