Jurgen Klinsmann wants to speak to Carlos Queiroz in a bid to calm the situation between them after the Iran coach took exception to comments the German made about his team.
Queiroz called for Klinsmann to resign from his role as a member of FIFA’s Technical Study Group in a Twitter thread posted on Saturday after the 1990 World Cup winner spoke about how Iran had deployed gamesmanship and “worked the referee” during their win over Wales on Friday.
Queiroz called the remarks “outrageous” and a “disgrace to football”.
Klinsmann has also faced wider criticism for his remarks, which were made during punditry for the BBC, and sought to smooth the waters in an interview with BBC Breakfast on Sunday.
“There was stuff really taken out of context. I will try to give him a call and calm things down,” the former Tottenham striker said.
“I have never criticised Carlos or the Iranian bench. Some even thought I was criticising the referee because he didn’t do anything about the way they were behaving on the bench.
“All I described was their emotional way of doing things, which is actually admirable in a certain way. The whole bench lives the game. They’re jumping up and down and Carlos is a very emotional coach, he’s constantly on the sidelines
trying to give his players all his energy and direction.”
The former United States manager added on the BBC ahead of Spain vs Germany: “He [Queiroz] took it completely wrong. What I described was the emotional impact they had from the bench, the players jumping up and talking to everyone on the sidelines.
“He took it the wrong way. He thought I criticised him, which was not the case. It’s no problem at all.
“Maybe they took it wrong because they see me as a former USA coach so maybe they feel a little bit provoked, which was not the case.”
Klinsmann had initially said: “Carlos fits really well with the national team and their culture, he failed in South America with Colombia and then failed to qualify with Egypt, and he came in right before the World Cup with Iran, where he worked for a long time.
“It is not by coincidence, it is part of their culture, how they play.
Iran’s head coach Queiroz encourages fan noise during his side’s win over Wales
“They worked the referee. They work the linesman and fourth official, they are constantly in their ear. There were a lot of incidents we didn’t see. This is their culture, they take you off your game.”
In an address to Klinsmann on Twitter, Queiroz wrote: “No matter how much I can respect what you did inside the pitch, those remarks about Iran culture, [the] Iran national team and my players are a disgrace to football.”
He went on to invite Klinsmann to come to Iran’s training camp to meet his players and learn about Iranian culture, but ended his thread: “At the same time, we just want to follow with full attention what will be the decision of FIFA regarding your position as a member of Qatar 2022 Technical Study Group. Because, obviously, we expect you to resign before you visit our camp.”
Iran make FIFA complaint over US flag change
The Iranian flag with the emblem of the Islamic Republic
Meanwhile, Iran’s football federation has asked for FIFA to take action against the US after their Soccer Federation posted an image of the Iranian national flag on social media without the emblem of the Islamic Republic.
The post, which has since been deleted, was published on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, with the US Soccer Federation saying they did so in “support for the women in Iran fighting for basic human rights”.
There are currently mass anti-government protests taking place in Iran, who face the US in their final Group B clash on Tuesday night needing just a point to qualify for the round of 16.
The Iranian football federation has since lodged a complaint with world football’s ethics committee, saying the US have disrespected the national flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
