Year: 2015

FFIRI negotiating with ADIDAS

The head of marketing of the Iranian football federation FFIRI has confirmed that his federation is negotiating a new contract for the supply of kits to all the teams of different levels and age groups in FFIRI.

Mohammad Derakhshan who is the head of Marketing committee of FFIRI confirmed that his federation is in negotiation with the German giants Adidas, to supply Iranian national teams for the upcoming season until World Cup 2018.

Derakhshan said there have been a few questions that are still pending responses from the German sports good manufacturers. He also confirmed that an Italian supplier has approached FFIRI for the same purpose. No final decision has been reached yet by the FFIRI.

Currently , FFIRI is under contract with another German supplier UHLSports.

The relationship between UHLSports and FFIRI was marred by accusations of poor quality control claims. Carlos Queiroz and some of his players have claimed that the German company has supplied the team with inferior quality kits while UHLSports have vehemently denied such claims and threatened to take legal action against those false accusations.

Kaffashian confirms AFC sanction against Khakpour.

Ali Kaffashian who has attended the first New AFC Executive committee meeting in Manama, Bahrain confirmed in an interview that the AFC technical Committee does not recognize Mohammad Khakpour as a qualified trainer/coach for Iran’s U-23 team.

Khakpour , with little if any coaching experience at top level football was surprisingly selected to replace Nelo Vingada the coach of Iran’s U23 team or the Olympics team. This was carried out shortly after the disastrous exit of the U-23 team in the Asian games, one of the worst defeats of an Iranian representative team in the history. Widespread condemnations from the media, fans and experts, forced Kaffashian to react to save this team which was supposed to qualify for the Olympics Games in Rio. However, the man who is world famous for his grin and cool demeanor, acted hastily in an attempt to quell what was now some strong disapproval within the federation as well.

The selection of Mohammad Khakpour ahead of many qualified, more experienced and more competent coaches, domestic or foreign shocked many. In essence, FFIRI under Kaffashian could not have done any worse than such a move. To put icing on the cake, Habib Kashani and Mohammad Mayeli-Kohan were also appointed as managers in different capacities for the U23 team.

kaffashian salman alkhalifa24028

So, It was not very surprising nor very long before the fans experienced the result in such incompetency. Iran U23 lost against arch rivals Saudi Arabia in Tehran, in the penultimate game of the Asian Qualifiers for the Rio Olympic Games 2016. Iran was hosting the group but could not qualify directly to the next stage. Complete failure and elimination from the first step was avoided by the virtue of qualification to the final rounds as one of the best 5 groups runner ups. The final rounds of qualifications will be held in Qatar on January 2016.

The AFC came into the picture after examining the coaching certificates of Khakpour and found it below the minimum required to coach the U23 team. Khakpour has a coaching certificate in USA not recognized by FIFA or AFC. As such Mohammad Khakpour is not allowed to coach this team unless he attends a proper FIFA or AFC coaching course and passes the required tests.

Kaffashian’s attempt to dodge the issue of proper qualification of coaches mandated by FIFA and AFC resulted in a meeting with the Asian Technical Director Andy Roxburgh. The Scottish coach has been recently appointed in order to enhance Asian coaches education and player development.

Kaffashian, a Vice-President of AFC, failed to present a solid case for Khakpour’s appointment and could not respond to why his Khakpour’s credentials were not checked according to the AFC regulations. The verdict was clear and it stood as is. If Khakpour does not attend the proper certified AFC or FIFA coaching courses, he will be banned from sitting on the bench of Iran’s U23 team during official competitions.

True to his style, Kaffashian attempting to relegate the issue , said that the U23 team has no official activities or commitment until January 2016, so, they do not need to get all hyped up about it!

Of course, there is no mention by Kaffashian on accountability and responsibility of such an appointment or debacle, to be more precise.

Team Melli players promote charity work.

A group of Iranian footballers including Team Melli players visited a children’s charity organization that cares for cancer and Leukemia patients.

According to ISNA, Javad Nekounam, Fereydoon Zandi, Karim Ansarifard, Pejman Montazeri, Hashem Beigzadeh and Kazem Borjlou visited the charity on Saturday 11th July 2015 and concluded the visit with the signing of the most valuable football agreement in the history of Iran’s football.

 Javad Nekounam, Fereydoon Zandi and Karim Ansarifard are regular visitors to the charity

 In this agreement , a group of Iranian footballers, including Team Melli past and present players, joined the big family of the Mahak Charity and pledged to the children who suffer from cancer that they will not forget them and shall establish a permanent friendship bond with the children.

The footballers promised that regular visits will be established to cheer the children and play with them at least once every three months. The footballers also pledged to introduce MAHAK Charity to their friends and colleagues and encourage them to join this charity.

The agreement was signed in the presence of the founder and CEO of MAHAK Charity organization Saideh Ghods , a group of reporters and children and along with their families. The agreement contains 4 clauses. The provisions of this contract are all based love and compassion for their fellow human beings.

The importance of this agreement is the introduction of charity work as part of the commitment of football professionals in Iran and the need of the footballers to pay back to the society that has backed and supported them.

 

Saideh Ghod is an Iranian born social Entrepreneur and Philanthropist, started MAHAK to help indigent children suffering from cancer and their families. As a result, MAHAK, Society to Support Children Suffering from Cancer was registered in Iran in 1991 as a non-profit, non-governmental organization and it continues its work 16 years later solely with the help of charitable people. It was built on and for love and it thrives on hope.

At the start of its activities her small group met in a basement room but today with the persistence of Mrs. Ghods and the help of its supporters and volunteers MAHAK has grown into a respected, transparent, internationally recognized entity operating a hospital of its own. MAHAK is truly a dream that came true.

In addition to work done through MAHAK, Mrs. Ghods has gone on to help develop other NGOs such as ISCC, BCSI, and the GFI to promote Iran’s cancer treatment as well as help the environment. Today she continues to travel throughout Iran and the world organizing, meeting, fund raising, and developing way to foster and grow these organizations.

Marco Octavio “This win is historic and monumental”

Team Melli Beach Soccer head coach believes that the first step taken by his team was quite strong and firm while the result against the losing finalist of the last edition of the World Cup , Spain was historical and monumental.

In a short statement to the press after his team’s thrilling victory against Spain in the group stages of the eighth FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2015, the Brazilian Marco Octávio Simoes Barbosa (60 years) said that the players are all in good condition and most importantly in a good spirit. “The coordination between all of them is quite ideal and we count to keep it that way” Barbosa added.

octavi and Akbari celbrate win vs Spain

He continued “The second historical win for us was this one against Spain. They were the runner-up of the last Beach Soccer World Cup and one of the favorites in this tournament. We were able to defeat a strong team. Players have taken the first step firmly.”

Team Melli Beach Soccer coach “we will continue training today for the big test on Sunday. We will play that match with even more motivation. On the pitch we are going to fight to get the three points.”

Marco Octávio conveyed his best wishes and congratulation for all the Iranian fans for such a victory.

Iran defeated Spain 6-5 on Friday and will be meeting Brazil on Sunday. The perpetually strong and title contenders Brazil, is leading Group C on goal difference after they beat Mexico 5-1 in their opener on Friday.

octavi and Peyman Hosseini celbrate win against Spain

 

Group C

 

Teams MP W W+ WP L GF GA GD Pts
Brazil
Brazil
 1 1 0 0 0 5 1 4 3
Iran
Iran
 1 1 0 0 0 6 5 1 3
Spain
Spain
 1 0 0 0 1 5 6 -1 0
Mexico
Mexico
 1 0 0 0 1 1 5 -4 0

 

Mokhtari seals a thrilling win for Iran Beach Soccer.

Mohammad Mokhtari scored a last gasp winner for Iran against Spain to record Iran first win in the World Championship.

The first match of Group C of FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Portugal 2015 was held in Espinho , Portugal, ended 6-5 for Iran which many would consider as a shock result with the Spanish side laying strong claims for the title. Iran Team, themselves quite an established name in Beach soccer now qualified for the World Cup after finishing 3rd in the Asian Qualifiers behind Oman and Japan.

ESP-IRN Beach Soccer 2015 [3]

The match started with a quick goal from Iran scored by Farid Boulokbashi. Spain in response scored two quick goals to forge ahead 2-1. The Spanish lead was short lived as Moslem Mesigar scored the equalizer for Team Melli Beach soccer team 2-2.

Spain took the lead when they scored the 3rd and then the 4th but once again Iran came back through Farid Boulokbashi and Mohammad Mokhtari to make it 4-4. Spain final goal came from their hat trick hero Antonio , but Ahmadzadeh scored the equalizer to set a very thrilling last few minutes.

Several threats on both goal in which the Spanish goalkeeper excel followed, however , the last world was for Mokhtari who scored with virtually seconds left of the match.

Iran gained a valuable 3 points in a tough group that also includes Brazil and Mexico.

 

ESP-IRN Beach Soccer 2015 [1]

 

 

 

FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Portugal 2015
Group C
Espinho Stadium , Espinho (POR)
Spain
 Spain vs.
Iran
Iran
5 – 6
ANTONIO   [3] 1’59”, 14’05”, 30’37”
F. BOULOKBASHI [2] 1’39”, 14’06”
NICO   [1] 2’28”
M. MESIGAR [1] 4’53”
LLORENÇ  [1] 7’57”
M. MOKHTARI  [2] 18’07”, 35’17”
AHMADZADEH [1] 34’00”

Team Melli players transfer market 2015/16.

The transfer window has opened in most of the leagues round the world and our focus , as usual has been the Team Melli players past and present.

It is safe to say that the movement of the Team Melli players was not exactly an earth shattering activity. Domestically, there has been very few transfers to talk about with most of the Team Melli players renewing their contracts with their current clubs.

In essence,  Team Melli players fall in three categories, The Young promising including rising stars, the established players, the twilight zone players.

ramin-rezaeian-28553

Young prospects: Most clubs hunt for bargains while pursuing young players. Iran is a big country and find the right talent in the right place is not something that can be considered a routine or easy task. Competition amongst the clubs can be become rough and messy at times each side pulling all the tricks up their sleeves. Players also take full advantage when faced with situation where there are multiple suitors. It is not uncommon to hear that a player has signed for two clubs or more in Iran!

The favorite destination of most of the young players is Esteghlal or Persepolis. The popularity of these two teams and the bi-partisan nature of football in Iran, puts these two teams at an unfair advantage. The two most popular clubs in Iran contribute very little if any in developing or producing young players themselves. However, they are at a vantage point when players, particularly young ones, come to them and consider it an honor to don the jerseys of the big two clubs.

However , now that Persepolis and Esteghlal have been facing dire cash shortage and are technically bankrupt , the attraction of these two teams is dwindling. Young aspiring players are more careful and vigilant although the appeal of these two names is still there.

Unfortunately, this season the number of players in this category is not too pleasing. Most would be staying put in their club like Mehdi Sharifi and Ali Karimi of Sepahan and Mehdi Torabi of Saipa. Ramin Rezaeian is the only one who has joined Persepolis from Rah Ahan , otherwise the lack of promising players is becoming of some concern amongst the coaches and experts.

Ando cute

Established players: most of the Team Melli players in this category have opted to stay with their clubs despite some of the clubs not honoring timely wage payments.  The odd ones who made the change include the Captain Ando Teymourian (Tractosazi to Umm Salal (QAT)) , Pejman Montazeri (Umm Salal (QAT) to Al Ahli (QAT)) , Daniel Davari (Grasshoppers to Arminia Bielefeld) , Mohammad Nouri (Persepolis to Al Mesaimer (QAT).

This category is also lacks exciting transfers or prospects of major changes.

The Twilight zone : Unfortunately , a number of current Team Melli squad fall in this category including Teymourian (32 years) whom we gave the benefit of the doubt as he is the Captain of the team. Jalal Hosseini (33 years), the Solid and always present central defender , did not renew his contract with Al Ahali of Qatar but surprisingly he was rejected by his first choice and favorite destination , Persepolis. Eventually he was recruited by Naft Tehran, but there were not many suitors chasing him either.

Masoud Shojaei (31 years), the perennial ever-present midfielder who has been struggling for many seasons with clubs of lower divisions, once again flopped but this time in Qatar not Spain. His team Al Shahaniya was relegated last season and as expected the Qatari’s found him to be a surplus to their requirement this coming season. Shojaei is currently negotiating with Persepolis. It is rumored that he will accept a huge pay cut in order to join the reds with no sign on fees demanded by the player.

Shojaei against Montenegro
Shojaei against Montenegro

So, it looks like 2015/2016 season will start with relative calm in the Team Melli squad, which could be a hidden advantage for Carlos Queiroz if not for the fans or the transfer market.

There are tough roads ahead. Guam , Oman and India will be ready to challenge Iran in the qualifying rounds of the FIFA World Cup 2018. As Team Melli players found out against Turkmenistan , it is not a forgone conclusion to win against such oppositions. Guam , in particular has made a tremendous progress and will be testing Iran, while Oman will always remain a tough nut to crack for Team Melli.

Minimum disturbance of the players may be just what the doctored ordered for Team Melli squad.

Iran leads AFC ranking .

Iran continued leading Asia in the FIFA Ranking table published today by the World football governing body in Zurich.

With a total of 716 points, Iran climbed to no 38 in the world , which is its highest ranking in 2015. This was a 3 step climb from last month at 41. Japan  remains second with 621 points and 50th in the world. Korea Rep and Australia maintain their chase to catch up.

Iran’s last match was a disappointing 1-1 draw away to Turkmenistan in the FIFA World Cup 2018 Qualifiers.

Argentina, which beat Iran in the last World Cup , climb at the top of the World Ranking ahead of Germany, while recently crowned Copa America Champions Chile climbed 8 places up to no 11. On March 26th, Team Melli beat Chile 2-0 with Javad Nkounam and Vahid Amiri goals in in NV Arena, St Pölten – Austria as part of the two teams’ preparations for their upcoming official matches.

 

 

Team Melli vs UAE AFC Asian Cup 2015

 

 

AFC

Rank

 FIFA

Rank

 TEAM Total Points Previous Points Positions Avg. 2015

AVG WGT

 2015 Avg.
 1 38 IRN

Iran

 716(716.27) 717 3 437.18 437.18
 2 50 JPN

Japan

 621(620.98) 623 2 341.48 341.48
 3 52 KOR

Korea Republic

 608(607.70) 587 6 371.92 371.92
 4 59 AUS

Australia

 559(559.29) 532 4 364.41 364.41
 5 69 UAE

United Arab Emirates

 487(487.14) 496 4 245.05 245.05
 6 75 UZB

Uzbekistan

 453(452.76) 479 -1 181.07 181.07
 7 77 CHN

China PR

 436(436.43) 409 2 271.46 271.46
 8 86 IRQ

Iraq

 382(381.99) 381 0 205.01 205.01
 9 92 JOR

Jordan

 355(354.72) 316 11 102.61 102.61
 10 92 KSA

Saudi Arabia

 355(354.52) 329 6 160.94 160.94

 

 

 

Iran RANKING DATA for 2015

Rank Year Month MP W L D
38 2015 July 2 1 0 1
41 2015 June 0 0 0 0
40 2015 May 0 0 0 0
40 2015 April 2 1 1 0
42 2015 March 0 0 0 0
41 2015 February 4 3 0 1
51 2015 January 0 0 0 0

 

OPPONENTS ranking in the FIFA World Cup 2018 Qualifiers

 

 

AFC Rank World Rank TEAM total Points Previous Points +/-
 12 102 Oman 329 319 -1
25 152 Turkmenistan 167 99 21
 27 154 Guam 163 119 20
 28 156 India 161 161 -15

 

Iran in FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2015.

The road to Portugal
Reigning champions Iran sealed top spot in Group D at the 2015 AFC Beach Soccer Championship ahead of Lebanon and Thailand, before sweeping aside United Arab Emirates 6-1 in the quarter-finals. The team, coached by Brazilian tactician Marco Octavio, met their match in the next round, however, missing out on a place in the final after losing to Japan. That left them needing victory in the match for third place to book progress to Portugal 2015, and a commanding 8-3 defeat of Lebanon promptly assured them of a sixth appearance at the global showcase.

Naderi beach soccer
ahmadzadeh beach soccer
Strengths and style
Iran can pride themselves on a supremely effective array of attacking talents, led by the gifted Mohammad Ahmadzadeh. His team’s top scorer at Tahiti 2013, Ahmadzadeh helped himself to seven goals in the AFC Championship, including four against Lebanon in the match for third place. Further back, Seyed Peyman Hosseini was voted best goalkeeper at the continental finals, while captain Hossein Naderi is a solid defender capable of powerful strikes from distance.

FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup record
Iran have made major strides in beach soccer over the last few years, most notably winning the Asian title in 2013. They will be embarking on their sixth World Cup campaign in Portugal and will attempt to fare better than in 2013, when they succumbed 6-5 to eventual champions Russia in the quarter-finals.

 

 

Matches

Change to local time
10 JUL 2015 – 13:00 Local time
GROUP C
Espinho Stadium
Espinho
Spain   SPAIN     Iran   IRAN
15:00
********************************************************************
12 JUL 2015 – 17:30 Local time
GROUP C
Espinho Stadium
Espinho
Iran   IRAN     Brazil   BRAZIL
19:30
********************************************************************
14 JUL 2015 – 13:00 Local time
GROUP C
Espinho Stadium
Espinho
Mexico   MEXICO     Iran   IRAN
15:00
********************************************************************

1 Peyman HOSSEINI  Goalkeeper
31 years old
172 cm
2 Amir AKBARI  Defender
23 years old
194 cm
3 Mohammad MORADI  Pivot
18 years old
178 cm
4 Mostafa KIANI  Defender
29 years old
185 cm
5 Ali NADERI  Defender
35 years old
185 cm
6 Faroogh DARA  Defender
31 years old
180 cm
7 Mehran MORSHEDI  Defender
25 years old
184 cm
8 Farid BOULOKBASHI  Pivot
32 years old
173 cm
9 Mohammad MOKHTARI  Wing
25 years old
184 cm
10 Moslem MESIGAR  Pivot
30 years old
185 cm
11 Mohammad AHMADZADEH  Wing
28 years old
175 cm
12  Hamid BEHZADPOUR  Goalkeeper
28 years old
186 cm
COACH:  Marco Octavio (BRAZIL)

FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Portugal 2015.

The FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Portugal 2015 begins this Thursday, which is the eighth edition of the global showpiece. Sixteen teams from around the world will play a total of 32 matches at the 3,300 capacity Estadio da Praia da Baia in Espinho.

FIFA.com marks your card for the tournament by providing the answers to five key questions.

Are Russia the team to beat?
No question. The defending champions will arrive in Espinho with ten of the 12 players who secured their second consecutive world title at Tahiti 2013, where they took their unbeaten run in the competition to 12 matches. The Russians can be expected once again to show all the hunger that has made them the best team in the world. Having just won European Games gold in Baku – despite losing one of their group matches – they will not be lacking in confidence. “I hope we’ll do no worse than in the last two World Cups,” said Russia coach Mikhail Likhachev. “Russia are among the favourites for this tournament, but we’re not the only favourites.”

Which other teams are in the running for the title?
While the list of contenders has grown in recent years, it is hard to look past four-time winners Brazil as the team next most likely to triumph after Russia. Also in the mix are three European teams possessing the blend of youth and experience needed to become world champions: Spain, the runners-up at Tahiti 2013 and the 2014 Euro Beach Soccer Cup winners; Italy, the only side to beat Russia in Baku; and Switzerland, who still have several members of the side that finished second at Dubai 2009 in their ranks. And let’s not forget tournament hosts Portugal.

Can Portugal handle the pressure of playing on home sand?
Judging by the quality of players at their disposal, the Portuguese should be able to cope with the expectation that comes with playing in front of one’s own fans. Between them, Madjer, Alan and Belchior have racked up 96 Beach Soccer World Cup matches and 140 goals, and possess the experience needed to harness pressure and turn it into something positive.

“The fans are our 11th player and there’s no doubt they’re going to give us a huge boost,” said Madjer in a recent interview with FIFA.com. “The sport’s getting more and more popular and people are sitting up and taking notice of it. All we have to do is repay that by having success on the sand.”

The fact is, however, that Brazil remain the only host nation ever to have won the world title, though it should be remembered that they failed to do so on their first attempt in 2005, when Portugal beat them in the semi-finals. Since Brazil’s last win on home sand in Rio de Janeiro in 2007, the host nations have found success hard to come by in the Beach Soccer World Cup. Both France at Marseille 2008 and Italy at Ravenna 2011 failed to progress beyond the quarter-finals, while United Arab Emirates went out in the group phase at Dubai 2009. In finishing fourth in 2013, however, Tahiti exceeded all expectations.

Are there likely to be any shocks?
Yes. Japan surprised everyone by reaching the last four in 2005, while few tipped Uruguay to reach the 2006 final and even fewer expected to see Mexico there in 2007. The fourth places achieved by El Salvador in 2009 and the Tahitians two years ago also came out of the blue. Those unlikely achievements will only fire the dreams of the sides hoping to cause an upset or two this time around.

Among them are Iran, who will be coached for a third time by Marco Octavio. Speaking recently to FIFA.com, he was bullish about their prospects in Portugal: “We have to try and win the title. We are a strong team, as we’ve shown in the past. We reached the quarter-finals at the last World Cup, where we went down fighting to world champions Russia. After the world finals we then went on to beat Russia and Brazil, and we’ll need to be ready to figure among the title contenders this time.”

Team Melli will do well to cause a splash this time, having been drawn in the toughest group of all, alongside Brazil, Spain and Mexico. Senegal, Paraguay and Costa Rica have similarly lofty ambitions. On duty at Dubai 2009, when the Costa Ricans lost their three group games, Tico striker Greivin Pacheco is confident they can fare better this time, despite being drawn in a daunting group with Italy, Switzerland and Oman. “It’s difficult but not impossible,” he told FIFA.com. “We don’t want to go over there just being happy to take part again. We need to aim to make history.”

Who will be the stars of the tournament?
Beach soccer mega-stars Madjer, Bruno Xavier and Andrey Bukhlitskiy are just some of the players who have been lighting up the game for years now and are sure to be doing so again in Espinho. Less well-known but just as consistent on the big stage are the likes of Iran’s Mohammad Ahmadzadeh, Italy’s Paolo Palmacci and the Argentinian Luciano Franceschini.

Meanwhile, Portugal 2015 will see a clutch of hotly tipped young talents step out into the global spotlight, among them Spain’s Llorenc, Datinha of Brazil, Ozu of Japan, Tahiti’s Raimana Li Fung Kuee, Babacar Fall of Senegal and the Paraguayan Ruben Moran.

Ando Teymourian joins Umm Salal.

The Captain of Team Melli Andranik ‘Ando’ Teymourian has joined Umm Salal in the Qatar league for a fee close to US$ 1.2 million.

Teymourian who was playing for Tractorsazi Tabriz team last season , has played in QSL before with Al Khraitiat club before returning to Iran and playing with Esteghlal.

Pejman Montazeri , who is the other Team Melli player in Umm Salal is certain to leave the team and join Al Ahli club to be the partner of Mojtaba Jabbari.

Teymourian will be back in Tehran after the signing of the contract , then will join his new team in the Holland preparation camp. Umm Salal ended last season in a respectable 6th position.