Qualification to the Olympic Games 2016 Football tournament is at jeopardy.

Omid team (Iran U23) has failed  qualify directly for the finals of AFC Asian U23 Championship after its loss against Saudi Arabia 2-1 in Azadi stadium, today (Tuesday)

Iran now has to wait until the conclusion of all the 10 groups games in Asia to learn its fate. The best 5 top runners up will be granted a place in the finals. The 10 group winners plus host Qatar qualify directly  for the January 2016 tournament which is also the decider for the Rio De Janeiro  Olympics Games Football competition. 3 Asian teams will qualify for the Olympics

In a match attended by less than 2000 fans in Azadi , the first half was eventless in general except for the glorious chance that Sardar Azmoun wasted when he hit the woodwork after he was clear and only the goalkeeper to beat.

The rest of the half produced no serious chances from either sides as  much of the football was being played in the midfield area. Both teams exercised caution keeping their defenses tight

The second half was different affair and most of it had a Saudi flavor. Needing a victory to assure direct qualification, the Saudi team took the initiative and showed much purpose and determination to score. They outpaced Iran and their teamwork and passing executed to a high accuracy , enabled them to control much of the game and keep possession.

Much of the threat from the Saudi Team came from their left flank and winger Abdul Majeed who troubled Iran’s right back Mehdi Torabi by his pace and dribbling. The first goal for the Saudi team came precisely from the left winger’s good work. His cross found the Saudi Forward Al Zubaidi whose shot beat Iran’s keeper Akhbari and hit the upright , however the deflected ball then hit Akhbari ‘s back and into the net. Perhaps a lucky , yet a deserved goal for the more hardworking team.

Saudi Arabia scored the second from a howler of a mistake by defender Mordmand whose gross misjudgment allowed the Saudi forward Al Emadi to sneak in between him and Akhbari and easily slot the ball into the empty Iranian net.

Iran’s consolation came from an own goal by the Saudi defender.

In general and despite the 3 solid wins against Nepal , Palestine and Afghanistan , all teams of the third tier of Asia , Iran failed to appear as a solid unit. 11 individual players, some admittedly enjoying respectable talents, is no substitute for teamwork and coordination amongst the players.

Omid Team had many flaws, some are institutional in Iran’s football, while others were individual mistakes committed by players. There was no true guidance or effective management from the bench either, at least none that was effective enough in improving the team performance and result of the match. The coaching staff failure to identify the threat from the Saudi left flank by not providing support for Mehdi Torabi , was a indicative of guileless coaching.

There were also some niggling problems with the team in the shape of tendency to play as individuals rather than a team. The two stars of the squad , Azmoun and Jahanbakhsh inclusion which lead to a crises between Queiroz and Kaffashian eventually leading to the resignation of Team Melli coach , was not much of a help for Omid team

Azmoun and Jahanbakhsh failed to shine when most needed. There were many occasions of unwanted dribbling and keeping the ball longer than necessary by these two players. Far too many dead ball situations and free kicks were wasted due to profligacy and wastefulness. The final ball by the Iranian players were meager, lacking accuracy.

Iran Omid Team , has a mountain to climb. The team is work in progress and has a lot of basic work to do to reach a respectable standard that can compete at the highest level of this age group.

Iran stands a very good chance to make the AFC Asian U23 Championship finals in Doha because of the 9 points and 15 goals scored , but even with winning a berth in Doha,  it is difficult to see them achieve the dreams of millions and qualify for the Olympics Games after a 40 years absent.  The elite teams of Asia , are going to be even tougher than Saudi Arabia and with 9 months to go, a true upheaval is required to revive the chance of Iran making the Olympics in Rio in 2016.

Mohammad Khakpour has been given an immense mission. His limited experience in coaching seems to be a hurdle and unless more experienced and proficient coaching staff are found, it is back to prayers again in order to make the Olympics.

 

 

Sweden vs. Iran

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As if we needed a reminder , if anything was learnt from the match in St. Poulten where Iran defeated Chile 2-0 , we learned that the gap between world football teams is narrowing. Despite the star studded Chile team where virtually the whole squad plays in major European leagues, a clever and hardworking Iran , which had only a couple of European based players in the second tier of the La Liga can beat the odds and win.

Team Melli can repeat the same excellent result Friends Arena against Sweden. Iran is expected to play 4-3-3, with the Portuguese coach Carlos Queiroz choosing to play “European style  ” with 4-3-3 and 4-5-1 defensive forward.  As witnessed against Chile , Team Melli has the ability for a quick transition game and counter attack using the skills of players such as the excellent Ashkan Dejagah and equally superb Vahid Amiri. While attacking in depth, the team also plays an aggressive defensive game when needed. Teymourian and Nekounam have added to the versatility of Iran’s overall defensive game by defending from deep while feeding the offense with penetrating balls.

Sweden has for a long time chosen to play with a pronounced forward, in a sort of 4-3-3 lineup offensively and turned to 4-5-1 in the defensive. “Yes, we in the past had the need to become stronger centrally. With two forwards, depending on how they play together, you risk getting a little weaker in the middle of the field “ says coach Hamrén of Sweden.

”It will be a very interesting match against a good opponent who played a great World Cup although they did not win any match” said Reine Almqvist who saw their match against Chile on Friday. ”we have seen their matches on DVD, and they impress us” added Sweden head coach Hamrèn.

Judging by training sessions, it seems that Captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic will be playing from the start, possibly with Marcus Berg next to him instead of Isaac Kiese.

The match seems to be a closely fought affair. Team Melli had always what it takes to challenge the big boys. This Chile game result, while making waves and some headlines especially in the British newspapers, is not unique by any standards. In fact, if we needed a reminder, Team Melli beat Russia in a friendly while giving their opponent which has not been beaten for 12 matches, quite a frustrating time. Iran played some superb football against the powerful Russians in the last match before the same Carlos Queiroz took over as a coach.

 

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What it takes, apart from the players that have ability and skills to play at the top , is some desire  and courage. A team with a winning mentality, players who have the capacity to win , a team that is thinking of scoring rather than parking the bus for damage limitation.

Simply put, winning a game starts with establishing a winning mine set.

There are some very good players in the Swedish team, but it is hardly a formidable one and defiantly not as strong as the Chileans on paper. But in Sweden, there is one world class player who can make a difference in Zlatan Ibrahimovic. This eccentric player has his ups ad down. He is moody, arrogant and superb. If he chooses, he can win matches single handed, being a class of his own , or if he is not in such jolly mood , he plays like a stroll in the park type of football.

 

If this is the last match of Iran under Carlos Queiroz as the Portuguese coach himself and FFIRI boss Kaffashian leads us to believe, then the fans hope that Queiroz will leave with a real bang. And that would be to go for some entertaining football in this friendly. Daring but logical game plan will leave Queiroz with lasting reputation and fond memories with Team Melli fans.

The Portuguese coach does have some niggling tendencies in picking players and does things that are enigmatic to the rest of us, such as playing one lethargic player like Shojaei, and insisting on picking a forward who has not scored all season in Ansarifard , but he is undoubtedly still the fan’s favorite with a large percentage of approval points.

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Possible Starting Line Ups:

Sweden:

Andreas Isaksson (vice-captain), P Bengtsson, Andreas Granqvist, M Olsson, Anton Tinnerholm, S Larsson, Pontus Wernbloom, K Kallstrom, ErkanZengin, Z Ibrahimovic (captain), Johan Elmander, O Toivonen

Iran:

Alireza Haghighi, Pejman Montazeri, J Hosseini, V. Ghafouri, H Beikzadeh, Javad Nekounam (Captain), A Teymourian, Masoud Shojaei, H Amiri, Reza Ghoochannejhad

 

FIFA RANKING

Sweden is the 45^th team in the FIFA current Ranking, which is their lowest FIFA ranking in their football history ever. Highest was 2^nd at November 1994.

Iran in the 42^nd Place (March ’15) . Their best ranking was 15th

 

 

An empathic 6-0 win against hapless Afghanistan ensured Iran consolidates its spot at the top of the table ahead of Saudi Arabia and also ensures a thrilling finale for the AFC U23 Championship qualifiers when the two top teams meet on Tuesday.

The most impressive scene of the match was the 80,000 fans in the Azadi stadium with the absolute majority supporting the away team Afghanistan. However , the thousands of the excited Afghan fans had little to rejoice from the match as their team fell victim of the big brother with a superb control and authority in the game.

Omid team seems to improve with each game as witnessed in  the performance against Afghanistan. Iran Omid Team had full and total control of the match, denying the neighbors any chance for shooting. The scoring was opened 11 minutes into the game by none other than Sardar Azmoun when he took full advantage of a defender error who lost the ball just in front of Azmoun lurking behind him. The Rostov player run with the ball and finished immaculately to put Iran 1-0 ahead.

Mordmand then scored Iran’s second in the 23rd minute when he climber to head the ball inside the net. 2-0

on the 27th minute Kamandani finished quite neatly from a diagonal ball by Abdollahzadeh on the right.

10 minutes later , he Captain on  the day , Alireza Jahanbakhsh scored his first goal of the tournament with an excellent free kick leaving Afghan keeper no hope,

The first half finished 4-0 for Iran’s U23 team

The second half continued on the same rhythm . on the hour, Iran’s defender Rozbeh Cheshmi scored Iran’s fifth assisted by a perfectly floated free kick by Alireza Jahabakhsh. Finally , Sardar Azmoun sealed the match with his second goal of the game and Iran’s sixth when he neatly finished from a finely measured pass on the left flank from Milad Mohammadi.

Iran Omid team keeps the pressure on the Saudi’s. The performance would encourage mote fans to show their support. The two stars of the team Azmoun and Jahanbakhsh maintained their high standard in the game and lead by example. The only reservation was the tendency by Sardar Azmoun to go it alone when he is not in the best situation to score. Traces of selfishness were evident in his game and could become an issue if not guided soon. Jahanbakhsh on the other hand was spotless and delivered a sterling performance despite a niggling minor injury. He was substituted on the hour to conserve his energy and give him time to recover.

Iran has a perfect record from 3 games with 14 goals scored and none conceded.

 

It is very hard to believe it , but it is a reality.

For the first time in the illustrious history of Iranian football , the Iranian teams fans are outnumbered by the opposition team fans in the temple of Iranian football, the great Azadi stadium. The outnumbering is not few hundreds but at least by 15,000.

Afghanistan U23 will be playing Iran’s Omid team (u23) in the Qualifying rounds of the AFC U23 championship. Afghanistan  still stands a chance in the competition with 4 points against Iran’s 6. Over an estimated 15,000 Afghan fans living in Iran have flocked to Azadi to cheer their team. The Iranians fans have not exceeded 500 fans so far!!

It is no secret that the fans have not received this competition too well , despite the inclusion of the 2 young Team Melli players Azmoun and Jahanbakhsh. Nowrooz holidays is one reason for lack of attendance , but many fans have been despondent with the results of Iranian teams and their failures last year. Omid Team was the biggest loser when they failed to qualify from their 3 team group against Thailand and Kyrgyzstan in the 2014 Asian Games last year.  The lack of interest in attending the match is reflective of how the Iranian fans receive and treat failures and their lack of tolerance for teams that fail to deliver.

The expectation is for more Iranians to make their way to Azadi , but it is very unlikely to match the number of Afghans in the stadium. Afghanistan fans have added color to this dour round of matches with their excellent support and backing for their team.

 

Iran’s Beach soccer team narrowly lost the Semi Finals of AFC Asian Beach Soccer championship 2015 after going down 4-5 to Japan in Katar beach , in Doha.

The thrilling match between two of the strongest Beach Soccer teams had a whirlwind start when Iran was two goals up within minutes in the first period Hassan Abdollahi scored the first 1-0 while Mohammad Ahmadzadeh  from penalty spot made it 2-0.
Ahmadzadeh  and the Brazilian born Japan Captain Moreira Ozu personal duels defined the destiny of this match.
The first period ended 2-0.
In the second half , Japan played was completely a different team, as they scored 4 goals Hirofumi , Shusei and 2 goals by Takasuke  to go in front 4-2 . Before the end of the period, Iran’s Captain Ali Naderi 3-4 scored to keep the pressure on Japan and ensure the continuation of the excitement..

The second period finished 3-4 in favor of Japan.

The third and final period was fast and furious with some rough play by both teams resulting in dangerous foul shoots. It was another one of those numerous personal duels of Ahmadzadeh and Ozu that referee whistled for a penalty,  spotting a shirt pull by the Japanese Captain on Iran’s forward. Ahmadzadeh himself took the spot kick with the chance to tie the match. However , the veteran failed to convert the penalty as the keeper saved his kick.

The next Ahmadzadeh and Ozu duel had a reverse decision as this time Ozu was the beneficiary of a call. The Japanese ferocious long-range free kick hit the under bar of Peyman Yousefi’s goal and bounced inside before rolling out. The referee called a goal and Japanese were rejoicing with their two goal lead at 3-5.
Iran was not throwing the towel though as  Mostafa Kiani 4-5 increased the heat on Japan with a fantastic free kick goal in the top of the goal. The thrilling match was not over yet with a few minutes left.
Last gasp attacks by both teams failed to produce another goal as the referee whistled for the end of the match.

It was a heart breaking loss for Iran who went down bravely against a powerful and well-organized team. Ahmadzadeh’s missed a vital penalty and a free kick that he normally delivers with ease. It was not his day.

Iran will Play Lebanon tomorrow for a match they have to win to make it to the FIFA Beach Soccer Championship in Portugal. The two teams already met at group stage where Iran beat the Lebanese team coached by Iranian Moghaddam , 3-2 in a close and hard fought match .

Carlos Queiroz applauded his players in the aftermath of his team’s victory over the Latin American powerhouse side, Chile. The 2-0 win in St. Poulten Austria, was considered a surprise by most observers, despite Queiroz thinking otherwise.

When asked by a reporter if the result was flattering his side, Queiroz said “That win did not surprise me. My players are capable and all they had to do was to apply themselves and commit to play their best according to the game plan. I expected a good result, but NO, That win did not surprise me.” Quieroz said in post-match news conference.

“It was a great honor to defeat a team in the class of Chile.  I must thank the Chileans for giving the opportunity to play them. This match was a good opportunity for Iran team to develop and progress.”

“I have also to acknowledge the great effort of all my players, for their performance, for their dedication and their resolve. They played well, fought for every ball , were totally disciplined without any sign of complacency or arrogance. I have never managed a group of dedicated players in my life like this present Team Melli.” Queiroz said in praise of the team that missed on a possible title when they lost on penalties in the AFC Asian Cup 2015 two months ago.

Queiroz sent a challenging message to the Ministry of Youth and Sport when he invited the people in charge to take much more care of this team after such a valuable result. “I hope that this win will increase their awareness that this team deserves more respect and care than they have been getting. “ Queiroz said

Asked about his resignation and any possibility of retracting it, the 62 years old Portuguese responded “As you know and have been informed by the head of FFIRI, I have submitted my resignation and that is irreversible. It was not my decision to discontinue working with Team Melli, the decision has been taken for me. A new set of personal have arrived at the federation and one of them does not think highly of my work and delivery. I can’t see how is it possible to world under such mindset and circumstances. I am just a coach and have limited authority and power on how things should work within the federation. I cannot even make major decisions regarding the future and prospect of the team.”

Carlos Queiroz also took the opportunity to express his extreme sorrow on the demise of the two Iranian journalist killed in the air crash south of France last Tuesday.

“On behalf of Team Melli, I want to dedicate this victory to the soul of the two Iranian journalists who should have been with us in this stadium. Perhaps they are not physically present, but their souls are here with us. We shall not forget them. My sincere condolences to their families. I also like to send my condolences to the families of all the air crash victims from wherever they are. It was such a tragedy, but life has to go on. “ Quieoz stated.

 The Portuguese coach will be at the helm of Team Melli for one last time in the match against Sweden. A victory against the Swedish side, will guarantee to leave a permanent positive impression with the Team Melli fans worldwide.

 

Iran’s Omid team defeated Palestine U23 team 3-0 in Azadi stadium on Friday to consolidate its position at top of Group C of AFC U23 Championship qualifiers. Iran has 6 points from two games and will be playing Afghanistan on Sunday before completing the schedule with a penultimate game against fierce rivals Saudi Arabia.

The Palestinians proved to be a tough opponent for Iran’s Omid team and through some organized defending denied Iran scoring in the first half. Despite relatively more ball possession , Omid Team failed to capitalize on their far and few scoring chances until the 49th minute when Sardar Azmoun showed his class and opened the scoring to put Iran 1-0 in the lead.

Iran was hoping for a big margin of goals against not so strong opposition , but Palestine not only defended well, it took the initiative and started attacking in numbers creating several good scoring chances. Khakpour , sensing the slim lead might be at danger from the Palestinians attacks  , opted to defend that one goal lead. Omid Team seemed to be content with holding to the ball and passing diagonally hoping to hold its 1 goal advantage until end of the game for all the 3 points. However, two fatal mistakes from the Palestinian Goalkeeper Rami , who was one of the better players during the match , sealed the fate of the match.

10 minutes before the final whistle, a tame deflected ball from Alireza Jahanbakhsh was easily collected by Rami who dropped himself to collect only to see the ball get away from him for Amir Arslan Motahari to pounce like a hawk and lot into the net. That made the score 2-0 for Iran and Palestine had a mountain to climb.

Just before the final whistle , Rami committed another error when he misjudged the run of Motahari and bumped into him for the Jordanian referee to immediately call a penalty. Amir Motahari took the penalty and scored, but the referee whistled to be re-taken because of an Iranian player encroachment into the area. Motahari made no mistake from the second attempt scoring his second and Iran’s third.

With 6 points in the bag , Omid team has quite a good chance to qualify for the final tournament in Qatar in January 2016 which are also the qualifiers for the Olympic Games Football tournament. Earlier on Saudi Arabia drew 0-0 with Afghanistan.

 

 

 AFC Asian U-23 Championship Qualifiers

Tehran, Iran

Group C Table

Teams	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	PTS
I.R. IRAN	2	2	0	0	8	0	8	6
SAUDI ARABIA	2	1	1	0	1	0	1	4
AFGHANISTAN	3	1	1	1	2	2	0	4
PALESTINE	3	1	0	2	2	4	-2	3
NEPAL	2	0	0	2	0	7	-7	0

 

 

Remaining matches

 

29-03-2015 15:00
NEPAL		SAUDI ARABIA
Venue: PAS Stadium, Tehran
29-03-2015 17:00
I.R. IRAN		AFGHANISTAN
Venue: Azadi Stadium, Tehran
31-03-2015 15:00
PALESTINE		NEPAL
Venue: PAS Stadium, Tehran
31-03-2015 17:00
SAUDI ARABIA		I.R. IRAN
Venue: Azadi Stadium, Tehran