Tag: Alireza Jahanbakhsh

Team Melli loses in thrilling semifinal

www.the-afc.com
Doha
:
Qatar moved within one match of retaining their AFC Asian Cup™ title after emerging 3-2 victors against Iran in their Qatar 2023 semi-final at the Al Thumama Stadium on Wednesday.

Almoez Ali, the 2019 Most Valuable Player and top scorer, struck the winner eight minutes before the end in a thrilling last-four tie which saw the Maroons snap a six-game losing run against Team Melli to set up a final meeting with Jordan.

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Both teams made two changes each to their starting lineups, Iran’s Ardeshir Ghalehnoy reinstating Ehsan Hajsafi and Mehdi Taremi while Marquez Lopes gave starts to Yusuf Abdurisag and Homam Ahmed.

It was Team Melli who got off to a spectacular start, Sardar Azmoun capitalising on Qatar’s inability to deal with a throw-in to hook an acrobatic effort past a stranded Meshaal Barsham in the fourth minute.

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Qatar, however, did not trail for long, drawing level 13 minutes later with Akram Afif’s cutback setting up Jassem Gaber for a shot that took a deflection off Saeid Ezatohali, looped over Alireza Beiranvand and settled in the back of the net.

Iran continued to dominate possession with Qatar relying on counterattacks, and it almost paid off for the hosts in the 32nd minute when Afif pounced on a loose back pass to surge unchallenged but hit his shot straight at a grateful Beiranvand.

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The Al Sadd SC star, however, was not to be denied two minutes before the end of the first half when after receiving a pass from Ahmed Fathy on the left, he took a couple of steps before unleashing a powerful drive for his fifth goal of the tournament.

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Iran were quick to assert control when the second half got underway and needed only six minutes to restore parity, a VAR review determining Ezatohali’s shot had hit Fathy’s hands. Jahanbakhsh calmly slotted home from the penalty spot for his second goal of the tournament.  

Qatar’s response was almost immediate, but for the heroics of Beiranvand who pulled off a smart save near his post to deny Abdurisag with Shojae Khalilzadeh then making a goal-line clearance of Pedro Miguel’s header from the subsequent corner.

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Having had to rely on counter attacks for glimpses at goal, Qatar burst into life in the 82nd minute when Abdulaziz Hatem laid the ball to an unmarked Ali, who had ample time to pick his spot before slotting home, the goal taking his overall tally to 11 as he moved into second place in the all-time topscorers list.

Thirteen minutes of additional time gave Iran hope, but a surging Afif run was checked by Khalilzadeh, with a VAR review replacing an initial yellow card to red.

Even then, Iran twice came close to drawing level, Jahanbakhsh’s attempt hitting the left upright and Barsham getting his palm to a goalmouth scramble as Qatar held on for victory. 

Jahanbakhsh to leave Feyenoord

Alireza Jahanbakhsh, the Feyenoord and Team Melli winger, who has been suffering a form dip recently in his club is being put on the list of unwanted players. Jahanbakhsh also suffered a short-term injury followed by FIFA Day which put him away from the club commitments

The Feyenoord head coach Arne Slot has not been impressed by Janhanbksh this season, despite a promising start after his transfer from Brighton & Hove Albion of the English Premier League.

Alireza Jahanbakhsh is one of very few Iranians who play professional football in Europe, he is considered the third-best-rated Iranian legionnaire player after Taremi (Porto) and Azmoun (AS Roma). However, this player has failed to show any encouraging form both at the club and national levels for some time now. He has been disappointing at Team Melli games, and even more so regularly at Feyenoord. Lately, he has been a bench player for the Ervivisie club.

According to “MSN” the player has no place in the “Arne Slot” plans and will leave this team soon, most probably during the winter break in January. The article states: The contract of this Iranian player with Feyenoord is about to expire, and the managers and technical staff of this team are not willing to renew the contract with Jahanbakhsh, and soon this game will be close to the exit doors of Feyenoord. Jahanbakhsh’s contract was such that he could extend his contract for another season with the consent of the Ervivisie club managers, but they were not willing to do so. Jahanbakhsh arrived at Feyenoord in 2021 with a contract worth one million euros from Brighton, England, and last summer he received several offers from other teams, but he preferred to stay loyal to his contract with Feyenoord and had the dream of playing in the European Champions League. Now the adventure of this 30-year-old player in the Netherlands is about to end.

TOP IRANIAN LEGIONNAIRES IN EUROPE

Mehdi Taremi
Sardar Azmoun
Alireza Jahanbkhsh
Saman Ghoddos
Ehsan Hajsafy
Milad Mohammadi

Alireza Jahanbakhsh is out due to injury.

There was some bad news for Team Melli winger, Alireza Jahanbakhsh following the match against Hong Kong on Thursday.

After a loose ball clash, Jahanbakhsh was visibly in pain due to a leg injury and was subsequently substituted, In the post-match therapy, the Feyenoord winger was withdrawn from Team Melli camp and will proceed to the Netherlands to continue the diagnosis and treatment.
The media department of Team Melli, Dr. Prahan Khanleri, the Chief Medical Officer of the team, said that Alireza Jahanbakhsh has suffered a slight hamstring injury during last night’s match against Hong Kong, and accordingly, for treatment of this injury, he has to be out of action for at least two weeks rest period. He added: With the decision made, Jahanbakhsh will leave for Holland on Sunday to treat his injury, so it is not possible for this player to join the group for the match against Uzbekistan.
Team Melli defeated Hong Kong 4-0 in the first match of the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers on Thursday evening.

Smiles all across with Team Melli European competitions.

in the first round of this season’s UEFA club competitions, five out of six Iranian players were involved with their teams which all resulted in victories.

On Tuesday, Mehdi Taremi led his club Porto to a 3-1 win against Shakhter in Hamburg. Taremi scored one goal and was influential in another to start his campaign in a positive manner.

On the same night, Alireza Jahanbakhsh came in as a substitute and contributed a goal for his team Feyenoord in a 2-0 win against the Scottish champions Celtic.

Both the goals of Taremi and Jahanbakhsh were of high quality being praised by pundits.

On Thursday, AEK Athens with the presence of Team Melli Captain Ehsan Hajsafy who started the match, but was replaced by Milad Mohammadi, created the first shock of Europa League competition when they beat the south coast English Premier side Brighton 3-2 in a thrilling and eventful match.

In this match, Hajsafy was a major influencer as he gave away a penalty that Brighton scored, but then redeemed himself by providing an assist for the second AEK Athens goal. Hajsafy suffered a head injury and was replaced by Milad Mohammadi on the hour. Interestingly, when Mohammadi entered, the British TV commentator mentioned the AEK Players, nicknamed Milad “peep..peep” in reference to the speedy cartoon character “Road Runner”.

Due to the injury to Hajsafy in the second half, 14 extra minutes were added.

Sadegh Moharrami enjoyed the biggest win of the first round with Dinamo Zagreb after they defeated FC Astana 5-1 in Zagreb. Moharrami played the full 90 minutes and was one of the top-rated players of the match.

The surprise of the day, however, was the absence of Sardar Azmoun from the match sheet of AS Roma against FC Sherif. MOurinho’s team won that close match 2-1 away in Moldova with the winning goal coming from Lukaku.

The absence of Azmoun and Kristensen is due to restrictions imposed on AS Roma within the context of UEFA. For several years now, Roma has had to deal with the tight restrictions of the settlement agreement with UEFA over Financial Fair Play.

That includes the ‘transfer balance’ – so the current squad must be worth the same or less than last season’s group.

If that value is off balance, then the one way to get it back onto the right level is by leaving out new signings rather than those who were already part of the team.

Therefore, in order to make room for Lukaku, Roma has to leave out fellow new signings Azmoun and Kristensen.

So, it was a perfect week for Team Melli players with Taremi and Jahanbakhsh scoring while Hajsafy provided an assist.

Team Melli players in European Club competitions

The European Clubs championships will start in earnest this evening with matches in the UEFA Champions League UCL on Tuesday and Wednesday, followed by the Europa League which is traditionally played on Thursdays.

6 Team Melli players will be involved in the European club competitions this season. Mehdi Taremi, Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Sadegh Moharrami, Sardar Azamoun, Ehsan Hajsafi and Milad Mohammadi. We will look at the individual players’ performances in the early season, their effectiveness for their clubs, chances of playing, and chances of their club qualification to the next round. The three competitions they are involved in are the UEFA Champions League, Europa League, and Europa Conference League.

Mehdi Taremi (FC Porto): presently he is without a doubt the most prominent amongst the Team Melli legionnaires possessing the highest value for his club. Being a key player with Porto and a title defender, there are a lot of expectations from Taremi. Despite some off-the-field distractions, that might have affected him, he returned back to what he does best by scoring the winning goal away to Estrela da Amadora last weekend. This season, Taremi started 4 out of 5 club matches.

FC Porto is in Group H which has the mighty Barcelona as the favorite, but also the Ukrainian team Shakhtar Donetsk and Belgian Royal Antwerp. It is a tough group but Porto remains in contention for one of the two qualifying places.

Playing Status: Starter
Effectiveness: 8.5 out of 10
Chances of qualifying: 70%


Alireza Jahanbaksh (Feyenoord): The Team Melli Captain is not experiencing the best of times. His form has dipped considerably and he is now glued to the bench in the Eredivisie with Feyenoord. He played in two out of 5 league matches with only one starting and one as a substitute. Jahanbaksh neither scored nor provided any assists this season.

Feyenoord is in Group E of the UEFA Champions League along with favorites Atletico Madrid, Celtic, and Lazio, It is an even group but hardly an easy pass for Feyenoord, which will start with a match against the Scottish Champions Celtic on Tuesday 19th September.

Playing Status: Substitute
Effectiveness: 3.5 out of 10
Chances of qualifying: 68%


Sadegh Moharrami (Dinamo Zagreb): The Team Melli right-back has been having a good season with the Croatian champions. His rating has been amongst the best and also provided one assist in the 5 matches he has already played for the club.

In the Europa Conference League, Dinamo Zagreb is in Group C along with; Balkani (Kosovo), FC Astana (Kazakhstan), and Viktoria Plzen (Czechia). The former is the closest rival to Dinamo Zagreb. The first match is on Thursday 21st September.

Playing Status: Starter
Effectiveness: 7.5 out of 10
Chances of qualifying: 80%


Sardar Azmoun (Roma): After a shaky season with Bayer Leverkusen marred by long-term injuries, Azmoun is now on loan with AS Roma coached by Mourinho. Team Melli striker will not enjoy the UEFA Champions League this term as Roma is playing in the Europa League. Azmoun made his debut last Sunday as a late substitute for Romelo Lukaku in a 7-0 thrashing of bottom Club Empoli

Azmoun had a slow season start so far in Rome mainly due to injuries he carried from Leverkusen plus some personal issues. AS Roma is in Group G with FC Sheriff, Servette, and Slavia Prague and will begin the campaign with the Modovan Champions FC Sheriff on Thursday 21st September.

Playing Status: Substitute
Effectiveness: 4.5 out of 10
Chances of qualifying: 75%


Ehsan Hajsafi (AEK Athens): Team Melli Captain and most capped player has had a mixed season with the club. He has started 1 out of 3 league matches although he was also a starter in the UCL Qualifiers which AEK Athens lost narrowly to Antwerp.

AEK Athens is in a strong group that includes, The Premier League club Brighton & Hove Albion, Ajax Amsterdam, and Marseille. It is arguably the strongest group in the Conference League and the Greek club needs to be at its best to have a chance of qualifying. The mission starts on Thursday with a match away to Brighton.

Playing Status: Substitute
Effectiveness: 6 out of 10
Chances of qualifying: 35%


Milad Mohammadi (AEK Athens): started 2 of the 3 matches in the Greek league and played the full 90 minutes each time as a left-back. He seems to be growing in confidence this season after a mixed season in 2022/2023.

Playing Status: Starter
Effectiveness: 6.5 out of 10
Chances of qualifying: 35%

Mehdi Taremi claims top scorer title while Porto loses the league title to Benfica.

Team Melli and FC Porto forward, Mehdi Taremi claimed his first top-scorer title in one of the top Europe leagues to become the third Iranian after Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Sardar Azmoun winning such accolades in the Eredivisie and Russuan premiere leagues respectively. Taremi ended the season 2022/23 with 22 goals, 3 more than second-place Goncalco Ramos of Benfica.

Meanwhile, FC Porto have failed in their defense of the Primeira Liga title after Benfica’s home win versus Santa Clara secured the championship, this Saturday, despite the Dragons’ 3-0 triumph at home to Vitória.

Sérgio Conceição’s men were in need of a huge favor from bottom-of-the-table Santa Clara in order to leapfrog Benfica at the top of the table, as Vitória came to town.

Porto held up their end of the bargain with a 3-0 victory, complete with goals from Mehdi Taremi, Otávio, and Evanilson, but an equally-proficient night in front of goal for the Eagles meant the Blue & Whites were kept at bay, trailing top-spot by two points on the final day of the season.

Conceição pulled up no surprises with his XI at the Estádio do Dragão, filled to the brim with hopefuls roaring their team on to a potential back-to-back conquest of the Primeira Liga title. Things began to look very favorable for the Northern giants after their regional heavyweights Vitória found themselves reduced to ten men just two minutes in, following Tomás Händel’s red card for a poor challenge on Matheus Uribe.

Just five minutes later, an incredible run on the counter from Pepê enabled the Brazilian to set Taremi up for the opener, with the Iranian requiring little more than a side-foot toward the goal to break the deadlock.

Unfortunately for the Dragons, the Eagles had also taken the lead via Gonçalo Ramos before doubling their advantage through Rafa Silva, just as Otávio’s strike across goal landed a second blow to Vitória in the 32nd minute.

In the 39th minute, Evanilson made it 3-0 with a classy finish on the half-volley, adding comfort to the scoreline before the half-time interval.

For the second half, the protagonists were the same but the intensity wasn’t quite at the levels demonstrated in the first period, with Vitória holding back Porto’s waning forcefulness and appetite.

The Primeira Liga’s top scorer Taremi neared a brace in the 67th minute with a chipped attempt on Bruno Varela, stopped by the ex-Benfica man before Ibrahima Bamba’s risqué clearance off the line, using his shoulder.

Porto left it a 3-0 – a score matched by Benfica at the Estádio da Luz – as the Dragons bowed out to a second-placed finish behind their bitter rivals, lifting the title for the first time in four years.

 

MEHDI TAREMI SCORING RECORD IN PORTUGAL

 

Season Team Comp Minutes played Appearances Lineups Substitute in Substitute out Substitutes on bench Goal Yellow card Yellow 2nd/RC Red card
2022/2023 Porto PRL 2636 33 31 2 22 2 22 7 0 0
2021/2022 Porto PRL 2434 32 27 5 13 5 20 4 1 0
2020/2021 Porto PRL 2226 34 26 8 20 8 16 1 0 1
2019/2020 Rio Ave PRL 2352 30 26 4 11 4 18 2 0 1

Team Melli is heating up within. The problems are far from over.

The publication of a statement by a group of Team Melli players headed by Mehdi Tarimi including Karim Ansarifard, Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Ezatollahi, and Ehsan Haj Safi, in connection with the state of the football federation and the national team coach, prompted a sharp reaction by FFIRI through its spokesperson Hassan Kamranifar, the Secretary General of this federation.

“First of all, it is necessary to mention that the football federation is governed completely independently in accordance with international rules and its own charter. At no time this federation has received orders from anyone. There is no interference in the affairs of the federation.  An example of this issue was the rumors about attempts to change the coaching staff of Team Melli, at the end,  you all saw that only the federation management makes such decisions independent of outside elements. Although I don’t want to talk about the elections, I just would like to point out that there is no interference in these issues.”

The Secretary General of the FFIRI said: “We should appreciate the supporting role of the Parliament in approving and allocating government aid, especially for the purpose of supporting the national team and pursuing the rewards of the national team players. When the parliament support allocating government funds to the federations, we also consider it our duty to answer to the parliament in the field of how we spend government grants, this is not intervention, but a supervisory duty of the people’s representatives.”

Kamranifar was asked about an alleged demand by several Team Melli players asking that two Members of Parliament Ghazizadeh Hashemi and Pejmanfar, cease their interference in football. However, Kamranifar did not respond to this statement.

The issue revealed the extent of differences and divisions between Iranian national team players once again which prompted Kamranifar to respond strongly. The General Secretary of the Football Federation said: “The explicit demand of the Federation from the members of the national team is to observe professional ethics and not to interfere in other departments and take a stand on issues that are not within the player’s responsibility. Division and partisan in Team Melli is our red line and we will not tolerate it at all.”

Kamranifar added: “National team players may have concerns, some of them could be legitimate, but these issues should be discussed in their own place and between family members not going public. There is a process for that.  Some actions and behaviors are not acceptable.”

In the end, the Secretary-General said: “The explicit request of the Federation’s Board of Directors is to establish complete discipline and stability in the national team and to stand against any division, split, and marginalization. The federation will fully support the national team with all its might, and of course, we will take action to identify external divisive agents of whom we are fully aware and who are trying to get close to the national team with these measures.”

 

COMMENTS ON FFIRI KAMARANIFAR STATEMENT

The disturbing part of this issue lies in the fact that a struggle is brewing among the members of Team Melli some of whom think that they are better equipped and qualified to run the federation and decide whom to appoint as Head Coach.  Led by Mehdi Taremi, a player who is notorious for lack of discipline and professional ethics, this group is making trouble by recruiting other players like Jahanbakhsh who is a key element in the squad and not the rebel type. FFIRI reaction says much about how much they are concerned hence the strong tone of Kamaranifar. However, besides the pseudo threats, there was nothing to deter the troublemaker.

Many feel that this Federation is standing  on weak ground at this period of time with a lack of legitimate leadership and the coming elections. Those who aim to sit at the top are non-commital to this serious issue. No one wants to take a stand just in case it is the wrong one therefore putting their election in jeopardy. No one is ready to make a decision against the rebels who are supported by outside elements including an influential football agent who would gain much by the change of the Head Coach with expected hefty commision. In the end, the more this conflict and division drag on, the worst it will become.

About the Federation’s independence, Kamaranifar lies up to his teeth. It is not even a secret that FFIRI is run by the government. Kamaranifar’s own admission that funds and grants are being received by the government proves it. The demand by the rebel players and FFIRI that the Parliament stops interfering in football sound quite unreasonable too. After all, the FFIRI and the Players are awarded funds from the public coffers from the money that can be spent on many other projects. What right have they to say to the Parliament “Shut up and Pay Up?”

An organization can only operate independently if it generates its own revenue and has a proper balance sheet. It is not the case with FFIRI which has always pleaded for handouts from the government and thereupon the government would have its own terms and condition. FFIRI and rightly so has to answer to people’s representatives for all the money that is being given to them freely. That is the rationale.

Mehdi Taremi, from hero to villain!

From the moment it was announced that Adel Ferdosipour had interviewed Mehdi Tarimi and that this discussion was going to be broadcast in cyberspace, it was clear that some of his statements would become controversial, divisive, and might very well create friction in the team and fans for a long time. As much as Taremi’s value as a striker is undeniable, his controversial talking is harmful to himself! In this case, the predictions came true and some of the topics raised by Taremi became the center of attention, criticism, and various conflicting opinions. He has already managed to create divisiveness & sedition.

This player, who had taken a stand against Dragan Skočić, becoming the spokesman for some other players as well, questioned Skocic’s competence in a conversation with Ferdosipour. Taremi criticized the exclusion of and then the U-turn of Esteghlal players from the Team Melli camp and then claimed that in the past year, far too many players have been selected for Team Melli !, which is not a good thing to say. These statements had wide repercussions amongst the stakeholders in Iranian football, which were mostly negative.

Who are you, What position are you in?

Some of Tarami’s statements might be merited but some are not. But here, the criticism of the speaker is more important than the content of the speech. Basically, no player in the world’s professional football should give himself the right to openly and candidly take a position against the Coaching staff and particularly the Leader, the head coach.

If this issue becomes a normal procedure, no stone will be left unturned. It is really rare and rare that even the greatest players in the world of football have taken such positions against their coaches. You don’t see this behavior from Messi and Ronaldo either. Didn’t Paris Saint-Germain have a few failures? Have you ever heard Kylian Mbappe criticize his coach as the best player on this team?

The crossroads of Skocic.

Even if Tarami’s efforts to dismiss Skočić were successful, the story would not be over, because in this case, the next coach to take over, would have to be approved by him in order to survive. is that the correct thing for a football team? Skocic’s difficult dilemma is now on how to deal with the issue of Mehdi Taremi, and to a lesser extent Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Ehsan Hajsafi.  Dragan Skočić has now faced a big predicament. That he does not invite these players and significantly reduces the Team’s foundation in the World Cup, or that he pleads ignorance to the fact that there are players who don’t respect him and might spread the bad word in the camp.  in which case his authority will be questioned even more. All this could not exist if Tarami maintained his sense of responsibility and did not utter those unnecessary words.

Mehdi Taremi has proved through the few years that he has a behavior problem. His action on the field doesn’t reflect his age. His famous dismissal in the Champions League was when he kicked the ball away a few minutes after he was awarded a yellow card. This typified his immaturity and lack of emotional control. Despite his popularity amongst the Porto fans, Taremi is probably the most hated player in the Portuguese league. He is famous for his diving and deception of referees and is the subject of many reporters’ criticism for lack of sportsmanship.

Is Taremi an Asset or Liability?

Right now, looking at the picture, it looks like Mehdi Taremi is a risk and a dangerous element in the Team Melli camp. Thinking that he will change his attitude and mentality in a few days or months is simply impossible. He has a lot of grudge against Skočić starting from day one.  His exclusion from the team is not going to be disastrous for Iran with the presence of Sardar Azmoun to spearhead the offensive line. The problem is the exclusion of Jahanbakhsh.

In any case, Skočić must choose between discipline, values, and respect or act as if nothing has happened and call Taremi back in the hope of better things.

How is more valuable for team Melli?

A comparison table on the performance of Azmoun and Daei for reference

Sardar Azmoun Mehdi Taremi
Age 27 30
Club Bayer Leverkusen FC Porto
No of seasons in Europe 15 6
Foreign leagues Russia & Germany Qatar & Portugal
Games played 217 243
Goals scored 86 125
Yellow card 38 32
Red Cards 2 4
League title 3 1
TEAM MELLI
Matches 63 58
Seasons 9 8
goals scored 40 29
Yellow card 10 8
Red Cards 0 0

Team Melli defeated in its only preparation game.

Algeria’s National football team defeated Iran 2-1 in a friendly match held at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, Qatar Sunday night.

Riad Benayad opened the scoring for Algeria two minutes before the halftime.

Alireza Jahanbakhsh equalized the match in the 64th minute but Algerian winger Mohamed El Amine Amoura scored the winner in the 82nd minute. Both the Algerian goals were gifts from Iranian defenders.

The match started more than 20 minutes late due to the late arrival of the Algerian bus to the Qatar FC stadium. There was also a minute of silence before the match for the tragic accidents in Iran and the death of the Algerian National team player, Billel Benhammouda who was killed in a car accident after returning home from a match in which he scored a goal.

The first half saw action from both teams but a horrible back pass lead to the first goal for Algeria just before the half times.

In the second half, Jahabakh found the back of the net and the Iran equalizer from an assist by Omid Nourafkan.

Another wayward defending due to the pressure that Algerians were exerting on the Iranian ball carrier resulted in the Algerian winner.

Despite the defeat, Team Melli plays some neat football, but the players are obviously in need of much more than this match in order to perform well to their true ability at the world cup. Algeria was virtually playing with the U23 team while Team Melli was at full strength minus the two central defenders, Khalilzadeh and Kananizadegan.

Team Melli ends the qualification rounds with a win against Lebanon.

Mashad: Iran completed their AFC Asian Qualifiers – Road to Qatar™ schedule in style, eliminating Lebanon from playoff contention with a 2-0 victory at the Imam Reza Stadium on Tuesday.
Goals from Sardar Azmoun and Alireza Jahanbakhsh continued Team Melli’s superb form on home soil and ensured they will go into Friday’s FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ draw full of confidence after an outstanding campaign.

Lebanon came into the Matchday 10 clash with the door to June’s AFC qualification playoff ever so slightly ajar, but a sixth Group A defeat meant Mashhad marked the end of the road for Ivan Hašek’s side.

While the Cedars came into the tie without the likes of Soony Saad and Hassan Maatouk, Iran welcomed back Jahanbakhsh, who missed Thursday’s 2-0 defeat to Korea Republic, and it was the Feyenoord star who forced a solid save from Mostafa Matar with the game’s first real chance, a well struck 20-yard effort in the 19th minute.
Dragan Skočić’s men monopolised early possession, while Lebanon looked to minimise clear cut chances for their opponents, but the visiting side’s resistance was broken by a goal of beautiful simplicity, with Hossein Kanani dissecting the defence to find Azmoun’s perfectly timed run, with the Bayer Leverkusen forward easing the ball home from 12 yards in the 35th minute.
Iran looked to be cruising at that stage, but the hosts were almost punished for some untidy moments in possession prior to the interval, with Hussein Zein sending a rare Lebanese effort on goal narrowly over Alireza Beiranvand’s crossbar in the final minute of the first half.
The hosts continued to live dangerously after the break, with Hilal El Helwe sending Beiranvand sprawling with a volleyed effort that went only inches wide in the 48th minute, but Lebanon’s slim hopes were finally dashed when the Iranian captain put the result beyond doubt with just under 20 minutes remaining.
Again, it was a Kanani pass that unlocked the Lebanese defence, with his lofted ball catching out a much higher defensive line before Jahanbakhsh (pictured below, centre) beat Matar with a cultured side-footed effort which sent the bouncing ball floating into the net from 15 yards.
In Dubai, the UAE team fought gallantly to defeat South Korea 1-0 to seal its position in the AFC playoff and also

confirm Iran as the group winners.

With their third successive FIFA World Cup appearance long secured, Iran’s latest win means they overtake  Korea Republic in group A.

AFC ASIAN QUALIFIERS

Group A

Final Standing

P W D L F A GD PTS
1
IRAN
10 8 1 1 15 4 11 25
2
KOREA REPUBLIC
10 7 2 1 13 3 10 23
3
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
10 3 3 4 7 7 0 12
4
IRAQ
10 1 6 3 6 12 -6 9
5
SYRIA
10 1 3 6 9 16 -7 6
6
LEBANON
10 1 3 6 5 13 -8 6