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FFIRI contemplating an Iranian coach for Team Melli.

The FFIRI has been negotiating secretly with several Iranian coaches in search of a new coach to take over the incredibly challenging task of coaching Team Melli.

Although the football federation as customary keeps denying such reports, it is not a secret that Ali Daei, Yayha Golmohammadi, and Amir Ghalenoei have been approached and talks have been carried out. Ali Daei is always a candidate for the job, but Daei’s standing and achievements have not been at its best lately. He was last fired from Saipa Alborz after failing to meet the expectations of the club board. Daei has turned down many job offers lately since then.

Ghalenoei coaching in Asian Cup 2007

Yahaya Golmohammadi, unlike the other two, has never coached Team Melli and is the least experienced the lot, however, he seemed to have an excellent chance to take the post. And then Persepolis comes calling and grabs  Yahya right under the nose of the FFIRI. Golmohammadi has been offered a return to his old club replacing the Argentine Calderon. Perspolis seems to have a contractual dispute with their coach with Calderon refusing to return back to the club.

Sepahan’s Head Coach Amir Ghalenoei seems to be in the lead to sit on the bench of Team Melli. His records with clubs are second to none. He is by far the most successful Iranian coach In the history of the league with 5 championship titles. He also coached Team Melli during the AFC Asian Cup 2007.

But Ghalenoei is driving a hard bargain. He has a bitter experience working for the federation. He is aware of how his paymasters can turn on him and deny him support.  This time, the former coach of Esteghlal, Tractorsazi, Zob Ahan, and Sepahan wants to ensure that such experience is not repeated.  Ghalenoei is giving the FFIRI all the strict conditions upon which he will only accept the offer including a handsome numeration package similar to the foreign coaches and complete say on the selection of the technical assistance and training crew.

FFIRI administrators and managers have hinted many times that the next Team Melli coach will be a foreigner, although local coaches are not being ruled out either. However, with the recent developments, the reputation of this federation and their habitual tendency to breach contracts with their employees, it will be very difficult to imagine a foreign coach agreeing to work for this federation unless he is very desperate. After the experiences and well-publicized hardships of Marc Wilmots, Branko Ivankovic, Gabriel Calderon and Andrea Stramaccioni amongst others, it is unlikely that we will see a foreign coach leading Team Melli any time soon.

FFIRI and the Iranian clubs' justification for not paying their foreign coaches and/or players is the American sanctions on financial dealings and money transfer. The questions remain, however, if this is indeed the reason, then why offer jobs to foreigners knowing that they cannot be paid properly and regularly?

With Ghalenoei negotiations with FFIRI still in progress; Sepahan will have a tough time replacing Ghalenoei if he leaves. The Esfahani club has a good chance of grabbing the title this season and the departure of their coach will definitely impact the team chances of winning the Persian Gulf Pro League.

Omid team hopes are fading after loss to Korea Rep.

Songkhla: Korea Republic became the first team to qualify for the AFC U23 Championship Thailand 2020 knockout stage after they claimed a 2-1 win over Iran at Tinsulanon Stadium on Sunday.

First-half goals from Lee Dong-jun and Cho Gue-sung gave Kim Hak-bum’s side a two-goal half-time buffer, but Reza Shekari’s effort nine minutes after the interval meant the Koreans had to negotiate a difficult period in order to extend their winning start to the competition.

Their perfect tally of six points from two matches means they are sure to advance to the knockout stage no matter what happens in Wednesday’s match against Uzbekistan, while Iran’s hopes of ending a 44-year Olympic qualification drought now weighs heavily on their final group stage fixture against China PR.

Nguyen Quang Hai
By their own admission, Korea Republic had won without being at their best in their opening match against China PR, but they carried the momentum of Lee Dong-jun’s 93rd-minute winner from that match into this one, and it was the same player who supplied the game’s opening goal.

Both Reza Dehghani and Mehdi Ghayedi had early efforts at the Korean goal, but Lee continued his love affair with Tinsulanon Stadium in the 22nd minute, pouncing to slam the ball home from close range after Iranian goalkeeper Habib Farabbasi spilled Maeng Seong-ung’s initial effort.

Alongside midfield partner Won Du-jae, Maeng was the heart of several promising moves, and it was his pass which found Cho Gue-sung for Korea Republic’s second, with Cho turning and firing majestically into the Iranian net from 25 yards to double the lead in the 35th minute.

Now full of confidence, Korea Republic could have added more first-half goals if not for near misses from Lee and Jeong Seung-won, but Iran managed to reach the interval without further damage and came back into the contest when Shakari netted a close-range header to reduce the arrears to one in the 54th minute.

That gave Hamid Estili’s side a lifeline, but the Korea Republic wouldn’t be denied, with a last gasp save from Song Bum-Keun – who denied Ali Shojaei deep in stoppage time - maintaining a perfect record and securing a pass to the business end of the tournament.

Far too many gaps in Estili's game plan.

There were no surprises in the performance of Omid Team under Hamid Estili against Uzbekistan yesterday.  Even with such a statement, many fans were hoping that the famous players with household names in Omid Team will make a big impact and cover at least part of the team's weaknesses and gaps. Players like Omid Noorafkan, Allahyar Sayyadmanish, Mohammad Mohebi are already full internationals who have played and scored for Team Melli while the likes of Mahdi Ghaedi and Reza Shekari are considered valuable players with considerable ability to improve. The former has already registered 8 goals in the Persian Gulf Pro League. However, except for Omid Noorafkan who is being utilized in defense hence depriving the team of his wonderful vision and Pirlo-like passing, the rest of them were disappointing. Ghaedi huffed and puffed like always but his delivery and final touch remains suspect when his team really requires every effort. The feeblest performance of the so-called stars was Shekari and Sayyadmanish up in the forward line. Not coordination, no proper communication, little or no significant passing, no awareness of each other position and individualist showmanship that was a big waste for Omid Team. A smart seasoned coach would have immediately figured out that this combination upfront is not working and would have acted accordingly, but Estili for reasons beyond comprehension failed to notice that. The Midfield lacked a strong leader such as Noorafkan, who was in the central defensive position. Mohebi was quite disappointing against the Uzbeks despite having a very good season with his team. He missed an open goal and a chance for his team to take the lead. Omid team never looked like a coherent team with a strategy. Against Korea, we expect the same old tactics, or lack of it, and emphasis on individual performance rather than teamwork. Not that a victory is not possible, but with a year of disappointing performances by Omid Team, it is highly unlikely that Hamid Estili will find a magic wand to fix the things against the powerful and organized Koreans. Realistically and no matter how high our hopes and expectations are, the chances of a tactically deficient Omid Team qualifying to the next round are on the balance. A win or even a draw against the Koreans will still keep the hopes alive. A defeat will almost mean the end of the road and those abundant and unceasing promises that this team is good enough to make it to Tokyo after 44 years of absence.

Omid Team Draws Uzbekistan 1-1

Omid Team managed to escape with a draw 1-1 in the opening match of Group C of the AFC U23 Championship 2020. The Iranian players wore black armbands in the memory of General Ghassim Soleimani who was assassinated by the Americans in Iraq a few days back.

The first half ended 1-0 to Uzbekistan.

Uzbekistan's goal came from a soft penalty in the 40th minute. Earlier, Ali Shojaei missed a glorious chance to put Iran ahead. Only a few meters away and the goal gaping wide, Shojaei miskicked the ball horribly wrong out of bound!.

In the second half, Iran scored the equalizer in the 58th minute through an individual effort by Reza Dehghani who forced his way into the box getting a lucky rebound ball off the Uzbek defender to slot home.

After the equalizing goal for Omid Team, it was the turn of Mohammed Mohebi to squander a golden chance over the bar!

While winning one point is quite precious in a group that is so tight and the competition so fierce, Omid's team performance was hardly assuring especially in the middle of the field and upfront.

Despite having Allhayar Sayyadimanish and Reza Shekari, the duo hardly passed to each other as both focus on the selfish individuals; attempts, both shooting from any angle while passing to a teammate was a better option. In fact, passing was a problem for the Omid Team, not only suffering from lack of them and but also the accuracy of those passes. Omid team pass accuracy was 67% while Uzbekistan's was a highly respectable 87%.!!

Teamwork was found wanting and all the experiences of Mohebi, Shekari, and Sayyadmanish were not enough to have a positive impact upfront.

The team lacked strategy and played seemed to depend on individual skills to penetrate the opponent's defense. Everyone seemed to want to dribble the ball from anywhere.

In the 2nd half, Hamid Estili replaced Ali Shojaei with Mehdi Ghaedi whose impact was immediate. However, the Esteghlal player is notorious for his over dribbling in addition to play-acting which limits his value for the team.

Uzbekistan was a much more organized team playing modern football. They had several chances to add to their goal but could not finish. Despite having 64% of the ball possession, the Uzbek team could not seriously threaten Omid's goal.

In the second match of the Group, South Korea defeated China 1-0 to lead the group

 

Group C

Standings
P W D L F A GD PTS
1
Korea Republic
 Korea Republic 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 3
2
Islamic Republic of Iran
 Iran 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1
3
Uzbekistan
 Uzbekistan 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1
4
China PR
 China PR 1 0 0 1 0 1 -1 0

Uzbekistan, a tough test for Omid in today's match.

Iran Omid national team will be playing Uzbekistan in their first match in the Asian-Olympics Tokyo qualifying group stage group C.

The team which has been preparing for over two years and has made several coaching changes is a group that is possibly the toughest one of the 4 groups. China and Korea Rep make the other two teams of the group. Hamid Estili announced the team line up for the first match.

Habib Abbasiifar, Mojtaba Najarian, Mehdi Mehdikhani, Allahyar Sayyadmanesh, Reza Shekari, Reza Dehghani, Mohammad Mohebbi, Ali Shojaei, Matin Karimzadeh, Omid Noorafkan, and Aref Aghasi

Omid will be in an excellent position if they can win all the 3 points against the tough Uzbek team. The defending champion Uzbekistan is one of the favorites to qualify for the Olympics.

The match will start 13:45 Iran time at Tinsulanon stadium in the south of Thailand.

Omid Team arrives in Thailand

Iran's Omid Team arrived in Thailand to start preparing for the upcoming AFC U23 Championship 2020. The squad flew to Bangkok then transferred to a domestic flight to fly south to Songkhla near the border with Malaysia.

Hamid Estili has made sure that the players have enough time to acclimatize before the competition starts on the 9th Jan against Uzbekistan.

Iran is unquestionably in the most difficult group facing the powerful Koreans, the defending Champion Uzbekistan, and the aspiring Chinese team. In simple term, there is no easy matches for Omid team in Thailand. A win in the first match will be the perfect result but by no means an assurance to qualify for the next round.

This championship is also the qualifying rounds for the Tokyo Olympic Games. The top 3 teams from this tournament will make it to Tokyo.

Iranian legionnaires mixed fortune.

2019 has been a difficult year for Team Melli.

There was high hope for the Team to lift the Asian Cup for the first time since 1976. Iran was the favorite for the AFC Asian Cup and reached the semi-final without much difficulty too. Then a moment of madness and breakdown of discipline allowed the Japanese to open the scoring and the rest was a steep uphill struggle for the Team Melli. The match ended in one of the worst defeats of the decade after Japan scored 3 goals. That was also the end of an era as Carlos Queiroz Finally packed his bags for good.

Then came a relatively unknown quality in the form of a Belgian coach who did not last the distance on his last job with the Ivory Coast. Marc Wilmots started brilliantly with a big win in a friendly against Syria and a draw away to South Korea. The real test, however, was the FIFA World Cup qualifiers. It started well against the two weakest teams of the group, but when they faced the first real test, Team Melli failed tactically and lost to Bahrain. There was hope that the second match away to Iraq will yield a better result but like the match against Japan the semi-final of the Asian Cup, the poor tactical discipline of the players and lack of concentration in the last seconds meant another defeat and now the qualification is at perils.

Wilmots left the Job, which he frankly hardly got involved in, and Team Melli is now coachless.

Despite the disappointing Team Melli results, some of the players have been having a good year abroad.

The most delightful of the successes must be that of Al-Shahaniyah Iranian defender, Ramin Rezaeian. Despite his post of a defender, he is one of Qatar's top five goalscorers by the end of the year.

Rezaian who is on his second season with Al-Shahaniyah is becoming a hot commodity in Qatar Star League (QSL). Rezaian, despite being a defender, has also been among the best players in Qatar. His name in Top Scorers list is among the elite of the league such as  Baghdad Bonajah (19 goals), Akram Afif (17 goals) who are the two top scorers. Rezaeian, Mohammed Montari and Thiago Parisa of Al-Khour are next all on 9 goals.

Interestingly enough, Team Melli center forward, Karim Ansaifard has scored 5 goals only in the same, he plays for  Al -Sailiya.

The Other refreshing performance must go to Kaveh Rezaei who is making real waves in the Belgian league. His disappointment at Brugge last season is all but forgotten as the 27 years old Sporting Charleroi forward has scored an average of a goal in every two matches bagging 8 goals so far this season. His compatriot and teammate Ali Golizadeh also scored 3 goals.

Sardar Azmoun is also having his best season ever and is being sought after by many clubs hoping to lure him out of the Russian League.  Sardar has scored 7 goals in the league so far which is on winter break. He scored 9 all season last term. Zenit is leading the table in Russia.

Another of the legionnaires who exploded on the scene abroad is Mehdi Taremi.  The Team Melli Center forward and Azmoun partner upfront joined the Portuguese club Rio Ave and not only he managed to make a sensational start in the cup competition by scoring 4 goals, his tally so far is 5  goals in 10 games ( a goal every two matches) in the league. Taremi suffered several nagging injuries meantime while in Portugal, but the winter break should keep him fit and ready for another adventure.

Also in Portugal, another Team Melli player has been doing quite well with Desportivo Aves. Mehrdad Mohammadi has been brilliant and scored 5 goals in a team that is struggling near the end of the table.

Alireza Jahanbaksh who is the most expensive Iranian player in history had been having a torrid time since joining Brighton from AZ Alkmaar, but in one week the star player scored two wonderful gaols for his club to take the headlines.

Two very disappointing stories of Team Melli players are those of Saeid Ezatollahi and Samman Ghoddos. The former had a long injury that threatened his career. After a full recovery, he struggled to regain even a fraction of his previous level. He is now warming the bench in AS Eupen, a team in the Belgian league at the bottom of the standing. The 23-year-old Ezatollahi has made one appearance for Eupen this season, while his Team Melli teammate in the same club, Omid Ebrahimi has featured 12 times in the league for AS Eupen.

 

Saman Goddos is a sad story as he is suspended by FIFA for breach of contract. On 29 August 2019, FIFA suspended the  French Ligue 1 side Amiens SC Saman Ghoddos from all football activities for four months plus a €4 million fine for his failure to report to Huesca in the La Liga in accordance with a signed contract.

Stunning bicycle kick from Alireza Jahanbakhsh.

For the second successive game, Alireza Jahanbakhsh was left in almost stunned disbelief, this time after scoring the goal of the decade.

For Frank Lampard and Chelsea, it was an all too familiar feeling of frustration as their attempts to build momentum were checked once more.

Their failure to grab a second goal proved costly, though, and left the door open for Jahanbakhsh's jaw-dropping late heroics, a sensational overhead kick to cancel out Cesar Azpilicueta's landmark opener.

Their failure to put Brighton away when they had the chance to do so was punished in stunning style by Team Melli winger Jahanbakhsh.

The Iranian winger arrived in the summer of 2018 under Chris Hughton as a £17m club record signing having just won the golden boot in Holland with AZ Alkmaar.

To say he had failed to live up to his price tag would be an understatement. His first 26 appearances produced a grand total of zero goals and sparked talk he would be loaned out this month to kickstart his career. His agent claimed that many clubs were seeking Alireza’s service, but the player insisted on remaining with Brighton and proving his worth to the coach who has not been too keen to play him in Brighton colors.

But Jahanbakhsh broke his duck against Bournemouth on Saturday, a moment that reduced him to tears, then topped that against Chelsea.

The highly talented Iranian was a substitute for the Chelsea match. He replaced Aaron Mooy in the 68th minute. On the 84th minute, he scored the stunning goal. He was also instrumental in a near goal right at the end when he passed to Maupy but for a spectacular save by Chelsea keeper Kepa Arrizbalaga.

Who is Haidar Baharvand?

In one of the most critical periods of Iranian football approaching a crisis situation, a Haidar Baharvand is suddenly pushed or pressed or appointed as the Acting President of Iran’s Football Federation following the supposed resignation of Mehdi Taj due to cardiac arrest.

 The 59 years old Taj was taken ill in Turkey while negotiating with the wantaway Belgian coach Marc Wilmots. On his return home, he was hospitalized in Tehran for checkups and possible coronary surgery. None of these were verified by Taj himself and/or direct family members. More significantly, Taj has not publically announced his resignation.

Yet, a couple of days after Taj was hospitalized, a replacement was appointed. The Irony or more like the mockery of all this is that the FFIRI executive committee met and removed without anyone seeing or reading the Resignation Letter of Mehdi Taj! As such, such an appointment raises many legal and ethical questions but most importantly, it suspiciously smells fishy and a part of a plot.

The urgency of removing Taj, by a hopeless and ineffectual federation, in itself was enough to trigger rumors and conspiracy theorists. The idea is that Mehdi Taj was pushed aside by the government following the poor results of Team Melli and blamed for appointing Marc Wilmots who is seen as a failure, especially since the Belgian did not last more than 6 months in his last job before being fired by Ivory Coast.

There were also many accusations of financial irregularities since Taj refused to disclose the terms of the contract with the Belgian but most importantly the value. The matter has been taken by Majlis whose members urged the government to investigate.

It is no secret that the powers to be wanted the duo Kaffashian and Taj out of the system for a long time. They managed to get rid of the former but the latter was more difficult to dislodge as he threatened to use FIFA as a defense mechanism to thwart all attempts to unlawfully remove him. Some even say that Taj has actually complained to FIFA in secret.

But first, who is Bahravand?

The Resume of the man who was and still is the head of the Football League committee makes depressing reading. His involvement with football started as a Head Coach of Aflak and Khyber Khoramabad, fifth or sixth tier club, then following not so successful career in coaching he tried his luck with management. He was the Football Director of Lorestan Province then became the Board Chairman of Lorestan and from then became the Board Member of the Iranian Football Federation FFIRI. His highest-profile appointment was the President of the Iranian Football League Organization & Vice President of the FFIRI.

Not exactly a CV of a career professional in football, but then again strangers things have happened in Iran’s football.

Not that Taj was an excellent and skilled manager or will be missed in Iran’s football but that should not diminish the fact that the perennial government involvement has resulted in the appointment of series of unprofessional, poorly qualified and incompetent personnel. The selection criteria have hardly been competence, suitability, and experience.

As such, Iran football has and will suffer as long as these interferences continue.

No country in the world one sees the portrait and images of the Minster of Sports of a country in the media as much as Iran. Most football fans in the world would have no clue who their Minister of Sport is if there was one, but in Iran, this man’s pictures are more frequently published than the likes of Azmoun, Jahanbakhsh or other football heroes. Simply the man pokes his nose in every football issue and becomes a newsmaker.

Soltanifar, The Minister of Sports approving the new appointee.

But behind the curtains, the Minster wants everyone to know that his approvals are vital for every matter relating to football from appointing middle to senior managers in clubs to the appointment of members of the board in FFIRI and the Team Melli coaches too.

In the shambolic management of Iran’s football that is being increasingly exposed by the media and the fans too, a simple protocol like selection or more like the appointment of a new head of the organization can be so messy and error-prone it borders comedy. An emergency meeting is held to replace the President, while there is no documented confirmation or evidence of such resignation. They have taken the decision on hearsay!!

And then, this decision that is taken by the Federations’ board is immediately conveyed to the Minister of Sport for his approval!! A member of the Board has the audacity to admit this fact to a news agency too!

Now…..who can deny that the government is running Football in Iran?

Haidar Baharvand elected as Interim President of FFIRI

Haidar Baharvand has been appointed as Acting President of the Iranian Football Federation and Chairman of the League committee at the same time, according to Hedayat Mombini a member of FFIRI's Executive Committee following the emergency meeting of the federation's Board of Directors.

“After the resignation of Mr. Mehdi Taj as a result of ill-health, we had a meeting to discuss this subject and according to the Statute of the Football Federation, one of the Vice-Presidents or a member of the Board of Directors of the Federation had to be selected as a replacement. Since Ali Kaffashian, who previously held this post has resigned, Mr. Baharvand was elected in an acting capacity. This was the whole subject of the meeting and following this decision another meeting was held with the Minister of Youth and Sports who gave his approval to this appointment” Hedayat Mombini said to ISNA reporter.

It seems that FFIRI Executive Committee and Board Member have no concerns or apprehensions about publically stating that the appointment of the head of the football federation FFIRI or approval thereof, is sanctioned by the government of Iran in direct violation of FIFA charter.

 Mombini added: "We are in a critical period as Omid Team will soon compete in AFC U23 Championship hoping to qualify for the Olympic games and there are also concerns on the appointment of a Team Melli. God willing, with this process completed and the situation returning to normal, the leadership of the Football Federation will continue in the same way. “

Asked how is the arrangement for the league, Mombini said: "Anyway, this issue has come up and now Mr. Baharvand will be the head of both, the Football Federation and the League Organization. We have no changes in the organization of the league at this time. We will decide next week on the Federation and Electoral Assembly dates. As you know, the elections were supposed to take place on May 6, but we will make the final decision sooner than that"

"I have not seen or heard of a written letter of resignation" Mombini responded to a question of whether Taj's letter of resignation has reached the board of directors. “I have no knowledge about that but Mehdi Taj has verbally resigned.” !!!

Asked about the urgency in selecting a Head Coach for Team Melli, Mombini said “there is a lot of work that needs to be done for the appointment of the coach; it would be a little late if we wait for May when the elections of a new President is scheduled. The coach and his assistants need to be selected soon. We are considering foreign and domestic options but are more inclined to choose foreign ones.”