TEHRAN - Vahid Shamsaei was proud to have provided joy to his country after Iran fought back to defeat Indonesia in the AFC Futsal Asian Cup Indonesia 2026 final on Saturday.

Iran were pushed to the limit by first-time finalists Indonesia, who led three times in a pulsating tie but could not prevent the Central Asian side from claiming a record-extending 14th title with a penalty shootout win.

“It’s very difficult in this situation to say if I’m happy or unhappy,” said Shamsaei. “Lots of incidents happened during the tournament. I believe that futsal is a sport that brings everyone together. 

“Since I started as a player, it was to be of service to my country, that was always my mentality, to show my best performance for my country. I believe everything I did was for my people. 

“When I became a coach, my mentality stayed the same. The team and I were under a lot of pressure, I want to thank the federation, all the players, the team manager - hand in hand we made our people back home happy.” 

The 50-year-old lifted the continental title eight times as a player and - after Saturday’s triumph - now twice as head coach but admitted Jakarta 2026 was the most challenging, the-afc.com reported.

“I’ve lifted many trophies but this was the toughest one. Congratulations to Indonesia, it’s the biggest development that I’ve seen. 

“From a technical point of view, all my players delivered today. I never wish such pressure on anyone, but the important thing is the trophy is with us,” Shamsaei concluded.