Category: News

27/01/2023

Héctor Raúl Cúper under FFIRI Radar.

After the failure of Team Melli in reaching the next round of FIFA World Cup 2022 and elimination from the group stages, the bench of Team Melli has been vacant.

With Carlos Queiroz’s failure to achieve anything of significance for Iran, his continuation and extension of the contract to be at the helm of the team for the AFC Asian cup 2023 have been in doubt.

The contract of Portuguese Queiroz has ended and it is unlikely that his contract will be renewed due to the opposition by th executive members of FFIRI despite some attempts to keep Queiroz under the pretext of team Stability.

It is almost certain that the Football Federation will opt for yet another foreign coach as secret negotiations have started with some coaches abroad.. One of these options is Héctor Raúl Cúper the Argentine football manager and former player. Cuper (67 years), has declared that he is not interested in working at the club level and intends to remain focused on coaching national teams. The Arabic-language website Kooora claimed that Cuper has attracted the interest of Iran’s FFIRI and had sent signals to test the waters. Cuper has also received an offer from Ghana. Before leaving Egypt, Uzbekistan, and Congo, Cuper also had a coaching experience at Inter Milan in Italy and Valencia in Spain. The last team under Cooper’s leadership was Congo.

24/01/2023

Ali Gholizadeh seeking to leave Royal Charleroi!

Team Melli Iranian winger Ali Gholizadeh, who joined Royal Charleroi S.C. in Belgium from Saipa Alborz club back in 2018, is currently trying to have a release from his contract from the Belgian first division club.

Gholizadeh, who had extended his contract with Charleroi until 2025 just before the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, plans to get his club’s consent for leaving city domestic issues. Gholizadeh has stated personal and family problems with the move. The Team Melli winger has had two bad games in his last matches. He was dropped from the squad against Club Brugge as he was not even included in the 20-man list of his team in this week’s meeting. Although the Belgian media have announced in the past days that Gholizadeh has offers from the Middle East, the player has informed his club that his wife has returned back to Iran due to medical issues and for this reason, it is necessary for him to terminate his contract with the Belgian side to be beside his ailing wife. On the other hand, it was mentioned that a team from the UAE, Etihad Kalba of the Emirates under the head coach of Farhad Majidi was one of Gholizadeh’s suitors, but this news has not been confirmed yet.

19/01/2023

Mehdi Taj “FIFA still investigating Iran-Lebanon match incidents.”

The President of Iran’s football federation FFIRI Mehdi Taj said that the verdict on the controversial Iran-Lebanon match in Mashad in World Cup 2022 qualifiers is still under investigation by FIFA.

According to Taj, the case is still open with FIFA.

“Our case is in the FIFA Disciplinary Committee and the President of FIFA can only postpone it. He has no authority or influence beyond that,” Taj declared “the jurisdiction and the verdict is only in the hands of the Disciplinary Committee.”

Infantino helped Iran before the start of the FIFA World Cup 2022 to prevent what would have been a serious risk of Team Melli being sanctioned. After the conclusion of the FIFA World Cup, the serious violation committed by the government and security forces at and around Imam Reza Stadium will be addressed. The violations include preventing females from entering the stadium despite carrying official tickets, using undue force in doing so, and serious overcrowding and lack of safe practices and crowd control measures at entry and exits of the venue.

FIFA Disciplinary Committee must issue a ruling in this regard, which could be anything from depriving Team Melli of playing home games in Iran to heavy fines or both.

There could also be other ramifications for FFIRI as, despite the promises given to FIFA about females being allowed into stadiums, the hardliners and religious hierarchy are not happy with such a ruling and have defied FIFA and forced their own will on the subject matter. Suspension of Iran from FIFA and AFC is a possibility, though remote.

03/01/2023

Sajjadi accused by Majlis (Parliament) of mismanagement

Story by Mina Aldroubi, Nada AlTaher

Iran’s Parliament gave a warning on Tuesday to Sports Minister Hamid Sajjadi, accusing him of mismanaging the ministry, the Fars news agency reported.

Mr Sajjadi spoke to parliamentarians in an open session on Tuesday to brief officials on the ministry’s financial problems and expenses, especially regarding the country’s football teams.

It came after the Iranian men’s national team (Team Melli) failed to progress past the group stages of December’s World Cup in Qatar.

“The MPs were not satisfied with Sports Minister Sajjadi’s answer about the mismanagement situation in professional sports, especially football, and he received a yellow card from the parliament,” said the agency.

Yellow cards are the Parliament’s way of holding cabinet members accountable by summoning them for questioning or interpellations, a report by Germany-based think tank Carpo said.

“Depending on the minister’s performance, interpellations can lead to ‘yellow cards’ or impeachments. Even the President can be challenged through this mechanism,” the report said.

At the World Cup in Qatar, Iranians were seen wearing the “Women, Life, Freedom” slogan made famous during months-long protests in the country, sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody on September 16.

Hamid Sajjadi practically runs Iran’s football federation. He was the force behind the sacking of Dragan Skočić and restoring Carlos Queiroz to Team Melli and hence accountable for the failure of the team in the World Cup 2022. The government of Iran is the largest contributor to the football federation coffer, some claim, the only contributor to the FFIRI budget. Other federation income is mostly from FIFA and AFC for Iran’s participating in international tournaments. The government of Iran always denies interfering in football and claims that FFIRI elections are free from outside interference, however, events in the last general election and the return of the disgraced Mehdi Taj refutes such claims.

In any case, even if Hamid Sajjadi is kicked out of the Ministry, the one that will replace him will continue on the same path and the same objective of using sports, particularly football, as a tool to serve the regime.

26/12/2022

Iran football legend Ali Daei’s family barred from leaving country after anti-government protests

Daei is one of several Iranian celebrities who have come out in support of the protests ignited by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in September.

Ali Daei, the prominent former football player in Iran who has expressed support for anti-government protests says his wife and daughter were prevented from leaving the country on Monday after their plane made an unscheduled stopover en route to Dubai.

Daei, who had his own passport briefly confiscated after returning to the country earlier this year, said his wife and daughter departed from the capital, Tehran, legally before the flight made an unannounced stop on Kish Island in the Persian Gulf, where they were questioned by authorities.

He said his daughter was released but the doors to the flight were closed by then. He said his family had planned to travel to Dubai and return next week.

The flight-tracking website Flightradar24 showed Mahan Air Flight W563 being diverted to Kish Island before traveling onward to Dubai a couple of hours later.

There was no comment from the airline or Iranian authorities.

Daei is one of several Iranian celebrities who have come out in support of the protests ignited by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in September. The Kurdish woman died after being arrested by Iran’s morality police in Tehran for allegedly violating the country’s strict dress code.

The protests rapidly spread across the country and escalated into calls for the overthrow of the theocracy established after the 1979 revolution, making it one of the biggest challenges to clerical rule in over four decades.

At least 507 protesters have been killed and more than 18,500 people have been arrested, according to Human Rights Activists in Iran, a group that has closely monitored the unrest. Iranian authorities have not released figures for those killed or arrested.

Before his passport was confiscated, Daei, a top international goal-scorer, and former Iranian team captain and head coach had urged the government on social media to “solve the problems of the Iranian people rather than using repression, violence, and arrests.” He later said it was returned to him.

The leaderless protesters, rallying under the slogan “women, life, freedom,” say they are fed up after decades of social and political repression by a clerical establishment they view as corrupt and out of touch. Iranian authorities have blamed the unrest on foreign adversaries like the U.S. and Israel.

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said in a statement Sunday that it had arrested seven individuals in the southeastern city of Kerman with a “direct link” to Britain who were involved in the protests. It said some members of the network had dual nationality, without elaborating.

Iran has arrested a number of Iranians with dual nationality in recent years and convicted them of state security offenses in closed-door trials. Rights groups say such detainees are denied due process and accuse Iran of using them as bargaining chips with the West, something Iranian officials deny. Iranian courts which are fully controlled by the regime extremist headed by Ali Khamenei issue death sentences in a kangaroo-like court where there is little or no right defense or independent observations.

25/12/2022

Mehdi Taj, The arrogant and condescending head of FFIRI under fire.

In a feeble attempt by Mehdi Taj to cover his own personal shortfalls and those of his administration, the president of the football federation FFIRI gave explanations about the bitter exchanges in a live TV show, the future plans of Team Melli, and the new form of club competitions in Asia suggested by the AFC.

Referring to the results of Iran in the World Cup, Mehdi Taj, said: “The result is always determined on the field, It’s true that we endured big pressure off the field and the players didn’t have the concentration required for such top-level competition, and maybe time will pass and no one will remember what these issues were. Moreover, when we returned to Iran, this important issue (off-field tension) was not discussed much, and how far the team was from the tranquil atmosphere of concentration required for the competition. However, I accept that we failed and I apologize for that. Although no one has seen our apology in the statement of the federation, my colleagues and I had done this with full humility. I believe that under normal circumstances, our team would have advanced with this quality that we have.”

Although he claimed that “we” failed, it was far from a genuine admission in the interview as he was vigorously defending his federation and the work of Queiroz.

The head of the football federation added: “I know that the main discussion these football days is about the issue of Team Melli’s head coach. I want everyone to allow us to make the best decision in this matter. I assure you that the federation and the board of directors will be the trustees of the people and will make the best decision. Our goal is to compensate for this result in the AFC Asian Cup 2023 and, God willing, we will announce our decision on the appointment of the head coach considering all aspects and the good of the national team.”

What Taj claims is not consistent with facts and track records. In his shift, Taj was responsible for two major failures in appointing the Head Coach of Team Melli, one was the disastrous Marc Wilmots, for which he resigned his post before being questioned, and the other was recently in appointing Carlos Queiroz with three months to go to the World Cup!

How would the fans and critics believe that Taj will get it right the third time? Has he gained some superior knowledge in the last few days or weeks, has he attended seminars or consulted with the elites of world football for us to believe that he and his cronies, will get it right this time?

Selection of the Head coach and the coaching team in National teams is a process. FFIRI lacks that process and even if there is written in some obscure manual of FFIRI, it will not be followed. It is the Head of the FFIRI that decides. Not dissimilar to the system that country is run, it is a one-man show here too. The comical act of the Technical Committee that sacked Dragan Skocic without having the authority to do so, during Misrshad Majedi’s term as acting head of FFIRI, shows how chaotic this federation and the people associated with it are.

Taj finally mentioned a subject he was trying hard to avoid, and that was the TV Sport show that was talk of the town and social media since Thursday. Taj’s arrogance, sarcasm, dark humor, and condescending attitude toward the two presenters, were not received well by the fans and media.

” First of all, I consider it my duty to once again thank the media for their sincere support during the World Cup. My colleagues and I at the Football Federation are eagerly interested in receiving suggestions and criticisms from media friends. Regarding the topics related to appearing on the sports network program, that night I had general expectations about the manner of the questions and the questions themselves, which I don’t want to reveal, but for example, in the discussion of the former head coach of the national team, Mr. Khiabani, could have said “what happened to the Wilmots case? ‘, which I should have answered, instead, Mr. Khabani suddenly said, “Where is the Wilmots case?” Maybe I shouldn’t have said it was in my pocket, but I should have explained the process that I did. I fully explained that the Wilmots case has resulted in a penalty against the FFIRI in the amount of 9.2 million euros, because of contract violations.

Regarding the issues raised with Rasul Majidi, the young show host of the program whom Taj clearly insulted, he said: “The reality is that this host is like my own son. I am also interested in him. At the beginning of the World Cup, I spoke only with him in this TV show. I was supposed to go to the studio on the last day. I am interested in them and I sincerely apologize. Taj who insinuated that Majidi was a novice in football due ro his young age, turned around and said “In the football federation, people of his age do important work. I don’t want him to be upset either.

At the end of that interview, Taj made a strong statement saying that the IRIB has no place in making football policy or questioning who is going to be Team Melli’s coach.

Not only Taj has exposed his weak self and his lack of integrity and true management skills, his arrogance and looking down on people are something that the Iranians have experienced for the first time from this man. The industrialist from Esfahan who comes from a rich family loyal to the regime has truly uncovered his mask.

24/12/2022

Amir Abedini: Queiroz must go.

Amir Abedini is a former club chairman, former professional footballer, and currently a member of the City Council of Tehran. Abedini’s views on football and politics have always been direct and bold. He has no issues speaking up against corruption, shortfalls, and anything that he deems to be harmful to society. In football, he rarely holds back and is most critical of the football establishment, the nepotism, and the mismanagement of the federation. He does not get much press exposure because his views are deemed to be controversial and since the FFIRI and football, in general, are under direct government control, it will be detrimental to the ruling clan and the political system.

Abedini was recently interviewed by Mehrnews post the Tehran derby that ended in a 2-2 draw. He was critical of the standard of the match, the lack of atmosphere as the match was played behind closed doors in the 100,000-capacity Azadi stadium, and the general lack of quality, and skills by the players of Esteghlal and Persepolis. Abedini then remarked that “after the Excitement of the World Cup and the beautiful games we have witnessed, perhaps our expectation of this derby was far too high.”

Amir Abedini was then asked about team Melli.

The former president of the Football Federation emphasized: “One of the issues that play a role in the quality of the league is the national team, which we do not see in Iran at the moment. Queiroz’s national team means a predetermined package; A certain group of players who, if Queiroz could, would even be taken with him to Colombia! In my opinion, our league is useless and its output is nothing for the national team. This hurts the league, the players, and the clubs in many ways.

Mehdi Taj is losing his bearings.
Abedini also responded to Mehdi Taj’s strange behavior and answers, which caused a lot of controversy on the sports network a few days ago, and added: Taj is losing his integrity due to the intense pressure he is under. One of the admirable merits of Taj was his coolness and his reasonable dealings with the media. Today Taj is tense and nervous and this nervousness plays a role in his behavior and decision-making. The bad failure in the World Cup made him nervous. The expectations of the people and the media are quite high and yet I have not seen any true critique from the media so far.

Team Melli was disappointing in the World Cup.
” We didn’t see anything of worth from Iran in the World Cup,” the former member of the Football Federation stated: “People expected the National Team to show its face and turn up to play football in the World Cup, but we didn’t see such thing. The beating by England hurt badly. In the 2018 World Cup, we defeated Morocco, but what happened to Morocco, who lost to us, four years later? they became among the top four teams in the world and were so good that the people of Asia, Africa, and some of the people of other continents wanted Morrocco to reach the final. . Or, for example, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and South Korea, which performed significantly better than Iran.

Unwanted Queiroz was reborn and became alive with Iran.
Abedini added: We defeated the modest team of Wales. A team that really had nothing to say, but we messed up the national team’s camp and created false expectations. The same package of players that I mentioned earlier, threw that gentleman (Queiroz) up and down 6 times against England. Was it the same case for Korean and Japanese coaches? No one wanted Queiroz anywhere, but we brought him back to life. Taj defends something that has been rejected by the people and the media. People are not thrilled anymore; Why do they insist that Queiroz remains one of the options for the head coach of the national team? Mr. Taj! People attack you because you are defending something that has been rejected by the people. People enjoy and rave about winners and enjoy success. Failures have no place in society.

Queiroz needs to go.
“I am against the renewal of Queiroz’s contract. His work is not good enough.” The former president of the Football Federation emphasized that he is against the continuation of Queiroz’s work in the national team and said: “I am expressing my opinion. If Mr. Taj wants to stay in football, he must create a platform for consensus, that is, elites and experts who believe that change is necessary for football. It is good that the league is held, but the important thing is how our matches are held and what quality.

Imaginary enemies
“The media is not the enemy of football.” Abedini said, in response to the criticism of Mehdi Taj’s performance,” Taj should be spoken to and the public is entitled to know what is his plan for football and Team Melli. How does he want to continue his work? The General Assembly members and board of directors need to address that. Fand=s and experts should feel relaxed and be assured that football is being properly run (…) . These are football fanatics. The media is not an enemy, and neither are the people. Mehdi Taj must have a master plan with checkpoints to determine whether it is moving in the right direction or not.

Plans for Team Melli
“I think people like Dadkan and Maeli Kohn can provide good advice to Taj in regard to Team Melli.
Asked about, what advice the former Head of FFIRI has for the Federation Assembly regarding the national team. He said: “Elites must decide. The football federation is for the people and the football elites become the representatives of the people. Make a decision and accept responsibility for it. People like Dadkan or Maeli Kohn or those who have experienced the ups and downs of football should help Taj as a consultant and support him. This would be a good option. It is not just a matter of having foreign or domestic coaches; whoever takes over in Team Melli, should be a coach who is proud of his appointment and capable, skillful, and competent for the post.

22/12/2022

Iran drops 4 places in FIFA Ranking

After Argentina’s victory in the World Cup 2022 in Qatar in its 22nd edition FIFA announced the new ranking which was highly influenced by the results of this World Cup.

According to the new announcement by FIFA, Iran’s national football team, which was in the group B with England, Wales, and the United States, was heavily defeated by England 6-2, won 2-0 against Wales, and lost narrowly to the United States 1-0, ending its matches in third place while failing to advance to the knockout stages. Iran dropped four places compared to the previous FIFA ranking and stood at 24th place in the world ranking.

The Iranian national team is also no longer the top team in Asia and gave away that rank to Japan, which has performed marvelously as the best among Asian teams. The position of the Iranian and Japanese national football teams was changed both in Asia and in the world. Japan jumped to 20th in World Ranking four ranks above Iran. The gap that is created now means that Iran will be struggling to match the Japanese to regain the top spot. In fact, Iran will have a great challenge from the third rank team Korea Rep. too as it is breathing down Iran’s neck with a difference of 18 points only, Australia in fourth, not far behind, will also threaten to overtake Iran.

The disappointment follows the return of the ineffective and shady Mehdi Taj as the head of the football federation dominated by government loyalists and will continue as the anguished FFIRI are looking to hold on to the perpetual loser, Carlos Queiroz as the head coach of Team Melli post World Cup

The AFC Asian Cup 2023 remains the biggest challenge and barring a miracle, Iran will once again struggle to make it through to the finals or win the trophy back after 47 years.

AFC Rank	World Ranking	Team	Total Points	Previous Points	+/-
1	20	Japan	1593.08	1559.54	33.54
2	24	Iran	1551.73	1564.61	-12.88
3	25	Korea Republic	1539.49	1530.3	9.19
4	27	Australia	1533.97	1488.72	45.25
5	49	Saudi Arabia	1438.13	1437.78	0.35
6	60	Qatar	1393.56	1439.89	-46.33
7	68	Iraq	1342.39	1343.01	-0.62
8	70	United Arab Emirates	1338.48	1337.57	0.91
9	75	Oman	1321.24	1320.29	0.95
10	77	Uzbekistan	1312.64	1309.98	2.66

20/12/2022

Rogério De Sa waits on Iran’s FA to see if he and Queiroz still have a job

Rogério De Sa’s future with the Iran national team is hanging in the balance and he says he will resume talks with the federation after the festive break.

The former Orlando Pirates and Bidvest Wits coach is back in South Africa from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

De Sa was Iran coach Carlos Queiroz’s assistant and their collaboration did not yield the required results of getting the team to the knockout stages for the first time in the country’s history. Team Melli lost 6-2 against England, beat Wales 2-0 and lost 1-0 against the US to end third in Group B.

De Sa and Queiros have Mozambican parentage and have worked together for some time. Earlier this year, they took Egypt to the final of the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon where the Pharaohs, led by Liverpool talisman Mo Salah, were defeated by Sadio Mane-led Senegal.

Twelve years ago, the duo coached a star-studded Portugal at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

“We are not sure about our future with the Iran national team but we will resume our talks with the federation in January. We hope to continue with the team next year,” De Sa said.

De Sa has already started working as an analyst on the pay-channel SuperSport’s World Cup panel. “After the World Cup, I will go on holiday for the rest of December,” he said.

Queiroz and De Sa only took over Iran in early September, replacing Croatian Dragan Skočić after Mehdi Taj was elected as Iranian FA president in October, returning to the position he held from 2016 to 2019. The South African assistant coach was quite confident of Iran reaching the knockout stages after a friendly 1-0 win against Uruguay

“But we are confident about reaching the knockout stages — that will be history, it will be for the first time Iran achieved that. In the last two World Cups, they came very close. We can only try again. But there is an amazing fighting spirit in the team. There are good attitudes in this team, no stars.”

De Sa said the limited time they had with the team, and a tough group always made for an uphill battle in Qatar. De Sa said the same thing about Egypt in the African Nations Cup.

“We were drawn into a very difficult group and our players were always going to find it very tough. We also did not have enough time because some of our players were arriving days before the games started.

“It was a different World Cup with so many different dynamics compared to other tournaments. Our team was made up of mostly local players, but it was an important learning experience for the boys playing against England’s superstars they see in the English Premier League, the stars of the US, and against players such as Gareth Bale [of Wales].

“We wanted to make history by qualifying for the knockout stage but we could not get over the line. It is very humid and the tempo of the matches is dropping [in the latter stages of the tournament]. There is air-conditioning at the stadiums but it is only switched on during matches. Some players are going to start struggling and that’s when you start seeing the big boys coming out on top.

20/12/2022

Hamid Alidoosti’s daughter has been arrested.

Taraneh Alidoosti, the daughter of former Team Melli and Persepolis star Hamid Alidoosti has been arrested by the Iranian regime following a post on social media.

This is yet another celebrity that the clerical regime has incarcerated in an attempt to quell the nationwide protests.

Alidoosti, 38, was arrested on Saturday, official media said, after making a string of social media posts supporting the protest movement — including removing her headscarf and condemning the execution of protesters.

The unrest was sparked by the September 16 death in custody of Mahsa Amini, 22, whom the morality police accused of violating the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code for women.

Alidoosti’s arrest came a week after she posted on Instagram expressing solidarity with the first man recently executed for crimes allegedly committed during the nationwide protests, the Irna news agency said.

In her post, the actress said: “His name was Mohsen Shekari. Every international organization that is watching this bloodshed and not taking action is a disgrace to humanity.” Her account was suspended on Sunday.

Taraneh Alidoosti earlier posted a picture on Instagram that showed her holding a sign saying ‘Woman. Life. Freedom’. Photo: Taraneh Alidoosti© Provided by The National

Alidoosti was arrested because she did not provide ’’any documents in line with her claims″, according to the report published on the state media’s official Telegram channel.

Last week, Iran executed a second prisoner, Majidreza Rahnavard, in connection with the protests. Rahnavard’s body was left hanging from a construction crane as a gruesome warning to others.

Alidoosti, who starred in the Oscar-winning The Salesman, was in Cannes in May to promote Leila’s Brothers.

Cannes Film Festival called on Monday for the immediate release of award-winning actress Taraneh Alidoosti, one of the most prominent people to have been arrested in Iran’s months-long protests.

“The @Festival_Cannes strongly condemns this arrest and demands her immediate release,” it wrote on Twitter, along with the hashtag #FreeTaranehAlidoosti.

“In solidarity with the peaceful struggle she is carrying out for freedom and women’s rights, the @Festival_Cannes extends their full support to her.”

A representative of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said it was “seriously concerned” by the detention of Alidoosti “for simply expressing her views on the current protests and particularly the execution of Mohsen Shekari, the first protester to be executed in the context of demonstrations.”

British pop group the Pet Shop Boys also tweeted about the case, saying: “Iran’s fascist government has executed protesters recently which Taraneh has condemned.”

Story by Mina Aldroubi, Nada AlTaher

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