Category: News

Iran futsal eases past the Kyrgyz Republic.

Bishkek: Iran national Futsal team stamped its authority with a 10-2 win over Kyrgyz Republic in Group C of the AFC Futsal Asian Cup™ Thailand 2024 Qualifiers on Monday.

Following the 18-2 win over the Maldives in the opening round Iran flexed its muscle, this time against the host. Captain Hossein Tayyebi got the ball rolling for 12-time champions Iran with a strike in the second minute before Mohammadhossein Derakhshani and Karimi got into the act with efforts in the 17th minute.

Iran pushed further in the second half and were immediately rewarded with their sixth and seventh of the evening through strikes from Mahdi Rostami Ha and Saeid Ahmad Abbasi respectively.

Kyrgyz Republic reduced the deficit through Daniiar Uulu Abdurakhim in the 25th minute only for Iran to score again through Karimi’s 30th-minute effort followed by Mohammadhossein Derakhshani’s goal four minutes later with the No 7 ending the proceedings with his third and Iran’s 10th goal. 

Iran meets Lebanon on Matchday Three, while Kyrgyz Republic faces Maldives.

Group C

PWDLFAGDPTS
1IR IRAN2200284246
2KYRGYZ REPUBLIC *2101714-73
3LEBANON *210110643
4MALDIVES2002324-210

Confidence crises with Iranian coaches.

Amir Ghalenoei has produced his list for Jordan's four-nations tournament. Not only this list was quite disappointing for those fans and pundits who liked to see new young faces in an aging Team Melli, but it also included a veteran in Karim Ansarifard who has not been in the picture and has hardly shown the public in Iran any proof of his worth in the Cypriot league. Ansarifard is not even a regular starter for Omonia Nicosia

Since his appointment. Amir Ghalenoei has been facing regular criticism, mainly because he is a local coach. There has been a crisis of confidence in Iranian coaches for a long time, particularly in these few months. The reason is that the fans of different sports have witnessed a decline in performance whenever a local Iranian coach is appointed to coach a team. The worst case was Volleyball, followed to a lesser extent, Basketball, and Futsal. All three sports lost their continental titles under local coaches.

It is a fact that the fans do not trust Iranian coaches. It is a fact that was highlighted in an ISNA poll with the majority losing voting against domestic coaches. It is a deep-rooted problem and has been hidden under the carpet, at least in official media. It seems that talking about it is taboo and the reason is, like everything in Iran, it is the policy of the regime, and one cannot disagree with it. Not in public at least.

SUPREME LEADER SERMON

However, volleyball, which was fast becoming the number one team sport in Iran threatening the domination of football, suddenly hit a spiral dive after Ataei was appointed. His promotion to Volleyball Team Melli and rise in value was right after a ceremonial meeting with the supreme leader in which Ayatollah Khamenei explicitly declared that domestic coaches have much better value for the Iranian teams than foreign nationals.

Sport authorities took that as a Fatwa that needs to be strictly adhered to not just a pip talk from the supreme leader. It has quickly become a perceived policy of maintaining the values of the Islamic revolution through the appointment of Iranian coaches.

Although Ayatollah Khamenei did say that he is no expert in sports and did not interfere in the appointment of coaches in that meeting with the Iranian national volleyball team, who dares to disagree and work independently selecting coaches based on merits, international standards of competence, experience, and ability rather on patriotism or politics?

Right after the free fall of volleyball, pundits mentioned that Behrouz Ataei, the Iranian head coach of the national team, showed that “we have not yet reached a level with domestic coaches where we can compete closely with the world's volleyball powers, and we need the presence of a skilled foreign head coach so that the domestic coaches can learn and experience major world events alongside him and improve their own technical abilities. Maybe this issue is not pleasant for some, but it is a fact that many veterans and fans of volleyball acknowledge.”

In football, Ghalenoei, or any Iranian head coach is bound by many limitations.  In a bi-polar football culture, his first felony is that he is a Blue so he will have an apparent bias towards Esteghlal players. This has been observed many times over with Iranian coaches, although Daei was an exception during his tenure.

DEMANDS AND PRESSURE TO SUCCEED

Iranian coaches have a fear of defeat and setbacks and that is not entirely their own fault. They are facing masses of supporters and press that demand immediate results. A nation hungry for success that eluded it since the revolution over 40 years ago. There is no time for experimenting and being a maverick. Ghalenoei is no exception. Fear of failure pushes him to rely on the most battle-hardened warriors, counting on the experience of senior players to achieve success.  He has just taken over an aging team, the oldest in the last World Cup 2022, in fact, to increase the average age by adding yet another over-33-year-old player!

It is true that the U23 team, which is supposed to be the backbone of senior Team Melli, has been poorly performing for many years, but under a sub-standard unqualified coach in Reza Enayati, the real potential of the team was never going to materialize. Nonetheless, there were a few good players in that team that deserve a trial and call-up. Only one made Ghalenoei’s list.

POLITICS

There will always be political pressure on the national team. The regime’s interest supersedes any other objectives. Players not showing total loyalty to the regime, will have to be excluded and any sign of political dissent must be swiftly dealt with. Under a foreign coach filtering players based on politics is that much more difficult especially if you have a strong character coach.

DISCIPLINE

One of the biggest shortfalls of Iranian coaches will always be DISCIPLINE. Time and again, the local coaches have failed miserably in self-discipline and that of their own players’. Never mind what they preach in public, the Iranian coaches in general feel obliged to be protective of the players even when committing the silliest or most damaging of acts.

The regional teams realize that Iranian footballers play with strong emotion, and the opposition takes advantage of that even provoking their Iranians whose self-control and emotional intelligence are suspect. This could be a game changer comes major championships like the Asian Cup.

Finally….. Do you think Ansarifard’s call to team Melli is justified?

Here is his record this season. Note that he played only one 90-minute game in the league.

Karim Ansarifard

ClubDivisionminutesgamesstartSub inSub outbenchgoalsYC2 YCRC

Omonia Nicosia		1.D277734341200

Squad for Jordan Tournament

Amir Ghalenoei has invited 23 players to form the squad for the upcoming Jordan International Football tournament that will be held in the Jordanian capital as of 13th October.

The list, which is hardly exciting includes the return of two former players Karim Ansarifard and Mehrdad Mohammadi but also includes one unfamiliar name in Mohammad Javad Hosseinnejad . the only new invitee.

Several players were dropped for one reason or another including Ali Gholizadeh now playing in the Polish league, Majid Hosseini who is in Turkey along with Ali Karimi, and Persepolis midfielder Mehdi Torabi, who had a slight injury but has already started recovery training with his club.

Other notable absentees are Shariyar Moghanlou. who performed poorly in the last match for Team Melli, Reza Asadi, and Sayyadmanesh who has not been doing well with his English club Hull City.

The list sees the return of the naughty boy KAnanizadegan after her was left out for the last two games due to disciplinary reasons following his childish act during the final of the CAFA Nations Cup in Tashkent.

The 20-year-old Javad Hosseinnejad was one of the few players who played well for the Omid team. He plays his club football with Sepahan.

Goalkeepers: Alireza Beiranvand, Payam Niazmand Seyed Hossein Hosseini

Defenders: Sadegh Moharrami, Ramin Rezaiean, Morteza Pouraliganji, Amin Hizbavi, Mohammad Daneshgar, Shojaá Khalilzadeh, Mohammad Hossein Kananizadegan, Ehsan Hajsafi, Milad Mohammadi

Midfielders: Saeed Ezzatollahi, Ahmad Noorollahi, Roozbeh Cheshmi, Saman Ghoddus, Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Mohammad Javad Hosseinnejad

Forwards: Mehrdad Mohammadi, Mehdi Tarimi, Mohammad Mohebi, Sardar Azmoun and Karim Ansarifard

Head2Head

Jordan International football tournament 2023

Iran and Jordan will meet for the 14th time since the year 2000 in the Jordan International Four-Nation Championship to be held in the Jordanian capital, Amman, from October 13 and 17.
The match between the two teams in the first round will be followed by the second match between Qatar and Oman.
The winner of the two matches will then play the final match on the 17th of October while the losers will play the 3rd place match earlier on the same day.
All the four teams are in the process of preperations for the upcoming AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 whic is less than 100 days away.
There is a familiar face in the opposition as former and popular Team Melli coach, Branko Ivankovic is coaching Oman.  

Team Melli has yet to announce the squad. As the tournament falls within the official FIFA Day, all national teams are allowed to call their legionnaires. It is expected that Ghalenoei will take the opportunity and call upon several Europe-based players.
Ghalenoei will be leading an aging team as there is no expectation for him to bring on younger players especially since the U23 teams had a miserable failure in the Olympics qualifiers followed by the defeat by Hong Kong, out of all teams, in the quarter-finals of the Asian Games Guangzhou 2022.

While this is a friendly competition, all teams will find it a chance to improve their chances for the Asian Cup and the confidence of their players by winning it. Iran is the favorite to win, but it is by no means straightforward.

FIFA Ranking

Last published on 21st September 2023

 

  1. Iran  —————–  21

  2. Qatar  —————  61

  3. Iraq  —————–  69

  4. Jordan  ————  84

head2head
records

jordan

iran

13

Matches played

13
4

wins

6
3

draws

3
10

goals scored

15

The calamity of Iran's football

The shock defeat by Iran's Omid team against Hong Kong, the first in the history of Iranian football at any level of competition, is beginning to hit many in Iran. In front of passionate Chinese fans supporting their little brothers, Reza Enayati's men failed to produce any type of form to believe in this team and his leadership as a coach and motivator.

When a run-of-the-mill coach takes control of a national team in the top continental competition, then such results are expected. It is safe to say that Omid Team and Reza Enyati have failed the nation big time

But they are not to be burdened with all the blame. The responsibility falls primarily on the FFIRI, which throughout the years, has gained the notoriety that might be attached to a house of ill repute. It is difficult to imagine any organization that seems to be incapable of learning from its many repetitious mistakes as FFIRI. To add insult to injury, none of the leaders, specifically the head of the federation, that thick-skinned Mehdi Taj feels culpable, responsible, and man enough to admit failure and gracefully handle his resignation.

No way that will happen in Iran.

The post of Head of the Football Federation is akin to a government minister. It is scrutinized, filtered, and approved by the government. The candidate is a de facto government employee working in a proxy status. Failure of Mehdi Taj translates to failure of the government, and that cannot be allowed.

There is much politics and corruption in Iran football that can easily fill a few books. However, the demise and the humiliation of this Omid team seem to hit a nerve in the fans and pundits. It has left IRIB Commentator, Javad Khiabani speechless, now that is a rare occasion for the veteran sportscaster who is undoubtedly a walking encyclopedia of Iran's football. He was so visibly shocked at the defeat, that he just refused to comment when asked by the co-presenter of the match at the end of the game.

Defeats such as this would turn the tables in any other country but don't hold your breath here because those responsible will come up with the most creative of excuses and justifications and then end it with their famous out-of-jail card, divine destiny.

It is a sad time for Iran's football. The hope is that Team Melli brings back some dignity and respect back in a few months time in Doha at the AFC Asian Cup 2022

Iran 0-1 Hong Kong: Omid eliminated from the Asian Games!

In perhaps one of the most shocking results of Iran's football in the modern era, Iran's Omid Teanm (U23) was defeated by lowly Hong Kong by a solitary goal in the quarter-finals of the Asian Games 2022 Guanzhou.

Although the previous performances against its opposition in the earlier rounds of the competition were nothing to rave about, it was clear from the last match against Thailand, that Omid has a mountain to climb to reach the finals or even be on the podium of medals. Very few, however, thought that Omid would crumble against Hong Kong! This defeat against Hong Kong Was shocking.

In a match that saw Iranian domination, the Omid failed to score any goals mostly due to individualism, insistence on dribbling, profligation, lack of team play, and most obviously poor to non-existent guidance from the bench.

Hong Kong is a third or fourth-tier Asian team. In the FIFA World Ranking, it is  #145, and in the AFC Ranking: #25. Compared to Iran, which in the FIFA World Ranking, is #21 and in the AFC Ranking: #2. That tells you a whole lot of things before even the two teams start kicking the ball.

Hong Kong, however, under a professional Head coach:  Jorn Andersen . The Norwegian coached in the Bundesliga. The underdog managed to outsmart the Omid Team in a clever and organized manner. Anderson knew the limitations of his team and his players, but most importantly, he read the hands of the Iranian team and the various weaknesses of the players who are no more than 11 individuals each playing for his own glory. Teamwork in Omid was lacking and never reached the class and professionalism of modern football that is required to achieve success.

All the Hong Kong players needed to do was stay compact, even to defend with 11 players, be destroyers to the weak and disjointed Iran's side midfield, and play on the counter-attack. The Far Easterns did their job to perfection and won the game against all the odds with a solitary but well-taken goal worthy of winning any match.

The few Iranian balls that reached Hong Kong's goal, were competently dealt with by the goalkeeper Pong Cheuk Heib. It was also the misfiring Arsalan Mottahari who spoiled it for Iran, who could have scored two goals by headers but did the impossible by heading the ball right up over the bar while it was much easier to head it the net from a few feet.

Overall, the Omid team performance was once again marred by poor individualism by players raised in a football culture that religiously believes in dribbling as a must before thinking of any other move. The mental agility was weak, when to pass or when to take the football on a run, was seriously flawed in this match. The pace of the players was wanting.

Despite all that, it is proven once again that an amateur coach like Enayati is not the solution for Omid Team which has always been handicapped in Iran's football. Which other country in the world would you know that pulls three of its best player from the national team in an important tournament, to play for their club?

Nevertheless, the defeat, shocking as it is, has a saving grace, To meet the might, discipline, organization, and sheer power of the South Korea U23 team, could have been several folds more embarrassing in the semi-finals.

Taj criticizes Omid's Team's performance.

In a highly unusual occurrence, Mehdi Taj, the head of FFIRI was less than complimentary of Omid's 2-0 victory over Thailand in the last 16 round of the Asian Games 2022 at Guanzhou.

Mehdi Taj said: "Enayati wanted the team to play faster and score more goals. Our players scored the first goal due to their goalkeeper's mistake and the second goal was scored from the penalty spot. If we perform to such a level as we saw against Thailand, then we will face lots of difficulties against the stronger teams ahead."

"We had some 70 to 80 percent control of the game, when your share of the ball in the game is that high, then something else should happen. They should create and convert their chances into more goals. I feel Enayati was not too satisfied with such and I hope the next game will have better results."

About the possibility of three Persepolis players returning to the Omid team: the head of the Football Federation said "We are arranging a meeting about this. Farqani, head of the Omid team, has already reached an understanding with Persepolis officials and has promised that the players will return. There have been interactions between the officials of the Omid team and Mr. Darwish (Persepolis CEO), "

Despite the two-goal margin against Thailand which was ranked third in its group of 4 teams behind Korea Rep and Bahrain, Omid's performance was worrying and uninspiring. However, for the Head of FFIRI to criticize the team, perhaps shows how Taj and the FFIRI are worried about yet another Omid Team failure and the public backlash.

Regardless of results and performances, it is customary for the FFIRI officials to praise their teams even if they stumble and fall. The public pressure is telling on FFIRI for choosing a rookie coach with no coaching experience at the international level and a strange arrangement of pulling 3 key players right in the most crucial stage of the competition, to play for their clubs!!


Then again, in Iran, things are not played strictly to the norms of international football standards.

"Discipline is a top priority in Team Melli," says Rezaei

In a short interview with Khabar Varzeshi, Rahman Rezaei, the assistant coach of Team Melli, highlighted the importance of discipline in Team Melli and how crucial it is for the overall success of the team.

Rezaaei was asked by the reporter "In the previous camp, Mohammad Hossein Kananizadegan was not invited due to disciplinary issues. Is he on the blacklist for the coming camps or not?"

"Disciplinary issues are a top priority for Team Melli's coaching staff, headed by Amir Ghalenoei. In any case, in the previous camp, it was decided that Kananizadegan would be excluded from the group. Regarding whether he will be added to our team in the new camp or not, it is all up to the direct opinion of the respected head coach. I would like to emphasize again that Ghalenoei has a special emphasis on maintaining order and discipline in the national team because this issue is directly related to the fate of the team. You must have noticed, in the recent games of the Omid team in the Olympic qualifiers, the yellow cards were the difference between us qualifying or losing the chance to create history."

"Disciplinary issues cost our football dearly. Previous experiences should be a lesson for us. Lately, football rules have become stricter than before, and both AFC and FIFA are very strict on the conduct of players and coaches, hence we attach high importance to it and should have zero tolerance for indiscipline no matter how important a player is for the team. We continue to advocate good behavior and discipline even in training and around the camps."

This is an encouraging development for Team Melli's mentality but it remains to be seen if this strict discipline and behavior will be implemented in competition matches. Historically, lax discipline has been the Achilles heel of Iranian football and that includes tactical discipline on top of behavior on and off the field. The former coach of Team Melli, Carlos Queiroz has done a fine job creating a strict disciplinarian environment in the camp. That discipline waned slightly during Dragan Skocic's tenure.
it remains to be seen if Amir Ghalenoei is serious about this vital issue. Domestic coaches are known to be more tolerant of players' indiscretions as evident in the Omid team in recent weeks.

Team Melli to set up camp in the Far East before the AFC Asian Cup 2023.

The first vice president of Iran's football federation announced that Team Melli will partake in a tournament in the Far East before the start of the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023.
According to a report, Mehdi Mohammadnabi, the first vice president of FFIRI, on the sidelines of the International Football Clinic Congress, said: "Before going to Qatar to participate in the AFC Asian Cup, Team Melli is supposed to arrange a training camp in the Far East."

Emphasizing that the location of this camp has not yet been decided, he said: "We are working on the matter and hope that the national team will participate in a tournament in East Asia before the Asian Cup. Of course, this preparatory camp and tournament will be accomplished without the presence of the legionnaires."

It has been previously announced that Iran will play a friendly match against the Japanese national team before participating in the Asian Cup, a match that will apparently be held without the presence of the legionnaires of the two countries. It is not clear if Mohammadnabi is referring to this match.

There is another two matches for Team Melli in the FIFA Day October break as Iran will be taking part in a 4 nations international tournament in Amman Jordan.

The Asian Cup will be held in Qatar from January 12, 2024, to February 10, 2024.

Asian Games 2022: Iran U23 qualify for the quarter-finals

Iran's Omid team defeated Thailand 2-0 in the round of 16 of the Asian Games in Hangzhou and advanced to the quarter-finals round to meet Hong Kong, winners against Palestine in the same round.

Iran U23 team must be grateful for the Thai goalkeeper's generosity in gifting both goals to Team Omid. Also, Enayati and his players must thank their own goalkeeper Hossein Hosseini for saving their blushes with some timely saves from the dangerous Thail forwards.

Iran's first goal (15) was due to Thai goalkeeper Lakhonphon's blunder and Arslan Motahari's opportunism. While in control of the ball Lakhonphon was trying to find a teammate to pass to, but he took too much time while Motahari was approaching. By the time Lakhonphon decided to kick the ball away, the Iranian forward was right on his face as the ball hit Motahari and deflected into the empty net. An opportunist goal and an embarrassment for Thailand.

The second goal late in the match, was also another Lakhonphon gift to Iran when he committed a foul on Mamizadeh in the box resulting in a penalty kick which Yasin Salmani dispatched into the Thai net.

It was a difficult win for Omid Team against the lowly Thailand team, who gallantly fought in the hope of qualification and gave their best. Thailand was never overwhelmed by the Iranians and was perhaps the better team in the second half. Omid's team struggled and as usual, were profligate, uninspiring, and at times even embarrassing. The offensive balls lacked quality and purpose while individual Iranian player skills did not make much of a difference in their overall team performance.

When an Iranian team is time-wasting and taking a long time on the grass faking injury, one knows how embarrassing this team is.

The only bright side of today's performance was that of Seyed Hossein Hosseini who not only kept a clean sheet for the fourth consecutive match but also saved at least two goals and made further significant saves against a determined Thai onslaught.

With some more bad news on the way, as Persepolis demands the return of their three players, Omid needs all the luck and prayers to defeat Hong Kong in the quarter-finals. With such performance, even defeating a team such as Hong Kong is not guaranteed as the display is not assuring and quality is lacking when most needed from this team.

Meanwhile, China defeated Qatar 1-0, while outright favorites South Korea smashed Kyrgzestan 5-1 to set up an exciting meeting in the quarter-finals between the host and the favorite. in other matches of the same round of 16, North Korea defeated Bahrain 2-0, Hong Kong defeated Palestine 1-0.
Uzbekistan will play Indonesia, India will face Saudi Arabia and Japan will have an easy task against Myanmar to complete the quarter-finals couplings.