Iran picks preliminary soccer squad

PTV – Iran has released a preliminary list of soccer players who are to compete at the first round of qualifiers for the 2010 World Cup.

The 50-man squad has been selected by the national team's recently appointed assistant coach, Mansour Ebrahimzadeh.

The team, however, has no coach yet, although the Iranian Football Federation is expected to finalize a contract with Portuguese Artur Jorge sometime next week.

The list includes almost all footballers playing outside the country, such as skipper Mahdi Mahdavikia and striker Vahid Hashemian, both of whom play in the German Bundesliga, and Andreanik Teimourian and Hossein Ka'bi, who play in the British Premier League.

The list also includes:

Goalkeepers: Mahdi Va'ezi, Hassan Roudbarian, Abbas Mohammadi, Ebrahim Mirzapour, Vahid Taleblou, and Misaq Memarzadeh,

Strikers: Mohsen Khalili, Milad Meidavoudi, Ahmad Jamshidian, Mahdi Rajabzadeh, Ali Samereh, Jalal Rafkhaei, and Saber Mirqorbani,

Midfielders: Morteza Asadi, Sheis Rezaei, Ali Hamoudi, Pejman Nouri, Hashem Beigzadeh, Ehsan Hajsafi, Freidoun Zandi, Javad Nekounam, Kiyanoush Rahmati, Ebrahim Sadeqi, Moharram Navidkia, Javad Kazemian, Mas'oud Shojaei, Mehrzad Ma'danchi, Iman Mobali, Sattar Zare', Ali Reza Nikbakht-Vahedi, Hossein Badamaki, Mojtaba Jabbari, Adel Kolah-Kaj, And Ali Karimi,

Defenders: Hadi Aqili, Mohsen Bengar, Sepehr Heidari, Mohammad Nosrati, Seyyed Jalal Hosseini, Morteza Kashi, Hadi Shakouri, Jalal Alene'meh, Rahman Rezaei, and Seyyed Mohammad Alavi.