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Omid team list announced

Mehdi MahdaviKia, the head coach of the national under-23  Omid team, announced the names of the players who will take part in the Asian Championship qualifiers in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, as follows:

SQUAD LIST

Name Positions DoB Club Birth Place
Ahmad Reza Jalali Defender 14/08/2001 Foolad Dasht-e Azadegan,
Alireza Bavieh Midfielder 21/08/2002 Foolad Khuzestan Ahvaz
Alireza Rezaei Goalkeeper 11/12/1999 Esteghlal Qazvin
Amir Ali Sadeghi Midfielder 09/02/2001 Esteghlal Tehran
Amir Hossein Nikpour Goalkeeper 02/04/2002 Gol Gohar Behshahr
Arya Barzegar Forward 10/10/2002 Persepolis Shiraz
Farzan Dana Forward 16/05/1999 Fajr Sepasi Shiraz
Hossein Nokhodkar Forward 24/02/2002 Gol Gohar Tehran
Mehdi Hashemnejad Rahimabadi Forward 27/10/2001 Malavan Anzali
Mehdi Lamouchi Tarji Defender 23/11/1999 Ghashghaei Kazeroon
Milad Kerr Defender 01/01/2000 Shamooshak Bandar Turkmen
Mohammad Amin Hezbavi Defender 06/05/2003 Foolad Khuzestan Ahvaz
Mohammad Hossein Zavari Midfielder 11/01/2001 Sanat Naft Abadan Gorgan
Mohammad Khodabandehlo Midfielder 07/09/1999 Peykan Tehran
Mohammad Mehdi Mohebbi Midfielder 02/10/2000 Peykan Bushehr
Mohammad SoltaniMehr Midfielder 04/02/1999 Zob Ahan Tehran
Omid Hamedifar Midfielder 01/01/2000 Sanat Naft Abadan Abadan
Reza Kakhsaz Goalkeeper 21/01/1999 Mes Shahr Babak Shiraz
Saman Fallah Vernami Defender 12/05/1999 Peykan Sari
Sina Abdollahi Defender 15/04/2001 Machine Sazi Tabriz
Sobhan Khaghani Midfielder 27/01/2000 Esteghlal Mashad
Yasin Salmani Defender 27/02/2002 Sepahan Gorgan
Younes Akbarpour Defender 16/03/2002 Mes Rafsanjan Koh 'e Chenar
The players whose teams played in the Premier League today will be added to the Omid team tonight. 23 players announced to participate in the qualifying round of The 2022 AFC U-23 Asian Cup (Group B) qualification in Tajikistan will leave Tehran for Dushanbe this morning on a chartered flight.

The Schedule

25 October 2021
First match 16:00  Second Match 19:00  Pamir Stadium, Dushanbe
Iran  v    Nepal
Tajikistan  v  Lebanon
28 October 2021
Lebanon  v  Iran
Nepal    v  Tajikistan
31 October 2021
Lebanon  v    Nepal
Iran  v  Tajikistan

Team Melli players rating vs Korea Rep.

Alireza BEIRANVAND :[7.8] Saved a last-minute shot and was commanding on aerial balls. Still delays passing the ball and puts himself in awkward positions.Shojaa KHALILZADEH: [7.8] another commanding performance from the central defender. He offsets his lack of pace with his positioning and close marking. Sadegh MOHARRAMI [6.8] the goal scored was a lapse of concentration in otherwise a good performance. Hossein KANANI-ZADEGAN [7.6] Again formed a formidable line in the center of defense with good understanding with Khalilzadeh hardly allowing the Koreans any space. Ahmad NOUROLLAHI [7.4] the burden of dominating the midfield against tough opposition brought the best out of him. Was working hard His cross attempts from right on the line could have been better. Saeid EZZATOLLAHI: [7.9] Slowly but positively getting better in the team formation. His shot that shaved the upright was delightful. Tackling and passing were much better than in the earlier matches. Vahid AMIRI [7.0] is industrious and diligent but he lacks the punch and final telling touches. Ali GHOLIZADEH: [6.5] nearly incognito in the first half. There was no sign of the magic slalom runs on the flanks and mostly content with retreating back to support the defense. Mehdi TAREMI: [7.4] Taremi is a player that can be frustrating and wasteful at times. He seems to shoot without looking at what is in front of him, like a wall of defenders! His swerving kick that hit the woodwork was spectacular. The understanding he is building with Azmoun is a hopeful sign for Team Melli. Alireza JAHANBAKHSH [8.1] High rating is due to the goal he scored to save Team Melli. He still needs to apply himself and make a difference on the wings and midfield. Sardar AZMOUN: [7.9] worked tirelessly up to the end and once again provided an assist in the highest class to Jahanbakhsh for Team Melli equalizer. He tends to be a reckless tackler a player who has not mastered the art of tackling and as such he received his third yellow card of the qualifiers. SUBSTITUTE Omid NOORAFKAN [6.7]: while undoubtedly has a lot to offer, his reckless tackles and lack of concentration can cost him dearly in the team. Awarded a yellow card 6 minutes after being brought in. COACH: DRAGAN SKOCIC [6.7]: His lack of adventure in the first half and poor substitution give him a low mark. The team lacked direction and energy in the first half and the offenses were carried out on long direct balls where the midfield is bypassed. If such tactics yield results, then no one would complain, but it didn’t. Clearly lacks a ball carrier and a ball distributor in the midfield and that needs a solution. With so much talent on the bench, his substitutions were nothing short of awful. The team tactics look predictable as it seems there is no variety in play and no second option.

Skocic consciously reduced number of midfield players.

The head coach of Team Melli says that he knows that his team has a problem in the middle of the field.

According to ISNA, the Iranian national football team stopped today (Tuesday) in its fourth match in the final qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar against South Korea with a result of one, one.

"In the first half, we realized that we had a problem in the middle of the field and we tried to reduce the distance between the Iranian and Korean players by making changes," Iran's coach Dragan Skocic told a news conference after the match.

"We knew we had a three-on-three duel in the middle of the field. In the second half, we had a better view with the addition of the Nourafkan. In the first half, I was aware that if the two strikers went forward, the balance would be upset, but I did it consciously."

"All the players did their best," commenting in a question about Sardar Azmoun's performance

"Today was not the best day for Sardar, but he is one of our most important and key players. His goal in the previous stage made us reach this stage of the competition and continue the dream. "

Asked what he expects ahead for his team and its mission to qualify for the World Cup, Skocic said explained: "I am not satisfied with the result of today's draw and I am not convinced, but I must say that Korea was a great team and has world-class players. Today's game was against our direct opponent. We move forward with positive thinking and we are alert to the shortcomings and need to solve the team's problems and have a better performance."

Asked if he was surprised in the first half against Korea, Skocic said: "If you had listened to me, you would have realized that we were not surprised. We consciously decided to have more players on the offensive line and the reason for that was to increase the pressure on their defenses. But when we realized that such a plan is upsetting the team balance, we changed the tactics. We were ready for other events. I repeat that I deliberately reduced the number of midfielders and it was a risk that I accepted as head coach."

Top of the table clash ends in a draw- Iran 1 - 1 Korea Rep

Team Melli drew 1-1 with Korea Rep in a top-of-the-table clash in Azadi. The hosts scored first in 48th minutes by Son Heung-Min while Iran’s equalizer came through Alireza Jahanbakhsh assisted by Sardar Azmoun.

Both teams adopted a cautious approach in the first half, although the Koreans had the better ball possession at the beginning. Team Melli was content in defending or sending long direct balls to the forwards in the hope that either Azmoun or Taremi beat the solid Korean defense.

The rhythm of the game remained slow and lethargic with far too many easy missed passes by the two teams and both having problems in the final delivery of the ball. Despite the better ball possession, the Koreans have failed to register any shot on goal. As the game was in the last 5 minutes of the first half, it suddenly burst into action.

Sardar Azmoun tested the Korean keeper Kim Seung-Gyu from just inside the box with a powerful shot. The keeper could not control the ball and had to deflect with the ball somehow found Taremi. The FC Porto forward acrobatically hit a scissor kick that badly tested the keeper again, but Kim’s reflex and a fingertip save kept the ball from entering the net.

A third assault followed but to no avail.

Early in the second half, Son Heung-Min did what he does best. With one shift of the body, he easily left Sadegh Moharrami for dead and was one on one with Beiranvand. The Tottenham winger made no mistake finding the net. Iran 0 -1 Korea.

It was then that Team Melli came alive starting with a rather bold substitution by Skocic. He introduced Omid Nourafkan instead of ineffective Gholizadeh.  Nourafkan, who is originally a midfielder would be playing as the left-back and winger. However, it was the same old same old with this player. It only took him 6 minutes to get a yellow card for another silly foul. He is now suspended after two consecutive cards in two games.

The change in game plan was working well for Team Melli but there was always the threat of a quick counterattack. Saeid Ezatollahi hit a delightful shot against the woodwork as Iran was denied an equalizer. The attacks continued while Team Melli’s defenders dealt very well with the Korean counters. The Koreans were unable to penetrate the walls and hardly gave Beiranvand any trouble.

Team Melli equalized on minute 76 when Sardar Azmoun did a brilliant job of following what looked like a wasted ball on the left of Korean keeper Kim who followed the ball initially but retreated when he realized that Sardar was faster and closer to the ball.  Azmoun controlled the difficult ball just before it crossed the line and crossed towards the on-rushing Jahanbakhsh. The team Melli captain scored from a header again to maintain parity with the Koreans. With few minutes left on the match, Taremi hit a swerving shot that once again bounced from the post, the second time in the match that Iran hits the woodwork

In the last minute of injury time, there was a scare for Team Melli but Beiranvand heroically saved his goal and parried a ground shot into a corner kick.

Why is the match tomorrow in Azadi closed to the fans?

If you have been following the events of Iran's football lately, you must have heard the good news of Azadi being opened for a limited percentage of its capacity for fans under the strict protocols. The requirement of AFC includes 2 shots of COVID19 vaccinations amongst a list of other requirements. The opening of the Azadi gate was given by  FFIRI President Aziz Khadem and the Minister of Youth and Sports, Sajjadi.

48 hours before the match, there was a U-turn as FFIRI announced that Azadi will not be open to the fans after all. The football federation did not specifically mention the reason for the change of heart but leaks from FFIRI headquarters insinuated that due to some administrative difficulties, the FFIRI is not in full compliance and therefore no fans can be allowed to enter the stadium for the match against Korea Rep which has to be conducted behind closed doors.

in a matter of minutes, accusations of incompetence, lying, and downright ineptitude were thrown at the football federation in social media plus some semi-official media outlets leading the masses to believe that the failure to adhere to the AFC health protocol is the direct responsibility of the federation with their late application for authorization being one of the main reasons.

 Somehow, this account of administrative failure did not make sense. Many sources, including the FFIRI itself, have declared that the application was sent ahead of time, so there was no question of delay. Like always in Iran, one has to dig quite deep to get to the truth and this one is no exception.

ISNA sport corrospondance said

"While Team Melli fans were rejoicing and preparing to buy tickets to enter Azadi Stadium and celebrate the end of the two-year absence from the stadium, the Football Federation, after two months of storytelling, was finally unable to exercise its full right of hosting, and now Team Melli will be deprived of the support of the fans in one of the major Asian classic encounters."

"It seems that mismanagement and lack of planning have taken root in Iranian football and this football is not going to breathe new life by changing its management. In the absence of infrastructure and financial resources, the fans are the only important and reliable assets of Iranian football. Thanks to the shortcomings and empty promises of the managers of the Football Federation, Team Melli will be deprived of this valuable capital in the match against South Korea. In the World Cup qualifiers, Iran is only host on paper."

There is no argument about the incompetence of the federations managers, as the ISNA reporter rightly stated, but after some in-depth inquiry and insiders info, this time it seems that the federation was not that incompetent to be unable to get the process right for a straight forward authorization application from AFC. It is not rocket science after all as even FFIRI can complete it!.

So, what is the real reason for preventing the fans?

There are several theories but the one that is closet to reality in our opinion is the FIFA pressure on Iran to allow women entry into the stadium.

It was only in June that FIFA applied pressure to ensure that Iran allows female fans and expected the authorities to comply, or else. Under Rouhani women were allowed for a couple of matches, but now with Ebrahim Raisi in power, a hardline cleric who was previously head of the country's judiciary, and has ultra-conservative political views the situation has changed, to the worst. Images of Iranian females waving flogs, taking selfies, wearing lipsticks, or cheering their national team, do not fit the bill. It could also be due to pressure from his hardliner peers' which has forced the authorities from rescinding the agreement or the promise given to FIFA.

Allowing women in stadiums in Iran in 2019 for the first time since the revolution. was a personal triumph for the Chief of FIFA after a strong reminder from the World Football governing body that Iran would face expulsion from the World Cup if they do not follow the FIFA rules. “Fifa’s stance on the access of women to the stadiums in Iran has been firm and clear: women have to be allowed into football stadiums in Iran. For all football matches,” Fifa had said in a statement at the time.

So, Covid is one great convenient and timely excuse for the authorities to dodge the issue and close the great Azadi for everyone.  Technically speaking, Iran has not broken FIFA rules on women in stadiums.

It can be easily said that Iran has outfoxed FIFA, AFC, Infantino, and everyone else by this simple step. Iran cannot be sanctioned because this step does not target women only but everybody.

After all, the west has experienced firsthand the cunning and skills of the Iranian while negotiating the JCPOA. The Iranians managed to settle everything and agree on terms in 2015 only for one not-so-smart Donald Trump, a shallow person, an inexperienced politician,  to tear it off thinking that he can outsmart the Iranians by quitting the pact and exerting more pressure demanding more strict terms.

History says Iranians did not budge and did not accept the blackmail while it witnessed Trump's failure. The businessman President of the USA could not outdo the Iranians and it seems like FIFA, a much less of an adversary to the Americans, will see the same fate. After all, they are dealing with carpet merchants with a tradition dating thousands of years.

Pre-match Preview Iran vs. Korea Rep. Lessons to be learned.

With Team Melli sitting comfortably at the top, this particular match remains the most crucial of all the matches. A win by Iran will lead to practically unassailable command for Team Melli and 70% of the mission accomplished towards the qualification for FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. Of course, the results of other matches are also significant, but not as important as the three points of this one.

Korea Rep will always be a tough and uncompromising opponent for Team Melli never mind the Table or the Ranking. The Koreans are 14 places behind Iran in the FIFA Ranking of October 2021 and 59 points behind. No one should be fooled by such numbers though because the Koreans will surely give it all for this particular win.

FIFA RANKING

RK
Team
Total Points
Previous Points
+/-
22
IR Iran
 Iran
1538.08
 1522.04 16.04
26
Japan
 Japan
1520.46
 1529.45 -8.99
32
Australia
 Australia
1493.99
 1477.21 16.78
36
Korea Republic
 Korea Republic
1479.41
 1474.96 4.45

During the Queiroz era, this match would have been the right candidate for combustions. There was no love lost between Queiroz and the Korean coach. Eventually, Queiroz was instrumental in his counterpart losing his job following defeat to Team Melli. That is all settled now as no such hostility exists between Bento and Skocic.

Politics of the game aside, when it comes to the power, tactics, and influential players, the teams are neck and neck. There is, however, a marked decline of standard and form by the Koreans, versus the ascendency and improvement of Team Melli in the last few years, but particularly under Dragan Skocic.  Despite having arguably the best Asian player in its rank, in the shape of Son Heung-min , the Tottenham winger has been less than effective in a team of many new faces. The Iraqi's managed to close all doors away to the Koreans,  with the match ending goalless. Lebanon was next where the Koreans won by the tightest of margins. Then came the third match against Syria. The match was drawn 1-1 until a momentary lapse of concentration in the 89th minute of the match by the excellent Syrian defense allowed Son Heung-min to score the easiest of goals and his first for his country since 2019. Son Heung-min was unmarked and the goal came from a set piece.

Sadegh Moharrami during a practice session before the Korea Rep match

The winning goal scored by the Koreans is a lesson to be learned by Team Melli. number one is that players should never relax against them and number two,  Son Heung-min can not be left unmarked in or around the box. That goal was similar in circumstances to the one that was conceded by Team Melli against Iraq in Amman in Round 2 of the same qualifiers, a goal that ended in defeat for Team Melli.

Singling Son Heung-min as their main threat is also misleading as there are many such good players in the squad, however, this team has been surprisingly profligate, wasteful, and squandering chances by the dozen in the last three matches. The other area where the team has seen a decline is the accuracy of the passes and the end result. While passing the ball around might appear neat, the final passes were mostly disappointing. In fact, the Koreans despite their control and passing stats in all three matches, have created only a handful of real scoring chances in relation to their superiority.

KOREA REPUBLIC MEN'S RANKING

The official World Rankings of the international Men's team

36

40

17

69
Recent Ranking Average Ranking Highest Ranking Lowest Ranking

Team Melli's perfect record in round three is also somehow misleading. Out of the three matches, only against Iraq that the team shined quite well and the result reflected the good performance. The last one played against UAE was perhaps the most worrying, but we can excuse the team performance as they were playing in a humid and warm climate that normally seeps the energy of players not accustomed to such conditions. As such it results in exhaustion, dehydration, adverse physical conditions, and lack of concentration. A very good example of that was the penalty kick carried out by Sardar Azmoun right at the end of regulation time of the match. His body language did not augur well for a player who is about to take a penalty. He was visibly tired and his feeble kick was easily saved by Khausaif, the UAE keeper.  The miss did not change the outcome, but it could have been costly in other circumstances. Another lesson to be learned by the coaching staff.

We cannot conclude any Team Melli match preview without mentioning the proverbial discipline. While Korea was lucky to get the winning goal against Syria, Iran were lucky not to lose their key central defender with around another half an hour to play. Such fouls like the one committed by Shojaa Khalilzadeh against Ali Mabkhout, was amateurish by a player who was until that time, one of the best players in the match. What instigated this foul was more emotional than tactical. Granted that Mabkhout beat him and was heading towards the goal at the edge of the penalty box, a professional and composed defender would have left his goalkeeper deal with the forward, after all, Beiranvand is one of the best in Asia especially since Mabkhoiut was not in full control of the ball anyway, and he runs behind to cover Beirnavand. Khalilzadeh, took the weaker option by pully Mabkhout! It was all immaterial at the end because there was a VAR decision that an offside occurred earlier on and Shojaa's red card was rescinded. A lesson learned? perhaps. Mental and Emotional control, composure, and cool balanced heads are in short supply at team Melli level. There is always a possibility of combustion and fans have grown accustomed to seeing silly fouls and acts from the players. We just hope that tomorrow in Azadi against Korea is not one of those black days.      

The Koreans intent to change history in Tehran.

the-afc.com
Tehran: Korea Republic have never won in Iran, but Paulo Bento’s side will see Tuesday’s top-of-the-table AFC Asian Qualifiers – Road to Qatar clash as the perfect time to put that record right.
Seven times the Korea Republic men’s national team have ventured to Tehran, and a pair of draws – in 1977 and 2009 – are the best it has ever got for a team that has historically been one of Asia’s giants.
The last three visits to the famed Azadi Stadium have all yielded 1-0 defeats, and it has been six matches across 10 years since the Koreans have gotten the better of Team Melli at any venue.
With seven of a possible nine points accrued from three successive home games, and with attacking weapons like Son Heung-min and Hwang Hee-chan in tow, Bento and co will be hoping the 2021 visit to the Iranian capital is the one which ends a decades-long drought, but they will arrive to find a star-studded and in-form opponent.
Boasting firepower of their own in the devastating strike duo of Sardar Azmoun and Mehdi Taremi - and buoyed by a perfect record of 10 wins from as many matches since Dragan Skočić took the head coach role at the outset of 2021 - Iran will hold no fear, even if the Azadi Stadium will remain empty.
Three wins from three and no goals conceded in the Final Round underlines Team Melli’s strength at the back as well as upfront and extends a remarkable run which has seen the team concede only seven goals in their last 25 Asian Qualifiers matches.
Thursday’s win over the United Arab Emirates in Dubai was emblematic of the dual strengths of Skočić’s side.
It was the quality and understanding of Taremi and Azmoun which created Iran’s goal, while the Emiratis, themselves featuring the prolific Ali Mabkhout, didn’t manage a single shot on target over the 90 minutes.
That victory puts Team Melli, even at this early stage, within sight of a third successive FIFA World Cup appearance.
With nine points, the Iranians are two ahead of Korea Republic and seven clear of a chasing pack featuring UAE, Lebanon, and Syria, meaning a draw or defeat on Tuesday would not derail their campaign, but a victory would represent a major accomplishment on an increasingly smooth Road to Qatar.
Iran v Korea Republic Venue: Azadi Stadium, Tehran Kick-off: 17:00 hours (UTC+3:30)

Post Match Press Conference UAE v Iran

Dragan Skocic expressed his satisfaction with the victory against the UAE. However, he stressed that "now is not the time for celebration because the crucial game against South Korea is ahead."

"We played a great game against a team that defended with all heart and soul but we finally won," Dragan Skucic told a post-match press conference. "The weather bothered us, especially since most of the players came from Europe and were not conditioned with the climate. The win was very important. We had a hard game. We knew our job was not easy at all in this climate. The presence of players from Europe also made our work difficult and we had little time to coordinate."

He continued: "I was not satisfied with the way my team played in the first half, but with the changes we made, I got better in the second half. We made a mistake but VAR came to our rescue and reversed the referee's decision. We are well on our way to achieving bigger things. We know we can do better. With the existing difficulties, we got a good result. "I am 53 years old and I know I should not be comfortable with these things,"

Team Melli Head Coach commenting on his 10th consecutive victory and his team's lead with a difference of seven points with the third team in the World Cup qualifiers. "I have said many times that football has no memory. We have to rest well and get ready for the next game. If we compare with the previous round of World Cup qualifiers, we had a stronger start, but we should not be happy and we should work to get better."

Regarding the use of VAR and determining the offside before the Shojaa Khalilzadeh was dismissed, he said: "If I had to change because of the Shojaa's  dismissal, I would have to change one of the forwards Azmoun or Taremi, which was like cutting off one of my arms."

"At the beginning of the second half, we started to control the game and impress the opponent, but that one mistake ruined everything, and the VAR corrected that," Skocic said of the scene of Khalilzadeh's dismissal." After that scene, we returned to the game. I am glad that Shojaa's dismissal did not take place. I must say that Khalilzadeh's return raised the morale of the team."

He continued: "We went to the field to win and achieved what we wanted, and this is very important. I would like to say that I liked the UAE style of play, especially in the first half, when they defended very well. "

"We are not celebrating this victory because we have a very sensitive game against South Korea," Skocic concluded. "We have to win that game as well."

In the post-match press conference, Bert Van Marwijk, the coach of the UAE national team, attributed the loss of his team 1-0 against Iran in the third round of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, to the physical superiority of the Iranian players over his players, adding " I do not blame the players for today's loss, we played Against a very strong team ranked 26 in the world, and has players in the European leagues, which makes their physical fitness very high. "

Van Marwijk revealed that the video technology (VAR) had stopped functioning or some time in the UAE-Iran match, but then it was back online to work again, saying, “The fourth referee told me in the first half that the video technology  system VAR has stopped, but later he came back again to tell me in the second half that it had returned back to work again, This is unfortunate for the UAE team, as the video technology canceled the expulsion of the Iranian national team defender.”

"We played a very good first half, and we could have scored, but we did not take advantage of those opportunities well, and on the other hand, the opponent scored his goal from a quick counter-attack, which is a shame. " He continued: "We will not give up, and stop there. We will try to compensate for the loss of Iran's match in the next confrontation with Iraq, and we also have seven matches left in the qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup, we must use them well, and the third-place we currently occupy is not bad. It also qualifies for the World Cup.

Van Marwijk pointed out that the players of the UAE national team came out very tired and frustrated after the match, noting that he has not spoken with them yet, but he will definitely work to get them out of the current situation in preparation for their next match against Iraq on the 12th of this month.

Arsenal interested in highly rated forward Azmoun as Lacazette replacement

Arsenal are eyeing Zenit St Petersburg forward Sardar Azmoun.

Onze Mundial says the Gunners have identified Zenit St Petersburg forward Sardar Azmoun as a potential Alexandre Lacazette replacement.

Lacazette is wanted by a host of top European clubs, including LaLiga champions Atletico Madrid. The 30-year-old's contract expires next June, meaning a pre-contract can be arranged from January.

And Zenit's Azmoun - dubbed the 'Iranian Lionel Messi' - is on the Gunners' list to replace the Frenchman.

They are not the first Premier League side to be linked with his services. Azmoun revealed last month that he had rejected Tottenham during the summer. On a potential transfer, he said: “I never said that I was leaving Zenit. The media wrote that I was undergoing a medical examination and agreed on everything with a certain team. I have a contract, even if I wanted to leave, the club will not allow it. It was the media that sent me to another team." “I had offers from Lyon, Roma, Bayer [Leverkusen], and Tottenham. But all the proposals were rejected, this year I will not move anywhere.”

The Iranian forward impressively scored 19 goals in 29 appearances for the Russian club last season. Currently, on duty with his national team playing in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 qualifiers.

Performance Analysis Iran v UAE

TEAM PERFORMANCE

It seems like a pattern is developing in these qualifiers wherein the first match of the doubleheaders turns out to be rather messy for Team Melli. In the first match against Syria, with no preparation-friendly matches, legionnaires arriving on different days and a minimum group training days perhaps no more than two, the performance was less than optimal. Nevertheless, Iran won with a solitary goal. IN the next match against Iraq, Team Melli squad had a solid 5 days of training together where the coaching staff had adequate time to gel the team, the result was an astounding 3-0 win but more importantly, an eye-catching effective performance

Against UAE there were many loose ends, wrong passes, low-quality final balls, poor finishing all of those which resulted in the opposition getting more adventurous and going for a win. It was only the fact that in this match the defense of the Team Melli had one of its best matches in many years that prevented UAE from scoring. In fact, the trio of Sadeghi, Kanani-Zadeghan, and Khalizadeh was so effective, that Beiranvand had hardly to do any serious work during the whole match. The only suspect in the defense was Nourafkan who had a shaky match and was substituted in the second half.

 The midfield performance was not commanding and less than effective in the match. Team Melli is still short of a midfield maestro that can change the outcome of the game and lacks a powerful leader in the caliber of Bagheri and Ali Karimi or the finesse of Mojtaba Jabbari or the power and dynamism of Ando Teymourian. Nourollahi tried but fell short while Jahanbakhsh had one of his forgettable matches, Ezatollahi is far short of his true potential and time is running out for him to excel. Amiri despite his efforts on the flank lacking effectiveness to yield results.

It is safe to safe that the midfield did not deliver in this match. It was obvious from some of the direct balls that the defenders were sending forward bypassing the midfield.

The forward line was also not effective as it should be. Taremi was guilty of being selfish while his partner Azmoun was in a better position to score. The Porto player was wasteful on a couple of occasions and fumbled easy balls. Azmoun's body language was not right as he was displaying a sad figure.

PLAYERS RATING

A. Beiranvand [7]: He was the least busy player in the match and the few times he had to work, he did not have to sweat it. The punching of the ball on a couple of times was needless and not pretty, his long arm throw is exceptional, though.

S. Khalilzadeh [8.3]: One of the best performances of his career in Team Melli. He hardly put a foot wrong until he was initially sent off for a momentary lapse of concentration. Luckily, the red card was rescinded due to an earlier offside decision, but that incident does not dent his grading as one of the best players of the match.

H. Kanani [8.3]: Like his partner, Kanani was solid, exceptionally well defending, and had a high percentage passing completion average. He was also cool under pressure and was not affected by adverse decisions which helped him keep his composure. A delightful and effective performance by the central defender.

S. Moharrami [8.5]: Dynamic, versatile, with acceleration and pace. He was excellent against UAE. Petty that the fans cannot see more of him as he is playing for Dinamo Zagreb in the Croatian league. His contribution was excellent and no opposition player could beat him winning all the battles. Moharrami was one of the best players against the UAE.

A. Nourollahi [7.6]: Although he was the best of the four midfielders, he still lacks the punch and authority to make it count for the team. He was substituted in the second half as he seemed to be fatigued.

S. Ezatolahi [7]: Although his overall performance was satisfactory and he managed to feed the forwards some good passes, he is still short of his form that made this young player a revelation in Iranian football. Playing in a league like Denmark seems to have affected his performance. He needs more coordination with his teammates.

O. Noorafkan [6.0]: A disappointing performance based on what he is capable of and what he showed in the last match. He was caught off position several times by a speedy UAE winger which lead him to foul and get the yellow card for it. His obvious frustration surfaced again only minutes later when he repeated a similar foul but luckily the referee did not award him another card. Such a lack of composure and control of emotion is dangerous at the international level. He was substituted for the second half.

A. Jahanbakhsh [6.5] - He was not up to it with most of his passes going wrong. Despite scoring in two first matches, against UAE he was a shadow of that player. His consistency is questionable. Should have substituted at halftime.

V. Amiri [7.2]: A player who always gives 100% and is never short of full commitment. However, Amiri's effort hardly yields results. He keeps the opposition defenders busy but what the center forwards need is quality balls to create the threat which Amiri failed to provide in this match.

M. Taremi [8.8]: His goal was worthy of high grading and that made him the man of the match. He was wasteful on two occasions where a pass to unmarked Azmoun would have yielded a goal and with simple control of the ball, he could have scored in the empty net in the first half. However, this is a typical Mehdi Taremi at club and country. He scores spectacular goals at any level, but he can be so wasteful and at times comical in wasting opportunities.

S. Azmoun [8]: whatever the case with him, he did not seem to be very happy as his body language was far from the usual Sardar. He remains an indispensable player who can turn the match around with one exceptional move. His assist to Taremi was one of the World Class types of assists. He could have been more effective if he was served better by the midfield. A quality player nevertheless.

 SUBSTITUTES: A. Gholizadeh [8.4]: Made a remarkable difference when he was introduced in halftime.  Consistently menacing and dribbles his way around players with ease. This is the type of player that a team wants when the opposition parks the bus. It is a pity that he was not a starter as expected, perhaps Skocic had other plans.

Hajsafi, Ansrifard, and Sarlak were not in the field long enough to be rated.

COACH:

D. Skocic [8.5]: whatever the critics may say, and a lot of them are eating a humble pie by no, the Croatian has created a record and milestone for others to best in the future. 10 consecutive wins including 8 in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers is a sign of a professional with knowledge and ability. In there was a slight criticism in this match was his reluctance to energize a struggling Team Melli midfield while he had players in the caliber of Ali GHolizadeh and Saman Ghoddod. Perhaps the adverse climate with high humidity and temperature has affected his player selection however it was never late to introduce the magical Ghjolizadeh. Whatever he and his coaching staff to the defense, it is nothing short of excellent.