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Iran fans try to disturb Portugal team before key match | Iran fans try to disturb Portugal team before key match |
(35 minutes later) | |
Iran supporters camped outside the Portugal football team's hotel in the Russian city of Saransk making loud noises ahead of their World Cup game. | |
Dozens of fans turned up on Sunday night with vuvuzelas, bells and drums and to try to keep the team awake. | |
Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo was seen asking the fans for quiet, gesturing that he was trying to sleep. | |
Iran need to beat Portugal in their Monday match to progress to the knockout rounds of the tournament. | Iran need to beat Portugal in their Monday match to progress to the knockout rounds of the tournament. |
Video has appeared on Twitter of the noisy fans, and of Ronaldo asking them for peace. | Video has appeared on Twitter of the noisy fans, and of Ronaldo asking them for peace. |
Police were first called to the Hotel Mercure at around 23:00 local time, when a first group of Iranian fans arrived at the hotel and began to sing. | Police were first called to the Hotel Mercure at around 23:00 local time, when a first group of Iranian fans arrived at the hotel and began to sing. |
Ronaldo's appearance at the hotel window reportedly drove the first group to leave, before a second wave of supporters arrived and continued to make noise through the night. | Ronaldo's appearance at the hotel window reportedly drove the first group to leave, before a second wave of supporters arrived and continued to make noise through the night. |
You may also be interested in: | You may also be interested in: |
Police reportedly tried to block roads nearby, but the main avenue outside the hotel remained open, allowing a small number of dedicated Iranian fans to keep up the commotion. | |
Arriving on Monday morning after hearing about the distraction efforts, Iran fan Mehdi Fayez said they had to "do all it takes" to win the match. | |
"I love Ronaldo, I love Portugal, but this is a big game," he told the Independent online newspaper. | |
However, female Iranian fan Montreh Fayoud told the Independent that when she realised why the Iranians had gathered at the hotel, she "decided to leave". | |
Paris St Germain fans attempted the same tactics in March, only for Ronaldo to net the winner and push his team Real Madrid into the quarter-finals of the Champions League - a tournament they eventually won in May. |
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