Translated article

voetbal International

02/07/2013 13:00

(Lars Ulrich)

In the Netherlands and Belgium Ghoochannejhad was not much more than modest club player for mid table or lowly teams like Go Ahead Eagles, FC Emmen, SC Cambuur and Sint-Truiden. Only less than two months ago, The Iranian scored his first goal for the club when Standard Liege won 4-3 on May 19 thanks to a goal by Gucci against SC Lokeren.

But in Iran, his name is now in the same level as the greats among the footballing compatriots. Ghoochannejhad is a hero of Team Melli, which a month ago qualified to the World Cup for the fourth time.

Legend Hassan Rowshan helped Iran qualify for the World Cup with his goals in 1978 for the first time on the World Cup stage, such as Khodadad Azizi and Vahid Hashemian did in qualifying for the World Cups of 1998 and 2006 respectively.

Now Gucci, as he is affectionately named, has achieved the same. Ghoochannejhad reached that status in less than a month. Born in Iran but grew up in Friesland, the striker played a decisive role during the final of the World Cup qualifiers for Iran, in time recovering from some disappointing earlier results.

On June 4, Gucci brought back hope for a place on the global stage by scoring against Qatar (1-0), then seven days later he contributed to the big win against Lebanon (4-0). His major contribution was in another week with the winning goal against South Korea. His goal against South Korea was decisive. Ghoochannejhad had three goals in as many games to lead his country’s way to the World Cup in Brazil next year.

The begining of his of success in his way to Iran’s team was in Herman Vanderpoorten Stadium on October 22 warm autumn day in 2011. Ghoochannejhad made quite an impression in Sint-Truiden team playing against Lierse SK, which went was won partly due to the contribution of the Iranian striker. Sint-Truiden won at home 2-0.

It was the prelude to an appealing international career for his native country. Coach Carlos Queiroz was in fact witnessed the starring of Reza and came into action. The Portuguese made contact with the attacker.

“It was a surprise that Queiroz called me,” says Ghoochannejhad on the FIFA website about the change in his football life. “He told me that playing for your country is an honor to be if you love your country. And he told me I think you can help us. ”

Green light
That was indeed the case. After some effort to get all the paperwork completed , the green light was given in 2012. Almost a year after the discovery of Queiroz in Lier debuted Ghoochannejhad for his country. With five goals in seven international matches, he has become the Iranian hero and World Cup hopes.

He may challenge his illustrious predecessors in 2014 to the crown. Rowshan scored well in 1978 but further injuries during the tournament in Argentina saw him barely in action. Yet ever alive the idea that Team Melli was also featured as Rowshan had been. Well fit Azizi scorer of the goal that qualified Iran to World Cup 1998 France , did not help his country further in the finals. Further on twenty years later nor did Vahid Hashemian in Germany in 2006.

Ghoochannejhad thinks Iran can write history, and he is not pointing at himself. “I’m really confident in our team. There is a perfect balance in the selection, with young talents and experienced campaigners. We can achieve more if we keep playing. “As a team

An official of the South Korean Football association has announced that its association has proposed a friendly match with Iran on FIFA day September 6th. The venue has yet to be decided so is to the response of Iranian counterparts.

The Korean official reason for the request was highly unorthodox, citing the non-availability of European teams in that FIFA Day as most of the teams in Europe will be engaged in playing in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers while the other reason that the Korean official offered was the fact that Korea wants a revenge match after two successive defeats in the World Cup qualifiers at the hand of Iran.

Iran and South Korea have a long history of rivalry between them in football. The Koreans have been particularly mindful of the results against Iran and take it quite seriously. The rivalry dating back from the Tokyo Asian games of 1958, in which 27 matches were played with Iran edging the Koreans 11 to 9 in victories.

The humiliating 6-2 defeat at the hands of the Iranians in the Asian Cup 1996 held in UAE, left a perpetual bitter taste for the proud Koreans.

For South Korea, Iran is the team who always kill off the dream of winning the Asian Cup. In the Asian Cup 2011 in Doha, when the final whistle went to signal South Korea’s 4-1 win over India, you could hear a big sigh from Korean football fans. Not because the result was underwhelming, but because it meant they will again face Iran at quarter final stage – for the fifth time in a row.

Since 1996, South Korea and Iran have developed a fierce rivalry like no other in Asian Cup. The very first meeting of two teams concluded with Iran registering a 6-2 smashing, causing South Korean gaffer Park Jong-hwan to resign.

Four years later, South Koreans exacted revenge against Iran by beating them 2-1. Lee Dong-guk scored the golden goal, which was the common rule adopted by competitions at that stage.

But, South Korea’s Iranian nightmare wasn’t over. In 2004, Iran enjoyed a thrilling 4-3 win against South Korea courtesy of an Ali Karimi hat-trick.

In Asian Cup 2007 , South Korea won via a penalty shootout, when Mehdi Mahdavikia and Rasoul Khatibi’s attempts denied by Lee Woon-jae, eliminating Iran from the tournament.

That entire rivalry history aside, the two recent 1-0 losses to Iran in this current World Cup qualifiers have been a bitter pill for the Koreans to swallow. Iran won 1-0 in Azadi in Tehran courtesy of a Nekounam goal. The return match in Ulsan was a chance for the Koreans to “Teach them (the Iranians) a lesson in football” according to claims by some overconfident Korean players. Added to the heat, was the pre- match rhetoric by the beleaguered coach Choi who publically declared his despise for Iran.

Iran, however, still managed to beat the Koreans at home by a brilliant effort from Ghoochannejad. That was yet another humiliation for the Koreans that angered their fans on and off the field. Choi resigned after the game, while some fans threw objects at Iranian players celebrating, an assistant coach of Iran was attacked and ugly scenes followed.

The result of that defeat extended beyond the stadium when millions of Korean fans spammed the Korean FA website bringing the website it down,  in protest against the team , coach and the association.

It looks like the South Koreans are in a dire need of win against Iran, even in a friendly match, hence the proposal of this match!

Iran futsal continued its route towards winning its fourth consecutive title in the Asian Indoor games. In the semi-finals match played today, Iran futsal team beat Thailand in a closely contested game 5-4 to qualify for the Friday final.

Thailand, which has been a thorn in Iran’s back and a serious challenger to Iran’s futsal supremacy in Asia, scored quite early in the match in the 3rd minute. However, the Iranian response was quick and decisive. Hossein Tayebi , the top scorer for Team Melli Futsall team scored two quick goals in the 5th and 6th minutes to stun the Thai team and put them back where they started.  The match continued with Thailand pressing hard to score the equalizer, but it was Iran who scored the third on the stroke of half time. Maysam Khayyam scored with 3 seconds left to the whistle making it 3-1 for Iran.

Iran scored again in the 2nd half when Hossein Taybei completed his hat trick in this match making it 4-1 for Iran. Thailand players who started the second half quite strongly were determined to make a match out of this one and they soon got what they wanted when they scored their second to make it 2-4.  Iran players were still recovering from that goal when a whirlwind Thai attack added another goal within 9 minutes for Thailand to narrow the margin  4-3 leaving the Iranian dazed and fearing a repeat of last year heart-breaker when the same team beat them in the same stage , the semi-final , of the AFC Asian Futsal championship.

Jesus Candelas men however, were not going to allow the resolute Thai to repeat the result of last year. Iran took a grip on the game and played a patient and passing game in hope of drawing the Thai out of their defensive shell. Thailand was content to defend and let the Iranian have the ball as they pleased hoping for counter attack opportunities which they have demonstrated with success in this tournament.  As time was getting critical for both teams, and with 5 minutes to go, Iran got the break they wanted when Ghodrat Bahdori scored Iran’s 5th to relieve the Iranians from pressure and increase the margin to two goals. As Iran was leading 5-3, and the game coming to close, Thailand got a penalty which they scored with 7 seconds of the match left. It was one goal too late for the Thai as Iran took revenge of last year’s defeat and qualified for the final .

Iran jumped a whopping 15 positions up in the latest FIFA Ranking published today.

After the three consecutive wins in the FIFA World Cup 2014 Brazil qualification rounds and the qualification to the finals rounds in Brazil next year, it was expects that Team Melli will recover the lost ground in the ranking as well. Iran accumulated  596 points in the July 2013 ranking  to jump to 52 in the table after a disappointing tally of last month which saw it drop to 67.

Iran also regained the 4th ranking in Asia after Japan, Australia and South Korea and just ahead of Uzbekistan.

Iran’s futsal team continued its winning streak in the 4th Asian Indoor Games by beating China. In the match played on Wednesday in the quarter finals of the Futsal competition played at  Songdo Global University Campus Arena , Iran beat China 8-0 to reach the semi finals of the games.

Iran goals were scored by Ali Asghar Hassanzadeh (3 goals), Hossein Tayebi (2 goals) , Ghodrat Bahadori , Maysam Khayyam, Mohammad Sepehri.

In the other quarter finals matches, Thailand beat Lebanon 7-3 to set up a semi final with Iran. Kuwait beat the host nation South Korea 3-1 to eliminate them from the competition while in the last match Japan beat Uzbekistan 54- in a closely contested match to set up a semi final match with Kuwait.

The match between Iran and Thailand will be played on Thursday 29th July at 11:30 Tehran Time (0700 UTC) .

Jesus Candelas Rodrigo , Iran’s coach will be looking forward for revenge against Thailand , after the East Asian nation beat Iran in last years Semi-final in the UAE.

Hossein Tayebi leads Iran’s futsal scoring list with 7 goals out of 33 scored in the last 3 matches. Ali Asghar Hassanzaeh is second with 6 goals while Mohammead Taheri is third with 5.

Iran’s average goal per game 1s 11 goals per game.

Iran’s woman Futsal team beat Indonesia 4-0 in the semi final of the Futsal competition and reached the finals for the first time. Nassema Gholami, Fereshteh Karimi(2) and Nilofar Ardalan scored Iran’s women team goals in Incheon to set up a final against Japan. Final of the Women competition will be held on Friday at 17:00 local time.

On the way to the finals, Iranian girls have beaten Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Indonesia to reach the gold medal match.

By ESPN staff

South Korea and Iran have announced that they are to sign a sports exchange agreement later this week, bringing an end to the bitter feud that broke out during their World Cup qualifying campaign.

Carlos Queiroz had accused Choi of ‘insulting’ the Iranian people

Both countries went through to the 2014 tournament in Brazil after a 1-0 win for Iran in Ulsan last month, with the game played after a flurry of angry exchanges between South Korea coach Choi Kang-Hee – who resigned after the defeat – and Iran counterpart Carlos Queiroz.

It began last month when Queiroz accused Choi of “humiliating” the Iranian people by claiming he and his players had been “badly treated” around their 1-0 defeat in Tehran last year, saying he should issue an apology.

Choi declined to do so and said he wanted to knock Iran out of the competition, leaving Queiroz to watch it at home on television. “It looks like Iran is nervous,” he said. “When feeling burdened or chased after, you talk a lot and engage in unnecessary provocation.

“I will defeat Iran no matter what. Coach Queiroz will be watching the Brazil World Cup on TV.”

But his team’s defeat, in a highly-charged atmosphere, proved too much for Choi. After the game, the Korea Football Association website crashed as furious fans tried to leave their comments about a poor performance, and the coach quit the following day.

The bad blood had continued after the final whistle, with the KFA hitting out at Queiroz for his exuberant celebrations and claiming he had made gestures.

That, however, has not prevented the two countries from signing the sports exchange deal, which replaces a similar arrangement that expired in 2010. The ceremony will take place on Wednesday.

Yoo Jin-Ryong, the South Korean minister of culture, sports and tourism, and Mohammad Abbasi, Iran’s minister of youth affairs and sports, will put their names to the agreement, which covers bilateral exchange of athletes, coaches and sports experts.

“We hope this signing will further expand sports exchanges and cooperation between South Korea and Iran,” Yoo was quoted as saying by the South’s Yonhap news agency.

“We also hope that the two countries will actively engage in exchange programmes in culture and tourism, among other areas.”

(FIFA.com) Tuesday 2 July 2013

A true star is made for hard times. Looking back at Iran‘s four qualifying successes for the FIFA World Cup™, it seems that each time Team Melli’s hopes are hanging by a thread there is a hero who duly rises to the occasion to rescue their campaign.

In reaching their maiden global showpiece at Argentina 1978, the West Asians were indebted to the legendary Hassan Rowshan, whose goals and assists helped his country through Asia’s mammoth qualification. Then on the road to France 1998, trailing hosts Australia 2-1 with little more than 15 minutes remaining in the decisive AFC/OFA play-off, the livewire Khodadad Azizi scored the equaliser which sealed their berth at the expense of the Socceroos. Vahid Hashemian would be the next savior, firing Iran through to Germany 2006 with his powerful headers and shooting.

All these players had been established stars before their qualifying heroics. When it came to their bid for Brazil 2014, though, it was an unsung forward that took up the rescuer’s mantle. Reza Ghoochannejhad, a relatively unknown Belgian-based striker, revived Iran‘s fortunes with his first qualifying goal in this June’s 1-0 victory in Qatar, before being on target again a week later in their 4-0 home defeat of Lebanon. The 25-year-old Standard Liege man would maintain his form against hosts Korea Republic seven days later, scoring the only goal of the concluder which booked their passage as group winners.

“It is an honour to play for Iran, whenever and wherever,” Ghoochannejhad told FIFA.com in a recent exclusive interview. “I am blessed for having this opportunity, especially now that we can represent our country at the World Cup in Brazil.”

Salute to Queiroz
Born in Iran but growing up in the Netherlands, Gucci, as he is now affectionately known to fans, was a fresh face on the Asian scene when he was called up by coach Carlos Queiroz last October. Impressed by his performance in a Belgian League game against Lierse last season, the former Portugal and Real Madrid boss, then scouring Europe for players eligible to play for Iran, immediately made contact with the player.

“It was a surprise that Mr. Queiroz called me,” Gucci recalled. “The coach told me ‘playing for your country should be an honour if you love Iran, and I think you can help us’. What he said was simple, but after hanging up the phone I immediately called my parents telling them the good news.”

The coach’s appreciation of him was such that he started Reza in his international debut in a crucial home qualifier against Korea Republic, which Iran won 1-0. Even after their disappointing home defeat to Uzbekistan, a result which put Iran‘s campaign in jeopardy, Queiroz maintained his faith in Ghoochannejhad. And he was eventually proved right, with Gucci scoring three goals in as many games across two weeks, including two match-winners, as Iran progressed in unexpected fashion.

“It was a difficult campaign with a lot of ups and downs,” he reflected. “We lost two important games against Lebanon and Uzbekistan. But we defied all odds to make it. We have a good team, we respect and help each other. Certainly, it was impossible for me to score the goals without support of my team-mates.”

Having seen his meteoric rise to prominence, he paid tribute to the man who guided Iran through and showed unwavering belief in him. He said: “As Iranians, we should be thankful to coach Queiroz. He’s the main reason for this success. He was always there (with us), in both good and bad times. He never ran away from his responsibilities.”

Golden boy
With his decisive goals and man-of-the-match performances, Ghoochannejhad, now Iran‘s golden boy, has already been likened to the aforementioned legends. Particularly, his goal against Korea Republic was reminiscent of Azizi’s golden moment in Melbourne 16 years ago.

Indeed, the goal against the Koreans was the embodiment of Gucci’s predatory talents. With Iran largely on the back foot and approaching the final half-hour, Gucci stole the ball from Kim Younggwon, darted to the edge of the penalty area, before unleashing a trademark left-footed shot past the goalkeeper.

“I love scoring goals,” said the cool-headed marksman, who has achieved some 50 goals with a series of clubs in the Netherlands and Belgium. “It is my job to put the ball into the net. I have scored goals everywhere but I am still working hard to improve my skills.”

With his first FIFA World Cup beckoning, Gucci is optimistic that Iran can continue to make history. He said: “I am really confident about our team. There is a perfect balance in this squad, with youth talents and experienced players. We can achieve more as long as we stay united as a group.”

Iran Futsal team , romped past Iraq 12-3 in yet another big score match. The match was played in Group D of the 4th Asian Indoor games futsal competition in Incheon , South Korea.  Team Melli has previously defeated United Arab Emirates 13-0 in the same group and now leads the table with maximum point.

Iran’s next opponent will be China in the Quarter Finals stage of the competition.  The match will be played on Wednesday 3rd July in  Dongbu Student Gymnasium.

Asian Indoor Games  2013 –

Futsal MEN – Group D Standing
1. Iran —————————-2-2-0-0-25–3-6
2. UAE —————————–2-1-0-1–3-15-3
3. Iraq —————————-2-0-0-2–5-15-0

On Friday evening, a sporting event outside football made massive impact in Iran and the rest of sporting world. It was the win by Iran’s Volleyball team against the might of the Italians in Modena , Italy. In footballing terms, you can compare this win to Tahiti beating Spain in the World Cup. In sport, shock results are not common but it can happen , but they don’t come bigger than this Iranian victory against the 8 times Champions Italy and the land of the greatest  professional Volleyball league in the world. Iran, is the infant of the World League, it is its first participation at elite level.

Such a success is undoubtedly the result of the proficiency of one of the world renowned coaches who has a pedigree of championships. He is none other than Julio Velasco, the Argentine coach who has won championship at every conceivable level of World Volleyball. Velasco is a legend in Italy where he spent most of his professional career. It was Ironic that he won against the very team that he lead to 5 world titles.

Volleyball is a sport that is ranked third in popularity in Iran, behind football and basketball. It had very limited success during the decades that it has been played, than Julio Velasco made sure that his era would be different. Winning the first ever Asian Championship in its history in 2011, Iran went on to qualify for its first ever Volleyball World league under the Argentina coaching.

Away from tactical details of such achievement, which is beyond the score of this article, Julio Velasco has changed Iranian sportsmen in a way that that the rest , especially football coaches, need to absorb and implement. Velasco is a cool character who hardly raises his voice and never resorts to shouting, commotion or being graphics to express his dissatisfaction with his players. His cool, calm yet very unyielding demeanor is the weapon that he successfully uses to deal with the players. This coach has very little tolerance for mistakes by individual players or by the team as a group; he promptly reacts to rectify the situation but also very firmly without being emotional. On the other side, he also has immense skills in the psychological side of coaching. He is the master of motivation and inspiration to his players particularly when one or two of them are down. He skillfully influences his player and instills in them self-belief to the extent they always give their absolute best. Even if they are at their top performance, the coach never allows them to set on their laurels.   A rule that he will never deviate from, bend, respect and adhere is discipline in the team. Many of the players learned the hard way, how discipline is valued in Velasco’s philosophy.

Iranian players in general, had difficulties in discipline. It is a cultural issue that has resulted in the failure of many foreign coaches in Iran. Culture cannot be changed overnight in a society; hence the delicate balance that is needs to deal with Iranian players. Football coaches need to read some chapters of Velasco’s rules. Carlos Queiroz is one person who admires Velasco and the Portuguese coach was in Azadi Arena to witness the Iran Volleyball team winning the Asian Championship. That won inspired Queiroz as he witnessed the greatest scenes of jubilation for a unique event. The fact the Velasco has managed to reach so far, must have inspired many more other coaches and experts.

The issue here is not simply the tactical prowess of a coach but much beyond that. It is the methods implemented to deal with players, the character of the coach, his inspirational power, how he can make the player deliver, his vigor, his power to force upon his players to give 100% effort, his respect for the culture of his players and emotional strength to deal with adversity. Velasco has proven that he does not need to shout his head off to put the words across to his players.

Football can learn from Julio Velasco. What he proved is that there are lots of talented young men in Iran, they need the appropriate techniques and modern practices to get the best out of them. He is an inspirational person who should be valued by the sporting authorities well beyond Volleyball.