Iran vs New Zealand Bet Builder Tips: 9/1 shot for Iran success

The game to separate the casual World Cup watchers from the true fans? Iran face New Zealand in the early hours of Tuesday morning in the UK (6pm local, 2am BST, BBC One),

But who will come out on top in Los Angeles? Below you can find my Iran vs New Zealand Bet Builder Tips.

Iran vs New Zealand Odds

Iran to win

Iran’s preparation for this World Cup have obviously been far from ideal. They have had to move their training base to Mexico and are not even allowed to stay overnight in the USA, forcing them to travel to and from Los Angeles for this opener. 

Their domestic league has been suspended since the USA and Israel started the war, so their players are heading into this World Cup with the weight of the world on their shoulders. Having said that, on the pitch, I still fancy them to beat New Zealand fairly comfortably. 

NZ for me are one of the worst teams at this tournament and a narrow loss to England in a friendly doesn’t change my mind on that. They reached this tournament by beating New Caledonia in the play-off final, and that just shows the level of opposition they faced during qualifying. 

Iran meanwhile won their qualification group ahead of Uzbekistan, Qatar and UAE, and have had some decent results in friendlies as well. I think their spirit and quality will carry them to a vital three points in this Group G opener. 

Mehdi Taremi to score two or more

Iran’s talisman is now 33, but still banging in the goals at a reasonable level. He scored 10 in 33 for Olympiacos in the league and added a further two in the Champions League, so he will be crucial to their success.

Taremi, formerly of Porto and Inter Milan, will lead the line having scored an impressive 60 goals in 105 international matches, and will be tough to stop from New Zealand’s point of view. I think he can take full advantage of a defence that might rank as the worst in the entire tournament. 

Marko Stamenic to be booked 

Marko Stamenic is one of the better players for New Zealand, with the Swansea City midfielder set to start in midfield. His first season in the Championship saw him make 36 appearances, and he picked up a massive 12 yellow cards in the league, and a further one in his sole FA Cup appearance. 

I expect this to be a real battle in the LA heat, and Stamenic is the most likely to get stuck in, having averaged 1.94 fouls per 90 in England’s second tier. I think he’s a cracking price to get booked against Iran.

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Pre-Match Bet Builder & Single bets on qualifying Player selections. Selected leagues & markets only. Applies to Price Boosts & Turbo Boosts. Extra-time will count. T&Cs Apply.