Daei still key player in Iran's World Cup campaign: German daily

IRNA - Iran's living football legend Ali Daei is still a vital player for his country's national football squad in its 2006 World Cup campaign in Germany, the Berliner Zeitung newspaper said Monday.

Pointing to Daei's nine-goal scoring spree in Iran's World Cup qualifying bid, the daily said the 37-year-old Saba Battery striker was still "indispensable" for his national football team.

The report added Daei had become the first footballer to ever hit the 100-goal mark in international matches, surpassing other football icons like Brazil's Pele, Hungary's Ferenc Puskas and Germany's Gerd Mueller.

Iran will open its 2006 World Cup expedition against Mexico in Nuremberg on June 11, then head to Frankfurt for an encounter with Portugal on June 17 and finally meet Angola in Leipzig on June 21.