The Notorious Benjamin Williams has been appointed as the referee of the Uzbekistan – Iran match in matchday three of FIFA World Cup 2018 qualifiers.  The match will be played in Tashkent on October 6th.

In the quarter finals match of the Asian Cup 2015, Williams awarded a second yellow card for Merhdad Pooladi just before half time for an innocuous contact with  the Iraqi keeper which the latter took full advantage of and faked injury and pain. Iran played the majority of the match including extra time with one player short. The controversial sending off was heavily criticized by the experts leading some Australian players to publically censure Williams. The Iranians, though, never forgave him. Williams facebook page was defaced with profane messages following the tempestuous quarter-final match in the Asian Cup 2015  in Canberra.

When Williams booked Pooladi for simulation, he appeared to have forgotten the earlier yellow card and he ran off before he was reminded, and then returned and brandished red.

On arrival from China, Queiroz heavily criticized the AFC for such an appointment. The Portuguese coach is still bitter about that unfair decision by Williams and considered awarding of the match to the Australian as a  hostile move against Iran.

 “This man refused to referee a match in Iran in the AFC Champions League. His motives were clear, he was not very popular with the Iranians after that scandalous decision in the Asian Cup.. However, somehow he accepts to be referee of a match that involves Iran but away. If he had any decency, and clear conscious, he would not have refused any assignment anywhere. But not referring in Iran yet agreeing to referee outside smell fishy. He should have declined this appointment (Uzbekistan vs. Iran) like he did in the Champions League.” Queiroz said.

“While we are at it, Kaffashian is a vice-President of the AFC. We made him win this appointment, yet he has done nothing to the benefit of Iranian football since his appointment and I doubt that he will do much for us in these circumstances.” Queiroz said in critique of his former boss.

After that infamous quarter final match, Benjamin Williams lost much of his reputation. He whistled a single match in the FIFA World Cup 2018 qualifiers between Thailand - Vietnam (2nd round) so far.

Team Melli played a goalless draw against China in the second match day of FIFA World Cup 2018 Russia qualifiers. The draw was more like a loss of two points for team Melli as they were the better team all round and on merit and performance deserved a win

Iran, however leads the table with 4 points same as South Korea who could not do any better drawing 0-0 away to Syria. Uzbekistan and Qatar are yet to play the final match of the round.

Queiroz changes and smart starting line-up reflected his dissatisfaction with the team performance against Qatar. With Chinese having a pace advantage upfront, Pouraliganji replaced the slower and older Hosseini, although the veteran defender was called upon after the shoulder injury to Montazeri.

Up front, Taremi was left on the bench; Shojaei replaced Dejagah while Mohammadi took Hajsafy's place on the left.

That line up worked very well and it showed from the first minutes of the match. 

The first half saw Iran playing the better football. Ball possession and distribution , solid midfield control and closing the back line against the home team , ensured Team Melli was in control of the match , however team performance was marred by some wasteful scoring chances.

Masoud Shojae was a clever and effective replacement for injured Ashkan Dejagah. In a rare quality performance by the veteran, he was supreme in the midfield with timely passes and good ball control , mastering the through balls which unfortunately were not taken advantage of by the forwards. The finishing was dreadful.

The best chance for Team Melli came in the 24th min when a master pass by Shojaei intended for Sardar cut the China defense in half , however the prolific Azmoun misjudged the ball on his turn and shoot wide. A certain chance for Iran to take the lead went begging.

A minute later Pejman Montazeri was hurt in a collision with a Chinese forward. Montazei was substituted and later taken to the hospital with a suspected broken shoulder or a dislocation.

China had one shot on goal in the 1st half against Iran’s  8

In the second half, China came out fighting. They managed to threaten Iran’s goal and came close to scoring twice, once when Biranvand fumbled the ball a few feet from the goal line. Milad Mohammadi played an excellent match on the left side limiting the threat and pace of the two Chinese players on that side.

slowly as the game progressed, Iran took the initiative back from the Chinese team and like the first half , they managed to control the midfield. China’s offensive moves were few and far while Team Melli continued its assault on China’s goal.

However, the chances were all wasted. Azmoun and Jahanbakhsh were guilty of some appalling mis-shots  into the stands especially the latter. Jahanbaksh had another poor day.

The best chance to score came from a shot by the substitute Mehdi Torabi late in the match which the Chines keeper parried to a corner kick.

Despite Team Melli’s control and better organization with solid defending at the back, the team game plan lacked variety in offense. There was no B plan to break the great China Wall. The team seems to have a one track mind in offense and that is crossing the ball from flanks hoping that Azmoun or someone else gets at the end of crosses. It was easy for the Chinese team to defend in numbers against such tactics.

Team Melli lacked deep penetrating moves, long range shots, swift counter attacks or any other options. There are enough skillful players to penetrate, dribble and slice defenders but such tactics were not deployed.

Overall , and after two rounds , the results are satisfactory but that cannot be said of the team style or performance.

BY JOHN DUERDEN

Associated Press

Despite massive recent investment in the game domestically and abroad, China's hopes of qualification for the 2018 World Cup could be dented significantly if the team loses at home to Iran.

Despite massive recent investment in the game domestically and abroad, China's hopes of qualification for the 2018 World Cup could be dented significantly if the team loses at home to Iran. A 3-2 loss in South Korea in the opening game of the final round of Asian qualification last week means that a defeat in Shenyang on Tuesday could potentially leave China six points adrift of the top two spots in Group A that offer automatic progress to Russia in 2018. With more than $400 million spent by Chinese Super League clubs in 2016 on famous foreign players as well as a state-run youth development program gathering pace, there has been growing optimism for the future of the game in the world's most populated country in the long-term. In the short-term, however, much depends on a victory against a tough Iran team — even so early in qualifying. China was trailing South Korea 3-0 with 20 minutes remaining but goals from Yu Hai and Hao Junmin forced the 2002 World Cup semifinalists to hang on for the final whistle. And coach Gao Hongbo wants his China team to continue where it left off in Seoul. "If we can play against Iran with the same spirit as the last part of the last game then we can get a good result," he said. "There are nine games remaining in the group and this is our first home game. "We need to do well in front of our own fans if we are going to achieve our goal of qualifying for the World Cup." The comeback last Thursday against South Korea — a team that China has a poor record against with one win in 31 meetings — has boosted confidence and has fans and the domestic media optimistic of better times ahead. "The result was a defeat but we saw that this Chinese team never gives up," Yu Hongchen, Chinese Football Association vice-chairman, said. "Never give up, never admit defeat is a feeling that is part of this team." China has only qualified for the World Cup once — in 2002. Iran arrived in the northeastern city of Shenyang after a long chartered flight from Tehran. The Iranians, coached by former Real Madrid boss Carlos Queiroz, are coming off a 2-0 win over Qatar 2-0 that was only sealed with two injury-time goals. "We are expecting a tough game against a strong team," Queiroz said. "To qualify for the World Cup, you have to pick up points away from home and this is what we are hoping to do.

Reuters (modified)

September 3, 2016

The Football Association of Thailand has lodged a complaint with Fifa over the refereeing during their 1-0 loss to Saudi Arabia in a World Cup qualifier on Thursday, local media reported.

The Thais were left incensed at Riyadh’s King Fahd stadium after striker Teerasil Dangda went down in the penalty area following contact with goalkeeper Yasser Al Mosailem in the 20th minute but Chinese referee Fu Ming awarded a free kick outside the box.

The visitors were later heartbroken when Fu awarded a spot kick to Saudi Arabia in the last 10 minutes when substitute Fahad Al Muwallad tumbled over in an innocuous challenge by midfielder Sarach Yooyen. It was a clear dive by the Saudi player and when the whistle was blown by the Chinese referee many observers thought it to be  a yellow card for Muwallad for diving.

Nawaf Al Abid slotted the winner but the Thais’ night was further soured when Sarach was given a second yellow card for dissent after the final whistle to ensure he will miss the next Group B fixture against Japan.

Sarach was in tears after the match and claimed Fahad had dived.

"The penalty was not our mistake. In fact, in the first half, we should have been awarded a penalty," Thai coach Kiatisuk Senamuang said in comments published by the Bangkok Post.

The first round of qualifiers has put the quality of Asian refereeing under the microscope, with Japan also furious after a number of contentious calls in their 2-1 defeat at home to the UAE.

Australia, who defeated Iraq at home on Thursday, lead Group B on goal difference from UAE and Saudi Arabia after the first round of matches.

The top two sides automatically qualify for Russia in 2018, with the third-placed side going into a play-off.

Javad Nekounam , who was on Team Melli's bench for his first match as part of the coaching team against Qatar was sent to the stands by the Sri Lankan referee for his un-sportsmanship behavior following Ghoochannejad goal.

"I have expressed my joy after our goal and passed the Qatari bench and showed them my fist" Nekounam bragged to ISNA news agency. This action by the Nekounam ,  who should be setting a good example for the younger players and members of the team, lead to a complete chaos and altercation between the members of both squads. His intimidation of the opposing bench lead to his dismissal from the ground and he should expect some heavy sanction by the AFC and FIFA.

This is not a very good start for Nekounam who holds the match appearances record for Team Melli. It is prudent for him to attend sportsmanship courses and workshops on proper behavior before he has any right of a place on the bench of Team Melli. His action and intimidation has no place in sport despite his claim that he did this because of his passion and patriotism !!!