Middle East

Iran picks regime critic Sardar Azmoun as World Cup squads announced

By Ben Morse, Angus Watson and George Ramsay, CNN

CNN  —  Iranian soccer player Sardar Azmoun has been picked in the nation’s squad for the upcoming World Cup in Qatar despite public comments supporting anti-government protests.

Azmoun, who plays for German club Bayer Leverkusen, is a star player for the Iranian side.

The player has posted multiple times on social media in support of women-led protests which have gripped the country since September, when 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died in custody after being arrested by Iran’s so-called morality police.

“I am with you, you are my sisters, I am proud of you,” he wrote in one post on social media. “My heart breaks for Mahsa Amini,” he wrote.

His Instagram profile picture is currently set to black.

Azmoun is seen playing for Bayer Leverkusen against Freiburg in September.
Azmoun is seen playing for Bayer Leverkusen against Freiburg in September. Christof Koepsel/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images

Iranwire, an opposition news outlet, reported team coach Carlos Querioz had come under pressure from Iran’s Sports Ministry to leave Azmoun out of the Qatar squad.

Azmoun is also picked in the side despite a calf injury sustained while with his club side in October.

Here’s a full list of the squads for the World Cup, which runs from November 20 to December 18.

Group A

Ecuador

Manager: Gustavo Alfaro

The final squad has not been announced yet.

—–

Netherlands

Manager: Louis van Gaal

Goalkeepers: Justin Bijlow, Remko Pasveer, Andries Nopper

Defenders: Virgil van Dijk, Nathan Aké, Daley Blind, Jurriën Timber, Denzel Dumfries, Stefan de Vrij, Mathijs de Ligt, Tyrell Malacia, Jeremie Frimpong

Midfielders: Frenkie de Jong, Steven Berghuis, Davy Klaassen, Teun Koopmeiners, Cody Gakpo, Marten de Roon, Kenneth Taylor, Xavi Simons

Forwards: Memphis Depay, Steven Bergwijn, Vincent Janssen, Luuk de Jong, Noa Lang, Wout Weghorst

—–

Qatar

Manager: Félix Sánchez

Goalkeepers: Saad Al-Sheeb, Meshaal Barsham, Yousef Hassan

Defenders: Pedro Miguel, Abdul Karim Hassan, Tarek Salman, Bassam Al-Rawi, Khoukhi Boualem, Abdelkarim Hassan, Ismaeel Mohammad, Homam Al Amin, Jassem Jaber

Midfielders: Ali Asad, Muhammad Waad, Salem Al Hajri, Assim Madibo, Mustafa Meshaal, Karim Boudiaf, Abdulaziz Hatin

Forwards: Naif Al Hadhrami, Hassan Al Haydos, Akram Afif, Almoez Ali, Mohammed Muntari, Khalid Muneer, Ahmed Alaa

—–

Senegal

Manager: Aliou Cissé

Goalkeepers: Seny Dieng, Alfred Gomis, Edouard Mendy

Defenders: Pape Abdou Cissé, Abdou Diallo, Ismail Jakobs, Kalidou Koulibaly, Formose Mendy, Youssouf Sabaly, Fodé Balo Touré

Midfielders: Pathé Ciss, Krepin Diatta, Idrissa Gana Gueye, Pape Gueye, Cheikhou Kouyate, Mamadou Loum, Nampalys Mendy, Moustapha Name, Pape Matar Sarr

Forwards: Boulaye Dia, Bamba Dieng, Nicolas Jackson, Sadio Mané, Iliman Ndiaye, Ismaila Sarr, Famara Diedhiou

Senegal's star player, Sadio Mané, has faced a race to be fit ahead of the World Cup.

Group B

England

Manager: Gareth Southgate

Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Aaron Ramsdale

Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Conor Coady, Eric Dier, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Kieran Trippier, Kyle Walker, Ben White

Midfielders: Jude Bellingham, Conor Gallagher, Jordan Henderson, Mason Mount, Kalvin Phillips, Declan Rice

Forwards: Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Harry Kane, James Maddison, Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka, Raheem Sterling, Callum Wilson

—–

Iran

Manager Carlos Queiroz

Goalkeepers: Alireza Beiranvand, Amir Abedzadeh, Hossein Hosseini, Payam Niazmand

Defenders: Majid Hosseini, Hossein Kananizadehgan, Shoja Khalilzadeh, Morteza Pouraliganji, Sadegh Moharrami, Ramin Rezaeian, Milad Mohammadi, Abolfazl Jalali

Midfielders: Ehsan Hajsafi, Saeed Ezatolahi, Rouzbeh Cheshmi, Ali Karimi, Saman Ghoddos, Ahmad Noorollahi, Vahid Amiri

Forwards: Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Ali Gholizadeh, Mehdi Taremi, Mahdi Torabi, Karim Ansarifard, Sardar Azmoun

—–

United States

Manager: Gregg Berhalter

Goalkeepers: Ethan Horvath, Sean Johnson, Matt Turner

Defenders: Cameron Carter-Vickers, Sergiño Dest, Aaron Long, Shaq Moore, Tim Ream, Antonee Robinson, Joe Scally, DeAndre Yedlin, Walker Zimmerman

Midfielders: Brenden Aaronson, Kellyn Acosta, Tyler Adams, Luca de la Torre, Weston McKennie, Yunus Musah, Cristian Roldan

Forwards: Jesús Ferreira, Jordan Morris, Christian Pulisic, Gio Reyna, Josh Sargent, Tim Weah, Haji Wright

—–

Wales

Manager: Rob Page

Goalkeepers: Wayne Hennessey, Danny Ward, Adam Davies

Defenders: Ben Davies, Ben Cabango, Tom Lockyer, Joe Rodon, Chris Mepham, Ethan Ampadu, Chris Gunter, Neco Williams, Connor Roberts

Midfielders: Sorba Thomas, Joe Allen, Matt Smith, Dylan Levitt, Harry Wilson, Joe Morrell, Jonny Williams, Aaron Ramsey, Rubin Colwill

Forwards: Gareth Bale, Kieffer Moore, Mark Harris, Brennan Johnson, Dan James

Group C

Lionel Messi's Argentina comes into the tournament as one of the favorites in what is likely to be his last World Cup.

Argentina

Manager: Lionel Scaloni

Goalkeepers: Emiliano Martínez, Gerónimo Rulli, Franco Armani

Defenders: Nahuel Molina, Gonzalo Montiel, Cristian Romero, Germán Pezzella, Nicolás Otamendi, Lisandro Martínez, Marcos Acuña, Nicolás Tagliafico, Juan Foyth

Midfielders: Rodrigo De Paul, Leandro Paredes, Alexis Mac Allister, Guido Rodríguez, Alejandro Gómez, Enzo Fernández, Exequiel Palacios

Forwards: Ángel Di María, Lautaro Martínez, Julián Álvarez, Nicolás González, Joaquín Correa, Paulo Dybala, Lionel Messi

—–

Mexico

Manager: Gerardo Martino

The final squad has not been announced yet.

—–

Poland

Manager: Czesław Michniewicz

Goalkeepers: Wojciech Szczęsny, Łukasz Skorupski, Bartłomiej Drągowski

Defenders: Kamil Glik, Bartosz Bereszyński, Jan Bednarek, Artur Jędrzejczyk, Matty Cash, Nicola Zalewski, Robert Gumny, Jakub Kiwior, Mateusz Wieteska

Midfielders: Grzegorz Krychowiak, Kamil Grosicki, Piotr Zieliński, Przemysław Frankowski, Sebastian Szymański, Damian Szymański, Szymon Żurkowski, Krystian Bielik, Jakub Kamiński, Michał Skóraś

Forwards: Robert Lewandowski, Arkadiusz Milik, Krzysztof Piątek, Karol Świderski

—–

Saudi Arabia

Manager: Hervé Renard

Goalkeepers: Muhammad Al-Owais, Muhammad Al-Yami, Nawaf Al-Aqidi

Defenders: Ali Al-Bilahi, Hassan Al-Timbukti, Abdul-Ilah Al-Omari, Abdullah Mado, Muhammad Al-Buraik, Yasser Al-Shahrani, Sultan Al-Ghannam, Saud Abdul Hamid

Midfielders: Nasser Al-Dosari, Ali Al-Hassan, Abdul-Ilah Al-Maliki, Muhammad Kenno, Riyad Sharahili, Abdullah Atif, Sami Al-Najai, Salman Al-Faraj, Salem Al-Dosari, Hattan Bahbri, Fahd Al-Muwallid, Abdul Rahman Al-Aboud

Forwards: Saleh Al-Shehri, Firas Al-Braikan, Haitham Asiri

Group D

Kylian Mbappé and France look to defend their 2018 crown in Qatar.

Australia

Manager: Graham Arnold

Goalkeepers: Andrew Redmayne, Mathew Ryan, Danny Vukovic

Defenders: Nathaniel Atkinson, Aziz Behich, Milos Degenek, Thomas Deng, Fran Karacic, Joel King, Kye Rowles, Harry Souttar, Bailey Wright

Midfielders: Keanu Baccus, Cameron Devlin, Ajdin Hrustic, Jackson Irvine, Riley McGree, Aaron Mooy

Forwards: Martin Boyle, Jason Cummings, Mitch Duke, Craig Goodwin, Garang Kuol, Mathew Leckie, Awer Mabil, Jamie Maclaren

—–

Denmark

Manager: Kasper Hjulmand

Goalkeepers: Kasper Schmeichel, Oliver Christensen, Frederick Rønnow

Defenders: Simon Kjær, Joachim Andersen, Joakim Mæhle, Andreas Christensen, Rasmus Nissen Kristensen, Jens Stryger Larsen, Victor Nelsson, Daniel Wass, Alexander Bah

Midfielders: Thomas Delaney, Mathias Jensen, Christian Eriksen, Pierre-Emile Højbjerg, Christian Nørgaard

Forwards: Andreas Skov Olsen, Jesper Lindstrøm, Andreas Cornelius, Martin Braithwaite, Kasper Dolberg, Mikkel Damsgaard, Jonas Wind, Robert Skov, Yussuf Yurary Poulsen

—–

France

Manager: Didier Deschamps

Goalkeepers: Alphonse Areola, Hugo Lloris, Steve Mandanda

Defenders: Axel Disasi, Lucas Hernández, Théo Hernandez, Ibrahima Konaté, Jules Koundé, Benjamin Pavard, William Saliba, Dayot Upamecano, Raphaël Varane

Midfielders: Eduardo Camavinga, Youssouf Fofana, Mattéo Guendouzi, Adrien Rabiot, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Jordan Veretout

Forwards: Karim Benzema, Kingsley Coman, Ousmane Dembélé, Olivier Giroud, Antoine Griezmann, Kylian Mbappé, Christopher Nkunku, Marcus Thuram

—–

Tunisia

Manager: Jalel Kadri

The final squad has not been announced yet.

Group E

Spain coach Luis Enrique will be looking to win La Roja its second World Cup title after a surprising run at Euro 2020 last year.

Costa Rica

Manager: Luis Fernando Suárez

Goalkeepers: Keylor Navas, Esteban Alvarado, Patrick Sequeira

Defenders: Francisco Calvo, Bryan Oviedo, Daniel Chacón, Óscar Duarte, Kendall Watson, Rónald Matarrita, Keysher Fuller, Juan Pablo Vargas, Carlos Martínez

Midfielders: Celso Borges, Bryan Ruiz, Yeltsin Tejeda, Gerson Torres, Jewison Bennette, Youstin Salas, Roan Wilson, Brandon Aguilera, Douglas López, Anthony Hernández, Álvaro Zamora

Forwards: Joel Campbell, Johan Venegas, Anthony Contreras

—–

Germany

Manager: Hansi Flick

Goalkeepers: Manuel Neuer, Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Kevin Trapp

Defenders: Matthias Ginter, Antonio Rüdiger, Niklas Süle, Nico Schlotterbeck, Thilo Kehrer, David Raum, Lukas Klostermann, Armel Bella-Kotchap, Christian Günter

Midfielders: İlkay Gündoğan, Jonas Hofmann, Leon Goretzka, Serge Gnabry, Leroy Sané, Jamal Musiala, Joshua Kimmich, Thomas Müller, Julian Brandt, Mario Götze

Strikers: Kai Havertz, Youssoufa Moukoko, Niclas Füllkrug, Karim Adeyemi

—–

Japan

Manager: Hajime Moriyasu

Goalkeepers: Eiji Kawashima, Shuichi Gonda, Daniel Schmidt

Defenders: Yuto Nagatomo, Maya Yoshida, Hiroki Sakai, Shogo Taniguchi, Ko Itakura, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Hiroki Ito, Miki Yamane

Midfielders: Gaku Shibasaki, Wataru Endo, Junya Ito, Takumi Minamino, Hidemasa Morita, Daichi Kamada, Yuki Soma, Kaoru Mitoma, Ao Tanaka, Takefusa Kubo

Forwards: Takuma Asano, Shuto Machino, Daizen Maeda, Ritsu Doan, Ayase Ueda

—–

Spain

Manager: Luis Enrique

Goalkeepers: Unai Simón, Róbert Sánchez, David Raya

Defenders: Dani Carvajal, César Azpilicueta, Eric García, Hugo Guillamón, Pau Torres, Aymeric Laporte, Jordi Alba, José Gayà

Midfielders: Sergio Busquets, Rodrigo Hernández, Gavi, Carlos Soler, Marcos Llorente, Pedri, Koke Resurrección

Forwards: Ferrán Torres, Nico Williams, Yeremy Pino, Álvaro Morata, Marco Asensio, Pablo Sarabia, Dani Olmo, Ansu Fati

Group F

Belgium

Manager: Roberto Martínez

Goalkeepers: Koen Casteels, Thibaut Courtois, Simon Mignolet

Defenders: Toby Alderweireld, Zeno Debast, Wout Faes, Arthur Theate, Jan Vertonghen, Timothy Castagne, Thomas Meunier

Midfielders: Yannick Carrasco, Thorgan Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne, Leander Dendoncker, Amadou Onana, Youri Tielemans, Hans Vanaken, Axel Witsel

Forwards: Michy Batshuayi, Charles De Ketelaere, Jérémy Doku, Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku, Dries Mertens, Loïs Openda, Leandro Trossard

READ: The Belgian Blueprint – How a small nation became a European superpower

—–

Canada

Manager: John Herdman

Goalkeepers: James Pantemis, Milan Borjan, Dayne St. Clair

Defenders: Samuel Adekugbe, Joel Waterman, Alistair Johnston, Richie Laryea, Kamal Miller, Steven Vitória, Derek Cornelius

Midfielders: Liam Fraser, Ismaël Koné, Mark-Anthony Kaye, David Wotherspoon, Jonathan Osorio, Atiba Hutchinson, Stephen Eustáquio, Samuel Piette

Forwards: Liam Millar, Lucas Cavallini, Iké Ugbo, Tajon Buchanan, Jonathan David, Cyle Larin, Alphonso Davies, Junior Hoilett

Canada midfielder Alphonso Davies -- here signing autographs and taking photos with fans -- helped lead his country to the World Cup.

—–

Croatia

Manager: Zlatko Dalić

Goalkeepers: Dominik Livaković, Ivica Ivusić, Ivo Grbić

Defenders: Domagoj Vida, Dejan Lovren, Borna Barisić, Josip Juranović, Josko Gvardiol, Borna Sosa, Josip Stanisić, Martin Erlić, Josip Sutalo

Midfielders: Luka Modrić, Mateo Kovacić, Marcelo Brozović, Mario Pasalić, Nikola Vlasić, Lovro Majer, Kristijan Jakić, Luka Sucić

Forwards: Ivan Perisić, Andrej Kramarić, Bruno Petković, Mislav Orsić, Ante Budimir, Marko Livaja

—–

Morocco

Manager: Walid Regragui

Goalkeepers: Yassine Bounou, Munir Mohamedi, Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti

Defenders: Achraf Hakimi, Noussair Mazraoui, Roman Saïss, Nayef Aguerd, Badr Benoun, Jawad El Yamiq, Achraf Dari, Yahia Attiyat-Allal

Midfielders: Sofyan Amrabat, Azzedine Ounahi, Selim Amallah, Yahya Jabrane, Abdelhamid Sabiri, Bilel El Khanouss

Forwards: Hakim Ziyech, Youssef En-Nesyri, Abderrazak Hamdallah, Amine Harit, Ilias Chair, Abde Ezzalzouli, Sofiane Boufal, Zakaria Aboukhlal, Walid Cheddira

Group G

Vinícius Jr., Lucas Paquetá and Neymar will be looking to win Brazil's sixth World Cup title in Qatar.

Brazil

Manager: Tite

Goalkeepers: Alisson, Ederson, Weverton

Defenders: Alex Sandro, Alex Telles, Dani Alves, Danilo, Bremer, Éder Militão, Marquinhos, Thiago Silva

Midfielders: Bruno Guimarães, Casemiro, Éverton Ribeiro, Fabinho, Fred, Lucas Paquetá

Forwards: Antony, Gabriel Jesus, Gabriel Martinelli, Neymar Jr., Pedro, Raphinha, Richarlison, Rodrygo, Vinícius Jr.

—–

Cameroon

Manager: Rigobert Song

Goalkeepers: Simon Ngapandouetnbu, Devis Epassy, Andre Onana

Defenders: Nicolas Nkoulou, Enzo Ebosse, Nouhou Tolo, Olivier Mbaizo, Collins Fai, Jean-Charles Castelletto, Christopher Wooh

Midfielders: Gael Ondoa, Samuel Oum Gouet, Pierre Kunde, Martin Hongla, Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, Olivier Ntcham

Forwards: Georges-Kevin Nkoudou, Vincent Aboubakar, Bryan Mbeumo, Jean-Pierre Nsame, Karl Toko Ekambi, Moumi Ngamaleu, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, Christian Bassogog, Souaibou Marou, Jerome Ngom

—–

Serbia

Manager: Dragan Stojković

Goalkeepers: Predrag Rajković, Marko Dmitrović, Vanja Milinković Savić

Defenders: Nikola Milenković, Stefan Mitrović, Strahinja Pavlović, Miloš Veljković, Filip Mladenović, Srđan Babić, Strahinja Eraković

Midfielders: Nemanja Gudelj, Sergej Milinković Savić, Saša Lukić, Marko Grujić, Filip Kostić, Uroš Račić, Nemanja Maksimović, Ivan Ilić, Andrija Živković, Darko Lazović

Forwards: Dušan Tadić, Aleksandar Mitrović, Luka Jović, Dušan Vlahović, Filip Đuričić, Nemanja Radonjić

—–

Switzerland

Manager: Murat Yakin

Goalkeepers: Gregor Kobel, Philipp Köhn, Jonas Omlin, Yann Sommer

Defenders: Manuel Akanji, Eray Comert, Nico Elvedi, Ricardo Rodriguez, Fabian Schär, Silvan Widmer

Midfielders: Michel Aebischer, Edimilson Fernandes, Fabian Frei, Remo Freuler, Ardon Jashari, Noah Okafor, Fabian Rieder, Xherdan Shaqiri, Djibril Sow, Renato Steffen, Granit Xhaka, Denis Zakaria

Forwards: Breel Embolo, Christian Fassnacht, Haris Seferovic, Reuben Vargas

Group H

It could be the last World Cup for Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo. His side comes in as one of the underdogs but, like they did at the 2016 Euros, the Iberians won't fear anyone.

Ghana

Manager: Otto Addo

Goalkeepers: Manaf Nurudeen, Danlad Ibrahim, Lawrence Ati Zigi

Defenders: Denis Odoi, Tariq Lamptey, Alidu Seidu, Daniel Amartey, Joseph Aidoo, Alexander Djiku, Mohammed Salisu, Abdul-Rahman Baba, Gideon Mensah

Midfielders: Andre Ayew, Thomas Partey, Elisha Owusu, Salis Abdul Samed, Mohammed Kudus, Daniel Kofi Kyereh

Forwards: Daniel Barnieh Afriyie, Kamal Sowah, Issahaku Abdul Fatawu, Osman Bukari, Inaki Williams, Antoine Semenyo, Jordan Ayew, Kamaldeen Sulemana

READ: Meet Otto Addo, the coach responsible for guiding some of Europe’s brightest young talents (2021)

—–

Portugal

Manager: Fernando Santos

Goalkeepers: Diogo Costa, José Sá, Rui Patrício

Defenders: Diogo Dalot, João Cancelo, Danilo Pereira, Pepe, Rúben Dias, António Silva, Nuno Mendes, Raphael Guerreiro

Midfielders: João Palhinha, Rúben Neves, Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes, João Mário, Matheus Nunes, Otávio Monteiro, Vitinha, William Carvalho

Forwards: André Silva, Cristiano Ronaldo, Gonçalo Ramos, João Félix, Rafael Leão, Ricardo Horta

—–

South Korea

Manager: Paulo Bento

Goalkeepers: Kim Seung-gyu, Jo Hyeon-woo, Song Bum-keun

Defenders: Kim Min-jae, Kim Jin-su, Hong Chul, Kim Moon-hwan, Yoon Jong-gyu, Kim Young-gwon, Kim Tae-hwan, Kwon Kyung-won, Cho Yu-min

Midfielders: Jung Woo-young, Na Sang-ho, Paik Seung-ho, Son Jun-ho, Song Min-kyu, Kwon Chang-hoon, Son Heung-min, Lee Jae-sung (Mainz), Hwang Hee-chan, Hwang In-beom, Jeong Woo-yeong, Lee Kang-in

Forwards: Hwang Ui-jo, Cho Gue-sung

—–

Uruguay

Manager: Diego Alonso

Goalkeepers: Fernando Muslera, Serge Rochet, Sebastián Sosa

Defenders: Ronald Araújo, Martín Cáceres, Sebastián Coates, José María Giménez, Diego Godín, Mathías Olivera, José Luis Rodríguez, Guillermo Varela, Matías Viña

Midfielders: Rodrigo Bentancur, Giorgian de Arrascaeta, Agustín Canobbio, Nicolás de la Cruz, Facundo Pellistri, Lucas Torreira, Manuel Ugarte, Federico Valverde, Matías Vecino

Forwards: Edinson Cavani, Maxi Gómez, Darwin Núñez, Luis Suárez, Facundo Torres

CNN’s Patrick Sung contributed to this report.

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