Source: Korea Times

by Kang Seung-woo

Forwards Lee Dong-gook and Son Heung-min made headlines for different reasons Wednesday as the latest Korea squad was announced. Lee, a 15-year veteran, was left off the 23-man roster for the first time since his former club manager took command of the national team, while Son rejoins Choi Kang-hee’s side after a long absence.

The 27th-ranked Korea, leaders of Group A on seven points in the final Asian qualification round for the 2014 Brazil World Cup, will face Middle East powerhouse Iran, sitting 54th in the FIFA rankings, in Tehran on Oct. 17 (KST). Iran is tied with Qatar in second on four points.

The 33-year-old Lee, playing for Jeonbuk Motors, has been a lock under Choi, playing in all seven internationals and scoring four goals since December.

However, his sluggish performance against Uzbekistan earlier this month cost him his spot, Choi said.

“On our way back from Uzbekistan, I had already made up my mind that I would leave out Lee Dong-gook and defender Lee Jung-soo — another veteran — for the next match,” Choi said at a press conference.

“Since the summer, Lee has shown signs of stamina issues in the K-League and I thought he should have picked himself up for the Uzbekistan match.”

In the K-League, Lee has managed just two goals since August, compared to 13 in the early part of the season.

The 53-year-old coach added that he has decided to reshuffle his attack, given that players in overseas leagues are playing well with Son taking center stage.

The 20-year-old Hamburg forward has been on an upswing in Germany’s top flight, netting three goals this season including a double against Borussia Dortmund last weekend. Son last played for the Taeguk Warriors in the Lebanon qualifier in June.

“Son has such great potential, whether it is his shooting, his penetration or his agility,” Choi said. “I think he has had problems playing off his teammates but I think we can capitalize on his strengths.”

With Lee dropped, Celta Vigo’s Park Chu-young, who scored his debut goal in the Spanish league last weekend, will be the focal point up front. Lee Chung-yong of Bolton Wonderers, Ki Sung-yueng of Swansea City, Kim Bo-kyung of Cardiff City and Nam Tae-hee of Qatar’s Lekhwiya will patrol the midfield.

With Qatari side Al-Sadd’s Lee Jung-soo omitted, defenders Kim Young-gwon, Park Won-jae and Shin Kwang-hoon have been called up for the first time and one of them could be given the nod to complete the back four with Kwak Tae-hwi, Hwang Seok-ho and Jung In-whan.

After the Iran game, Korea will resume its qualifying campaign in March next year, hosting Qatar.

The top two from each group will advance to the World Cup finals in Brazil, with the two third-placed teams entering a playoff for a chance to qualify through a two-leg intercontinental tie with the fifth-placed country from South America.

Hossein Hedayati , the Iranian Entrepreneur and the man that has several positions in Iran’s football, promised a car for each Team Melli player and the staff, in case the team defeats the South Koreans in the FIFA World Cup 2014 qualifier match that will be played in Azadi on October 16th. Hedayati, the current owner and the chairman of Malavan Bandar Anzali , in a statement to Mehr News said “To prove our good intentions, like we awarded and appreciated our Olympic and Para-Olympic heroes and medals winners , in case Team Melli defeats Korea Republic , we will award each player and each technical staff , an automobile in a token of appreciation.”

Hossein Hedayati , who is also the owner of Steel Azin club , and was a board member of Perspolis club several years back , was commenting on questions about the truth behind the demands by league clubs for an emergency general assembly meeting to discuss the suitability of the current Iran football federation (IRIFF) administration. Hedayati has confirmed that a request was sent to all members of the league in which the letter contain a request for signing a petition by the members if they agree on the demands. So far, 17 members have responded positively according to Hedayati. The rules stipulate that 75 votes or one third of the total number of general assembly members are required in order for a emergency special session to convene.

Hedayati’s action is part of what seems to be a general discontent with the current IRIFF administration and its head, Ali Kaffashian. Despite winning a second term while running unopposed, Kaffashian has failed to achieve much success for Iran and his administration was center of several embarrassing events that resulted in public outcry. The most glaring and humiliating of such was the elimination of Iran’s Olympic football team as the result of fielding an ineligible player against Iraq.

Hedayati stressed that he has no intention to run for the presidency of the football federation. He simply wants to put the house in order and ensure that competent personnel run this federation. He emphasized the fact that Iran has a lot of potential in football, but there must be a competent cadre of management at the top of the sport structure in order to realize these excellent potentials and capabilities.

He refuted any claims that such move to oust the current IRIFF management will be harming the chances of Iran in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Hedayati said  “ we made sure that any meetings of the general assembly of the football federation will be held after the Korea match. One of the catalysts for our move is precisely the poor results of Team Melli and especially after the last defeat against Lebanon, so we will ensure that the Team is not affected at all by any move from our side.”

 Hedayati also encourages Adel Ferdowsipour, the NAVAD TV program presenter , which is one of the most popular TV shows carried by the state run IRIB and has millions of viewers each week, to run a SMS poll for the viewer to find out if there is a public support for their demand for the leagues general assemble to convene and discuss the current IRIFF shortcomings. On each Navad program , a poll is conducted in which the participants easily exceed 3 to 4 million. Participants send SMS messages to answer the multiple choice questions

In what seems to be another front against Carlos Queiroz , the CEO of Perspolis Football Club has blamed Carlos Queiroz, the Portuguese coach of Team Melli  for the bad condition of Perspolis players after returning from their duties with Team Melli.  Mohamammad Rouyanian also stated that whatever personal differences that Queiroz has with his team’s coach, Manuel Jose , it should not leave his team at a disadvantage or affect the performance of Perspolis players.

Rouyanian , who seems to be critical of Team Melli’s performance and the selection of large number of players from Perspolis while achieving poor results ,  in a statement to Mehr News reporter , turned his irritation toward Carlos Queiroz. He said “ I want to tell Queiroz that since I took office in Perspolis , I have always supported him and his decisions, and he knows that very well because during all the time that he selected players from Perspolis , we have been very cooperative with him and helped as much as we could , detrimental to our own team.”

Rouyanian said that this cooperation will continue, however, he targeted Queiroz for his responsibility in the poor conditions of Perspolis players right after returning from duty for Team Melli. “Mr. Queiroz , do not allow our players returning from duty with Team Melli to be physically hurt and emotionally poisoned.“ The Perspolis CEO added  “You need to ensure that our players return back in a good condition.”

In defense of his own club, still targeting Queiroz  “I hope that your personal dispute with Manuel Jose ( Perspolis Coach) does not negatively affect our club. Unfortunately, we see things differently here, we witness the return of our players , harmed both physically and emotionally”

“Since I believe in your professionalism as a football coach, I request you to help Perspolis club so that these unpleasant occurrences are not repeated after completion of each duty with Team Melli. In spite of that, we still fully support you and Team Melli”

Rouyanian also commented on Ali Karimi’s affair and the possibility of his return to the team after he was excluded from the Sepahan match and sacked from the team. “I shall discuss the matter with Jose and Karimi and get to the end of these problems that was created to reach the best solution for the club. If I the outcome of such discussions are positive, then there will be a possibility of Karimi returning to the team.”

Perspolis is currently lying near the lower end of the table one point clear  of the bottom team. The club , despite buying the most expensive players most of whom are Team Melli members , has failed to perform well and has been defeated in 4 matches out of 9. This is one of the worst results of the club in their illustrious history. Perspolis did not fare better last season but avoided relegation.