Tag: World Cup

FIFA ranking is deceiving , Is Iran really the number one football nation in Asia?

Although Team Melli has been topping the FIFA Ranking in Asia for many months and years, the reality of the football results, performances of other Iranian teams, global reputation, management, and administration chaos tells a completely different story.

A close analysis of the above shows that Iranian football is lagging behind major Asian footballing nations in recent years. According to the FIFA ranking system for the Senior National Football teams, Iran’s team has often been at the top rank of Asian teams in the FIFA rankings in recent years. This ranking cannot be questioned because it has its own criteria and points are awarded for winning in each match, while each match has a factor based on importance and the position/rank of the opponents. So, it is quite scientific and the process v=cannot be faulted in any way. However, by examining various fields and indicators, including the superiority of Iranian football in the competition with important teams in the world at the club and junior levels football and the results obtained In the AFC Asian Cup, World Cup rounds, and Olympics, we find out that Iranian football is by far not the top nation in Asia as we have always been led to believe.

Now the question is why Iranian football has not been able to get results in important Asian competitions for many years. Why has a team that claims to be a contender in Asian football not achieved any important honor in the last 30 years in the club division and in the last 40 years at the national level?

 

1/ Performance in the World Cup

Performance of Asian teams in the World Cup (teams that advanced to the second round are highlighted in blue)

 

Teams Korea Rep Japan Saudi Arabia Iran Australia Korea DPR
Played 34 21 16 15 16 7
Won 6 5 3 2 2 1
Drawn 9 5 2 4 4 1
Lost 19 11 11 9 10 5

2/ Performance in the Olympics

46 years have passed since Iran’s last participation in the Olympics, and by the time the Paris Olympics begin, this longing will reach 48 years. For every Olympic qualifier, failures and lackluster results lead to elimination from the early stages of qualifiers. Iran’s Omid national team fails to advance to the Olympics tournament after tournament. The following is the list of Asian Teams that qualified for the Olympics since 1980.

1980 IRAQ SYRIA  KUWAIT
1984 IRAQ SAUDI ARABIA QATAR
1988 IRAQ KOREA REP CHINA
1992 QATAR KOREA REP KUWAIT
1996 JAPAN KOREA REP SAUDI ARABIA
2000 JAPAN KOREA REP KUWAIT
2004 JAPAN KOREA REP IRAQ
2008 JAPAN KOREA REP AUSTRALIA
2012 JAPAN KOREA REP UAE
2016 JAPAN KOREA REP IRAQ
2020 JAPAN KOREA REP AUSTRALIA SAUDI ARABIA

 

3/ The AFC Asian Cup

The longing for lifting the AFC Asian Cup trophy by Team Melli, which Iran won three times in a row before the revolution, is now 47 years old, and Iran has not won the title since the revolution. by the next edition of the Asian Cup, this longing will last half a century. This is despite the fact that since Iran’s last championship in the Asian Cup, Japan won 4, Saudi Arabia won 3, and Kuwait, Iraq, Australia, and  Qatar have won the title once in Iran’s absence.

YEAR CHAMPION FINALIST THIRD
1980 KUWAIT KOREA REP IRAN
1984 SAUDI ARABIA CHINA KUWAIT
1988 SAUDI ARABIA KOREA REP IRAN
1992 JAPAN SAUDI ARABIA CHINA
1996 SAUDI ARABIA UAE IRAN
2000 JAPAN SAUDI ARABIA KOREA REP
2004 JAPAN CHINA IRAN
2007 IRAQ SAUDI ARABIA KOREA REP
2011 JAPAN AUSTRALIA KOREA REP
2015 AUSTRALIA KOREA REP UAE
2019 QATAR JAPAN IRAN & UAE

 

4/ Performance in the AFC Champions League

Pas won the Asian Club Cup in the 1992-1993 season. Three decades have passed since then. In this competition, Iranian club teams have never been able to win the championship title in its new format. The Asian Champions League has been held in a new format since 2002.

The number of championships of Asian teams since the start of the Champions League:

South Korea: 6 championships

Japan: 4 championships

Saudi Arabia: 4 championships

Australia: 1 championship

Iran: Zero

 

5/ The number of legionnaires in the 5 prestigious leagues of the world

 

 

JAPAN KOREA DPR AUSTRALIA IRAN SAUDI ARABIA
Bundesliga 9 4 4 1 0
English Premier League: 2 2 1 1 0
La Liga 1 1 2 0 0
Serie A 2 0 0 0 0
14 7 7 2 0

 

 

Iran Criticized for Slow Preparations for Qatar

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — While Japan and South Korea will start fine-tuning for the World Cup with high-profile warm-ups against Brazil next month, there are concerns in Iran that Asia’s top-ranked team has been slow off the mark with its preparations.

Iran is in Group B with England and the United States at the World Cup, which kicks off Nov. 21 in Qatar. But while there have been reports of a June friendly with New Zealand and talk of a potential match with Canada, so far Iran hasn’t confirmed its warm-up commitments.

“There appears to be no concrete plan,” Afshin Ghotbi, head coach of Iran’s national team from 2009-11, told The Associated Press. “Time is of the essence and preparation is vital to the success of Iran.

“Most teams have already arranged matches and many good opponents are not available anymore. Iran needs to urgently set up appropriate fixtures in the build-up to the World Cup.”

There has been criticism within Iran about the lack of movement so far, with a Tehran Times editorial last month headlined: “Iran wastes golden chance as always.” The editorial hoped for greater urgency when the soccer federation meets to choose a new president on May 10.

Interim president Mirshad Majedi has said no games will be announced until details are finalized.

As the country is under international sanctions, attracting teams to Tehran or traveling overseas can be more complex for Iran than its Asian rivals.

Ghotbi wants to see Iranian players such as Medhi Taremi at FC Porto and Sardar Azmoun, with Bayer Leverkusen of Germany, given every chance possible to succeed in Qatar.

Iran, No. 21 in the FIFA rankings and currently coached by Dragan Skocic, has qualified for five previous World Cups but has never progressed past the first round.

“I faced many of these challenges during my tenure, as did those who came before and after me,” Ghotbi said. “It is frustrating as Iran has a golden generation of players and if they have the best support and preparation then they can reach their true potential on the world stage.”

Carlos Queiroz, Ghotbi’s successor as head coach, complained about the quality of opposition that Iran faced leading up to the 2018 World Cup when it prepared with games against Turkey, Lithuania, Sierra Leone, Algeria, Tunisia, and Uzbekistan.

“If you copy the preparations of the last four World Cups, you don’t go anywhere. It’s a simple conclusion,” Queiroz said in 2017. At the same time, seven Iranian players took to social media to ask that the country to emulate South Korea when it came to preparations.

This time around, South Korea, drawn in Group H along with Portugal, Uruguay, and Ghana, will take on Brazil in Seoul on June 2 and then meet Chile four days later and Paraguay on June 10.

Japan will start preparations for Group E — containing Germany, Spain, and either Costa Rica or New Zealand — by taking on Brazil and Paraguay in the first week of June.

Saudi Arabia has also qualified from Asia and Qatar gets an automatic spot in the tournament as host. Australia and the United Arab Emirates will meet in an Asian playoff for the right to take on the fifth-place team from South America for another place in Qatar.

Alireza Jahanbakhsh to Brighton & Hove Albion !

The transfer of Erdivisie top scorer Alireza Jahanbakhsh to Brighton & Hove Albion is a certainty and a very special one for AZ . The Iranian is sold for 24 million euros and with that he is the most expensive AZ Alkmaar player of all time.

There has been lots of speculation about the destination of the Iranian , with the English Premier League being the favorites. Jahanbakhsh had a quiet World Cup in Russia and he was  bound to follow the coach defensive game plan thus limiting his effectiveness in the offensive duties. however, many clubs have been monitoring him well before the World Cup.

Star on the rise

The Iranian winger has been one of the standout players in the Eredivisie in recent years and he has the potential to be an exciting capture for a Premier League team. He showed flashes of his talent during the World Cup with Iran and he is now ready to test himself at a higher level.

Last season, he finished as the Eredivisie top scorer with 21 goals with one coming every 135 minutes in the competition. In addition to that, he contributed 12 assists and was regularly causing problems for opposition defences.

His feats are even more impressive considering he wasn’t playing for one of the top two teams. That said, his performances allowed AZ Alkmaar to finish above Feyenoord who had won the league as recently as the 2016/17 campaign.

The 24-year-old delivered consistency in the Eredivisie with 4.3 shots, 3.4 dribbles and 2.4 key passes. They are huge attacking numbers and underline the quality that he does possess. Although it is unlikely that he could reproduce these with a team like Brighton, he would represent an upgrade on their current options.

Transfer Record

AZ Alkmaar old transfer record was in the name of Vincent Janssen. Tottenham Hotspur paid AZ about 22 million euros 2 years ago  for Janssen,. Jahanbakhsh, was even rumored to have had his medical with Leicester City , but Brighton, surprised everyone with this hefty offer.

 Brighton’s Dutch player Davy Pröpper, commented on the transfer “The transfer of the Iranian to Brighton is almost concluded with a few minor details and will soon become official.”

It was already a lucrative transfer summer for AZ. Earlier, striker Wout Weghorst was sold to VfL Wolfsburg for more than 10 million euros.

Top scorer
It will be a tough job to replace that pair. Alireza Jahanbakhsh became top scorer of the Eredivisie last season with 21 goals, 3 more than teammate and buddy Weghorst.

Morteza Pouraliganji on his way out of QSL

Morteza Pouraliganji is on his way out of Al Sadd after his contract expired with the Qatar Stars League QSL side. He is a free agent now.

In an interview with Mehr News, Team Melli’s defender said “I was a defensive midfielder, but I’ve been playing in the central defense for some years, Carlos Queiroz told me he was sure that his progress at the central defense will be 50% more than my previous post. It was hard for me to be in the post for the first month and I did not know how to play, as I have already played in the post of defensive midfielder for long time.”

Commenting on his experience in the FIFA World Cup , he mentioned the Spanish striker Diego Costa as saying: “Costa is one of the most roughest and ill-mannered football players I’ve seen over the years. I was even afraid to look into his eyes.”

The  Team Melli defender, talked about his tears while hugging Portugal defender Pepe after the match ended in a draw thus eliminating Iran from the World Cup  “Pepe is a professional and has seen a lot of these things. He said you played quite you should be proud well and keep your head raised”

Referring to his status in Qatari Al-Sadd,  Pouraliganji said: “I mentioned my demand for a renewal of the contract , which was not  agreed upon. I said goodbye to this group and will not play against Esteghlal in  AFC Champions League Quarter finals. I also spoke to Xavi on this.

Pouraliganji  has negotiated with orther Qatar and the Turkish League sides,  “Whatever demand I have will be offered by these clubs but I am not just looking for money.  I am 26 years old and it’s time to leave Qatar for a regular European team.”

Scandalous Saudi 

Fahad al-Mirdasi, a Saudi referee lined up to take part in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, has been removed from duty for Saturday’s Saudi King’s Cup.

He has been referred to investigating authorities – after it was alleged he contacted the president of one finalist requesting payments. British referee Mark Clattenburg, also the head of the Saudi officials’ association, will be calling the King’s Cup Final instead of Al-Miradsi, whose career is in tatters over with reports of recorded phone calls indicating cash payments, team numbers and games in which he was involved in illegal activity.

The story continues to develop, and analysts say more murky details of the management of Saudi football are likely to emerge in the coming weeks.

The case of this Saudi referee uncovers a long line of corrupt politics in football in the Arabian Middle East countries. High stakes and the ruling families immense influence in football, has dragged the beautiful game in disrepute and there is nowhere that this is more evident than the kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

No one exactly knows how many games and referees have been bought for certain, but only the naive or those who benefit from such corrupt act will deny the existing of referees for sale in Saudi Arabia. It goes beyond offering money to buy games, threats have been used against those who dare to refuse or speak up. Many Saudi critics talk about the Englishman Mark Clattenburg , who himself was not immune from controversy in England, as the first step towards fighting favoritism, nepotism and corruption in Saudi football. The re-building will take years but the mere fact that the story about Fahad al-Mirdasi has made the media , is in itself a progress in this despot regime and police state.

“Iran is facing its biggest challenge in history” Queiroz

“We’ve been drawn in the toughest group in the World Cup. Morocco are the best African team and the team’s results in the last two years speak for themselves. They have not conceded goals and claimed the African Nations Championship,” Queiroz said in an interview with Khabar Varzeshi sports daily.

“Spain and Portugal are also favorites to win the title. To book a place in the next stage is the biggest challenge in Iran’s football history,” the former Real Madrid coach added.  

“We will play at the World Cup for our pride, that’s why I am here and I believe that those who don’t back the idea are the people who don’t respect Iran’s football,” the Portuguese coach stated.

“For us, to be in knockout stage means conquering Mt Everest. This is the highest mount in front of Iran’s football and all of coaches and officials must take it seriously,” Queiroz concluded.  

Iran have been drawn in Group B along with Morocco, Spain and Portugal.

The Persians will kick off the campaign with a match against Morocco at Saint Petersburg on June 15.

Team Melli, meanwhile, face Spain in Kazan on 20 June before meeting Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal in Saransk five days later.

Portuguese from Man Utd enforcer to Mr. World Cup

 

Carlos Queiroz was once Alex Ferguson’s formidable number two at Manchester United, but he has now carved out a new reputation: the man who can take your team to the World Cup.

After Queiroz’s Iran became only the second team to qualify for Russia 2018, he is savouring the unique feat of reaching four World Cups with three different teams.

It’s a record that hasn’t gone unnoticed, with Asian champions Australia reportedly interested in Queiroz’s services once Ange Postecoglou departs next year.

“I feel very proud and honoured with that (World Cup) achievement,” the grizzled Portuguese told AFP by telephone. “Other coaches have qualified four times but not with different teams.”

The former Real Madrid boss has now qualified with South Africa in 2002, Portugal in 2010 — leading them to the last 16 — and now twice with Iran, after he also took them to Brazil 2014.

Carlos Queiroz has achieved the unique feat of reaching four World Cups with three different teams, including South Africa, Portugal and IranplayCarlos Queiroz has achieved the unique feat of reaching four World Cups with three different teams, including South Africa, Portugal and Iran

(AFP/File)

This month’s 2-0 win over Uzbekistan made Iran the first Asian team to qualify for Russia, clinching top spot in Group A with two games to spare — and without a single goal conceded in 720 minutes of football.

On top of that, Iran, who will now contest back-to-back World Cups for the first time, have been Asia’s number one team in the FIFA rankings for four years, helped by a growing number of players succeeding in Europe.

Walter Winterbottom took England to four successive World Cups starting from 1950, a record that was equalled by West Germany’s Helmut Schon from 1966 to 1978. Oscar Tabarez could also make it four with Uruguay if the South Americans reach Russia.

But nobody has done it with three different countries, apart from Mozambique-born Queiroz.

“To do it with these different countries, cultures and mentalities is at least, unique,” Queiroz said. “Each country has its own challenges, its own strengths and weaknesses.”

‘Football animal’

The 64-year-old became Iran coach in 2011 and has weathered cultural and logistical difficulties to find success with Team Melli, helped by the talent the country produces and the passion of the fans.

“The fans love the team and the excitement they provide is special,” said Queiroz. “When we play at home the atmosphere is great and there can be 100,000 fans. When we qualified, there were celebrations in Tehran all night.”

Among Queiroz’s players is Reza Ghoochannejhad, who was the second highest goalscorer in the Dutch league in the 2016-2017 season with 20 goals for Heerenveen.

Alireza Jahanbakhsh has also impressed in the Netherlands with AZ Alkmaar, and Karim Ansarifard is with Greek giant Olympiakos.

Then there are two highly-rated young stars in Russia: striker Sardar Azmoun and midfielder Saeid Ezatolahi, with both expected to head to one of the bigger European leagues this summer.

It all adds up to a formidable squad and coaching staff.

“Carlos Queiroz and his colleagues have done so much for Team Melli,” Ali Daei, a legend of Iranian football and former national team coach, told FIFA’s official homepage.

“One of the most important things he’s done is bringing in so many young players and changed the major players of the team.”

Although Queiroz is attracting interest from other federations, he says he hasn’t yet decided whether he will go for a fifth World Cup with a fourth national team.

“I have been coaching for a long time,” said Queiroz, who led Portugal’s U20 team to successive World Cup titles in 1989 and 1991. “I don’t really want to think what happens after the next World Cup.

“If this football animal is still biting me in the stomach then I can continue. I want to feel happy. If I can still make a contribution then maybe.”

First comes the challenge of taking Iran to Russia, and improving on their winless showing in Brazil.

“That is the ambition and starting from now, that is the objective we are working towards,” he said. “With the right preparation then we have the talent to make an impact.”

Queiroz secret plans leaves Stielike guessing!

Uli Stielike must be scratching his head wondering which team will his counterpart Carlos Queiroz will arrange in Azadi comes Tuesday. The Portuguese coach played 3 different line ups against Qatar, China and Uzbekistan leaving the German coach wondering which game plan he shall deploy.

Queiroz last line up against Uzbekistan must have alarmed quite a few and was bordering high risk for some critics. No one bench 3 of his top players while playing against the top of the table team in away match in a World Cup qualifier! Queiroz, however, did exactly that and to put the icing on the cake, his players won and to make it taste even sweeter, they played one of their finest football in years.

For over 20 minutes in Tashkent, Team Melli was pressing the host, Uzbekistan on the other hand were running out of ideas and short of confidence. The only span of time that the host managed to threaten, but not effectively, was the early minutes of the second half.  After that, Iran regained control, Queiroz masterplan worked like a charm and his players executed it to perfection grabbing all 3 points with this sweet victory away from home.

Whatever the reasons for the constant changing line up by Queiroz (quite uncharacteristic for the ex-Real Madrid and Portugal coach) the man knew exactly what he was doing and that is confirmed by the fact that Iran is heading the table ahead of the other 5 teams.

Queiroz is no stranger to the Koreans battles and thrives in beating the record holders of most Asian team appearances in the World Cup. In the last edition of the qualification, it was that egotistical unwitting South Korean coach Choi Kang-hee who vowed that Carlos Queiroz will have to watch next year’s World Cup in Brazil on television.

The two coaches have traded verbal volleys in the lead-up to that decisive clash in Ulsan and at the end , Choi Kang-hee was the one who ended up watching World Cup on a Samsung TV while Queiroz and the boys was battling it out against the likes of the great Lionel Messi in Brazil.

There is no such animosity between Stielike and Queiroz who have strong mutual respect for each other, however, that does not dilute the intensity of the match in any way.  Stielike must be unsettled trying to figure out what Queiroz is up to tactically. Queiroz putting a lot of thoughts on how to take advantage of the Korean defensive vulnerability, which has conceded 4 goals in 3 matches.

Team Melli is a good shape to grab all the 3 points and looks like the favorite ahead of the World Cup qualifying showpiece event in Azadi. The passionate Iranian fans in the eve of Ashoora could make a big difference too.

 

 

Team Melli Coaches performances and Queiroz vs. Ghalenoei debate.

The war of words between Ghalenoei and Queiroz has reached its peak after the conclusion of the Asian Cup 2015. The warring coaches are undermining each other verbally, with fans taking sides in debates on forums.

What does the figure say about the performances of the two coaches? It must indicate to some degree the success (or failure) of the coach, if results are indeed the catalyst.

 Along with these warring coaches, we have included another 4 former Team Melli coaches performance data for a meaningful comparison.

Head to head

Direct comparison between Queiroz and Ghalenoei indicates that the Iranian coach has better record in offense and winning categories, while the Portuguese has a better defensive record.

Both have now played in the Asian Cup. Both achieved identical result. Both lost at quarter finals stage with penalty shootout. Queiroz takes the edge with winning 3 out of 3 matches against Ghaelnoei’s 2 wins and 1 draw.

Queiroz qualified for the World Cup , but that is after being in charge for 3 years. Ghalenoei lasted only 1 year and never had the chance to coach in the World Cup qualifiers.

Offense:

 Mohammad Mayeli-Kohan had the best attacking record amongst the 6 coaches with his team averaging a very respectable 2.73 goals a match. This is indeed a high goal average scored and a record that might stand for decades. The worst offensive team was Afshin Ghotbi with only 1.30 goals per match , the second worst is Carlos Queiroz with 1.59

Winning percentage:

 the most wins percentage goes to Ali Daei whose teams had as 64% rate. Daei is , closely followed by Mayeli-Kohan with 60%. The worst is Ghotbi teams with only 53.33% while the second worst is Queiroz with only 54.35%.

Defense:

Best defensive team goes for Carlos Quieroz with his team conceding .52 goals per match. The worst defense was Branko Ivankovic teams conceding shy of a goal per game ,  at 0.93.  Ghotbi was second worst in defense close to Ivankovic at .90 goal per game.

We leave it to you to decide who the better coach in terms of performance is. What is clear for us , though , is that Carlos Queiroz record , is far from being the best overall coach despite holding the job for 4 years now.

Table

 # Name Nationality Matches W D L win % GF GA GFPG GAPG
1 Mohamad MAYELI-KOHAN Iran 40 24 10 6 60.00% 109 27 2.73 0.68
2 Branko IVANOKOVIC Croatia 56 33 14 9 58.93% 115 52 2.05 0.93
3 Amir Ghalenoei Iran 17 10 6 1 58.82% 30 12 1.76 0.71
4 Ali Daei Iran 25 16 6 3 64.00% 44 15 1.76 0.60
5 Afshin Ghotbi USA 30 16 6 8 53.33% 39 27 1.30 0.90
6 Carlos Queiroz Portugal 46 25 14 7 54.35% 73 24 1.59 0.52

Queiroz wants Iran “Amateurs” in the final round of the World Cup!

 

From: http://www.maisfutebol.iol.pt/

While considering it an elusive goal in a group that has Argentina, Bosnia and Nigeria, Queiroz is thinking beyond the group stages of the World Cup 2014.

Carlos Queiroz admits he will have difficulty in forming a group of 23 competent players for the World Cup. The coach of Iran is faced with a lack of high quality raw material, but does not give up plotting ambitious goals, so the goal is to go beyond the first round of the championship. Placed in Group F, Iran will face Argentina , Nigeria and Bosnia Herzegovina.

“The ambition is to qualify for the second round. I know it’s an elusive goal too, I know it’s a fantasy, but I do not believe  in the theory that we are going to the World Cup just to learn. To raise the level of commitment,  people only understand this, I do not care to create this fantasy, because it is the best way to raise the commitment “, The Portuguese explained during the Conference ‘Speak  Football ‘, which was held in Lisbon recently.

The Portuguese knows the difficulties Iran will encounter. “The team is structurally amateur and will face opponents with players who have much experience in international competitions, but we have crossed hell, that was the qualification rounds , now the World Cup is to cross the sky ‘, Queiroz  admitted that when it comes to counting, Iran had only one player in the national team who worked abroad and now has half the team out, because he was looking for players of Iranian descent who had never represented the country (…).

[quote]”Still, the group for the World will not have any player with experience of Champions League.”[/quote]

“In this sense, the strategy will be based on an intense observation of opponents shortfalls, known weak points and seizing the right moment to make a difference.”  concluded Queiroz as his strategy to play against the World Cup opponents.

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Editorial comment

Queiroz disturbing and unabated downgrading of Iranian football and players seems to continue unabated.  During a football related conference in the Portuguese capital, Lisbon, Queiroz once again referred to the Iranian players as amateurs, thereby hitting two birds with one stone. The fact is very clear. None of over 30 players that Queiroz has selected in Team Melli in the last 18 months is an amateur. They are all professionals with the only mean of income , being football. But Queiroz still insist on referring to them as amateurs, as a mean of downgrading their ability as players rather than the true meaning of the word and their job status.

Of course, Queiroz talk could very well be tactical ploy as he is lowering the expectation of the rest of the world from his team and warning the Iranians not to expect much from a bunch of “Amateurs” thereby absolving himself of serious accountability when Iran comes empty handed from the World Cup.  However, his degrading remarks about Iranian football are seriously bordering a insults.

A famous Iranian football personality, who was quizzed about how tolerant the media are against all the humiliating remarks of Queiroz, while the same Iranian media are usually hyper critical and ruthless against their own national coaches of Team Melli, justified this change of attitude as the media’s desire to calm the situation and not create controversy harming Team Melli spirit , while approaching the World Cup! The same person who did not wished to be named, also remarked that many of the football analyst  talk about Queiroz as a necessity in developing Iran’s football and essential ingredient of Iran winning the AFC Asian Cup 2015.