Category: News

Iran beats Finland in futsal tournament

Iran National Futsal Team beat Finalnd 2-1 in its first match in Continental Futsal Championship Thailand 2022. In this match, which started at 14:30 Iran time in Bangkok city, Iran scored the first goal by Salar Aghapour (2), but in the second half, they conceded the equalizer. Later, it was Moslem Olad-e-Ghabad (34) who gave Iran the lead once again to ensure Vahid Shamsaei's boys leave the firld as winners. On Tuesday, Iran will play Vietnam in the Hua Mark Indoor Stadium to consolidate the lead in the group of 2 teams. In the other group, Host Thailand will start the tournament later today against Morocco, while Mozambique is the third team in the group. The tournament is the ideal preparation for Iran's Futsal team ahead of the AFC Futsal Asian Cup in Kuwait.

Rogério Paulo Cesar de Sá confirmed as assistant to Queiroz

The South African coach Rogério Paulo Cesar de Sá has been confirmed as the first assistant to Carlos Queiroz in Team Melli coaching Team. The former Orlando Pirates coach also acted as South Africa's goalkeeping coach during Carlos Queiroz's reign and, in September 2021, was recruited by Queiroz to join him as Assistant Coach to the Egyptian national football team. de Sá, confirmed his presence in Team Melli in an interview today and said:" Team Melli will start work on Tuesday and then travel to Austria, where they will play a friendly match with Uruguay and Senegal. We will start training with the team on Wednesday and Thursday.  We will train again on Saturday and then we will fly to Austria where we will play against those two teams in a friendly international. Then we will return to Iran and continue working with the team there." The newly appointed coach of Iran's national football team emphasized: "These two games will give us a good idea of the standard of the players. I might fly to Europe to watch some players with their clubs and we'll probably train in Dubai a week before we go to the World Cup in Qatar." Rogério de Sá who was on the bench of the Egyptian national team when he first worked with Queiroz, referring to the problems and challenges ahead for the World Cup said "the heat and humidity of Qatar will be a challenge for many players in the tournament. We have a short time to prepare which is not ideal. Ideally, we should have been there in Iran for a year at least but Carlos knows the team well and the players know him too because he coached them in the last two World Cups." de Sá is looking forward to working with the Iranian players and getting to know them in the coming weeks. He stated: "When I became a coach, the number one priority was that I am human and so is the player. I think Carlos is the same. I think many coaches forget this. I might coach them for a year or two, but we can be friends until we die. " Roger announced that he will be with Iran's national team for one or two years because the Football Federation has not confirmed its plans regarding Carlos Queiroz after the end of the World Cup. First, Mehdi Taj, the president of FFIRI announced in his press conference that the Federation's plan is that Queiroz to become the Technical Manager of the national team after the World Cup and that the team will participate in the 2023 Asian Nations Cup under the head coach of Javad Nekonam. While Mehdi Mohammadnabi, the general secretary of the federation, said that Iran will probably be coached in AFC Asian Cup with Queiroz on the bench! Take your pick on whom to believe.

New list of domestic players published for Team Melli camp

The list of invited players has been published while the new/old coach hasn't set foot in Iran and has hardly seen a single league match in action. FFIRI on behalf of Carlos Queiroz announced the names of 24 players who are invited to the Team Melli camp. The names of the footballers domestic league players are as follows: Goalkeepers: Payam Nazamand (Sepahan) Hossein Hosseini (Esteghlal) Alireza Beiranvand (Persepolis) Defenders:  Ramin Rezaeian and Omid Nourafken (Sepahan) Mehdi Shiri and Aref Agassi (Foolad Khuzestan) Saleh Hardani and Abolfazl Jalali (Esteghlal) Saman Fallah (Peykan) Armin Sohrabian (Gol Gohar) Mortezapour Pouraliganji (Persepolis) Midfielders: Mehdi Mehdipour (Esteghlal) Mohammad Karimi and Yasin Salmani (Sepahan) Reza Asadi (Tractorsazi) Mehdi Hosseini (Mes Rafsanjan) Mohammad Khodabandelou (Gol Gohar) Milad Sarlak (Persepolis) Forwards: Mohammad Mohebi and Mehdi Gheydi (Esteghlal) Saeed Sadeghi, Mehdi Torabi (Persepolis) Shahriar Mughanlou (Sepahan) The above players are required to be present at the Olympic Hotel on Wednesday, September 13th at 12:00. The list of Legionnaire players will be announced later through the official website of the Football Federation at the appropriate time.

Central defence partnership of Team Melli is under threat!

One of the main reasons for the success of Team Melli in winning all the matches in World Cup qualifiers in Bahrain was the solid fortress-style partnership in the heart of the defense.

Dragan Skočić opted for Shojaá Khalilzadeh and Hossein Kananizadegan and created a strong partnership between them, and the result was spectacular.  Iran conceded one fluke goal from Hong Kong and was solid against the rest. This partnership continued in the third round of the FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifiers as only South Korea (3 goals) and Lebanon (1 goal) managed to score against Team Melli. It is a record that any team can be proud of in such a high level of competition.

 However, the return of Carlos Queiroz to Team Melli is threatening this partnership.

The Portuguese coach is fond of the duo Morteza Pouraliganji and Ramin Rezaiyan, both of whom were invited by FFIRI to submit their documents for the issue of visas for Austria. Pouraliganji's return comes after more than a year of absence from the field due to a severe injury followed by operations. His decision to return to Iran domestic league football in the year of the 2022 World Cup is to be close to the selectors. He joined Persepolis and so far performed well in the three matches he played registereing good statistics. The sudden return of Queiroz will again put him as a favorite amongst the rest of the central defenders.

 Like Queiroz himself, Pouraliganji will benefit from the hard work of Shoja Khalilzadeh and Mohammad Hossein Kananizadegan, who were one of the main factors of early qualification of Team Melli to the Qatar World Cup,

There is no question about the technical abilities or performance of Khalilzadeh, but his place in Team Melli is threatened by the bad relationship with Queiroz. The issue came to the surface after the defender gave an interview that was critical. This defender's opinion about how he can affect the future of the defensive composition of the Team did not set well with Queiroz and Khalilzadeh like many other players before was banished from Team Melli.

Queiroz, unlike his predecessor Dragan Skočić, has zero tolerance for any type of opposition. In that sense,  it is quite likely that will make Khalilzadeh will be watching the World Cup games on TV rather than defending the three colors jersey. The Portuguese man will most probably see the return of players such as Seyed Majid Hosseini, Morteza Pouraliganji, and even Roozbe Cheshmi.

Team Melli will leave for Austria next week to play two preparatory games against Uruguay and Senegal under Carlos Queiroz. While Uruguay has published the name of the squad for the match against Iran last week, FFIRI has not finalized its list.

The AFC releases part of FFIRI funds held.

Mehdi Taj, the new president of the Football Federation, announced the outstanding amount of funds due to its federation and Iranian clubs from FIFA and AFC in his press conference today. Taj said: "The funds due to us is about 20.6 million dollars from AFC and FIFA combined. A very small portion belongs to the clubs but the majority belongs to the federation (FFIRI). US$ 20 million is a considerable number that begs the question of how inept the FFIRI is in not doing its best to somehow release such a large amount for a federation that is virtually bankrupt and repeatedly begs from the government and public funds.

Stating that he is looking to get US$ 8 million from AFC,  Taj announced the support of the Asian Football Confederation to enable Iran to hold a friendly match against Uruguay in Austria. The match that is scheduled to be held on September 22 was on the verge of cancellation. Taj said: "We have expenses and needed the money for a friendly match in Austria by today. We cannot transfer this money through normal banking channels. We thank the AFC for transferring the money to Qatar's FA account. Qatar has also made the necessary arrangement to pay for the contractors in order to hold the game in Vienna. The arrangement for this camp was taken by the previous FFIRI administration. Today was the deadline and If we didn't pay today, we might have lost the game against Uruguay."

 

Mehdi Taj on the defensive in the press conference

The beleaguered Head of FFIRI acknowledged that many in the country oppose his return to the FFIRI and many more oppose Querioz's return as head coach of Team Melli.

In the press conference after his re-election, the head of FFIRI talked about various issues, including his legal cases with the chance of prosecution and the state of Team Melli.  According to press reports, after the departure of Skocic who was replaced by Carlos Queiroz,

Mehdi Taj, in the press conference on Thursday at the national teams camp, started by defending himself against accusations and pending cases in the courts, some of which are serious in nature, filed against him in the judiciary. "I have been in management work for about 40 years and I have worked in different capacities. Whenever the Wilmots case is mentioned, they immediately shout corruption! This case is similar to the case of Branco Ivankovic, Stramaccioni, and Calderon, but the case of Wilmots is called, corruption comes to people's minds."

He also defended himself about alleged fraud cases in the Foulad Mobarakeh company "I was retired from Foulad Mobarakeh. My wages were 20 million tomans per month for three years. If anyone has any claims with documents against me then let him go ahead and publish them. A question was asked to the judiciary about my legal status last week and suddenly all the media wrote that the judiciary published all the crimes of Mehdi Taj, all that remained was to accuse me of murders and kidnappings! The only letter that was in fact sent to the judiciary was from the Secretary General's inquiry from the prosecutor, who asked how many open cases I have, and they announced these three cases."

Regarding the statements of parliamentarians, especially Ghazizadeh Hashemi, who has taken a special interest in the wrongdoing and fraud cases in football, Taj said: "The representative's concern should not be only football. He can speak 100 times, 200 times or any amount he wishes on any network. At the end, It is the judiciary that decides each case. We did not know that he and Mr. Rastineh are so interested in football, but if they care so much, they should focus on the football of their own province. The whole parliament is not just about these two people, but we will answer any question that any member wants to ask."

Taj went on to say: "These people have not talked about broadcasting rights, not even once. I believe that IRIB cannot afford to pay for football broadcasting rights. Secondly, some of our teams receive money from the government. I have prepared a plan which is FIFA and AFC models. We hope that one day we will have a team in Khorramabad and Kermanshah, not only in cities that only have factories. We hope that deprived provinces including Sistan and Baluchistan will have teams."

"Instead of being hostile, the IRIB can work with the football federation and have a codified plan and work with this plan for years. The football development model is not very difficult. We can borrow, learn and respect all the laws of the country."

Referring to Team Melli, he said: "Mr. Skocic is a very respectable and honorable coach. It was very difficult for me. I swear to God that it was difficult for me to remove Skocic. The coach was very calm and gentle. In the most difficult conditions, he took charge of our national team and managed to qualify to the World Cup in the most difficult of circumstances. Please raise your hats in his honor. I saw that the conditions of the national team and players were not good. I don't want these issues to be opened. We came to the conclusion that if we change the head coach now, it will be in the country's interest. Now they say that no one can guarantee that if we bring in Queiroz, we will get better results, but the history of Mr. Queiroz in our national team, the results obtained in the past, and the games that he has led the national team as he has been with the team for eight years make us believe this is the right appointment. We are heading to the right direction and have started a good path. It was easy for me to let Skocic stay and not accept responsibility. I could say that I did not leave him, but I removed Skocic for the sake of the country.

The appointment of Queiroz is for the benefit of the country,

Taj claimed " I know that some seniors and veterans are totally against the selection of Queiroz and also against my own appointment for whatever reasons. I really kiss everyone's hand out of respect for the national team and the country and out of respect for our beloved flag, and I ask for the country to support the national team in the current situation."

"I believe that this choice is in the interest of the country. We qualified for the World Cup with Queiroz two times in a row. Those who claim that I have abused my power, let them come forward with proof. During the presidency of Mr. Ahmadinejad, they use to give the president a car, which I did not get. In these 13 years in the federation, I did not receive a single rial in salary. Publish the facts if there is anything. It is not a fact when a parliamentarian claims there is corruption in football.

Taj added: "Who does not have a case in the courts? It was easy for me to do nothing and let the national team go to the World Cup. Mr. President announced several times that he supports the national team financially. We signed a provisional contract with Queiroz, he receives 50,000 euros per month. He has 5 assistants, each of whom receives 30,000 euros. This contract is until the end of the World Cup, and of course, there is a possibility of extending it until the AFC Asian Cup. I thank Queiroz. Mehdi Taj said, "When the government supports the national team, why should we ask for health?" He said: In any case, I think the choice of Skocic was right. If according to many loved ones, it is wrong, they should support the growth of the country's national team.

"I thank Hamid Estili." when he was asked about the Team Melli manager's resignation from his post: "I have not seen Estili's resignation. I would like to thank him for his efforts during the supervision of the national team. Regarding Foulad Club's opposition to Nekonam's activity in the national team, Taj said: I hope that the problem of Nekonam will be solved, and I myself will consult to have Nekonam as a good coach and an investment for the future in the national team. This is the German model, where they leave some people with the national team to become the head coach. God willing, this will happen

The manager of Team Melli resigns.

Hamid Estili has submitted his resignation as the Manager of Iran's National Team. Estili's resignation comes in the aftermath of the sacking of Dragan Skocic which he considered immoral and unethical while the Croat was under contract and busy preparing Team Melli for training camp in Austria. In a post on his social Media Page, Estili announced that he resigned from his post. lPrEarlier on, Karim Bagheri, another member of Skocic's technical staff and advisor to the coach, announced his departure from Team Melli coaching team. . Yesterday (Wednesday), Dragan Skocic was officially removed from his post by Mehdi Taj.

FIFA demands answers from FFIRI on the events in Mashhad.

FIFA's Disciplinary Committee sent a letter to the Iranian Football Federation, demanding explanations of the events of the match between Iran and Lebanon in Mashhad.

6 months after the events of the game, the final one in the FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifiers where Iran hosted Lebanon, the World governing body informed the FFFIRI in a letter two days that investigations are in progress addressing events of that match as a case is filed due to several code violations, giving the Iranian side six days to respond.

The letter, which has been signed by the head of the FIFA disciplinary committee, stated five cases of violations.  The FIFA Disciplinary Committee meeting will be held on September 22  and it should be seen what sort of sanctions ad or penalties will be handed to the Iranian Football Federation.

The Iran-Lebanon game was held in Mashhad on March 29, 2022, in which some ugly scenes were witnessed including using undue force by the security personnel against women spectators who held tickets for the match but were denied entry by force.

The official officials of the football federation apologized to the fans who were treated badly while declaring that the action of the security forces was beyond their control. It is highly unlikely that such an apology and excuse will be sufficient enough to escape punishment from FIFA which has the option to ban Iran from hosting official home games to heavy fines that can be the equivalent of all the income of the matches that Team Melli plays in the FIFA World Cup.

The forceful banning of women's entry into the stadium was ordered by the local clergy in the holly city of Mashhad with the blessing of the government. It is highly unlikely for Mashhad to host any international game in the near future.

A friendly international match against Russia is announced.

www.rt.com

The Russian football federation has announced upcoming friendly matches against Kyrgyzstan and Iran, with the latter likely to take place in Tehran, according to reports.

Russian teams at all levels remain banned from UEFA and FIFA competitions following the onset of Moscow’s military campaign in Ukraine – a situation that prevented the Russian team from attempting to qualify for the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

But they can play friendly internationals and will take on an Iran team that will play at the World Cup in a group alongside the USA, England, and Wales.

The Iranians will host the Russian team managed by Valeri Karpin in a game planned for November, with a date and location to be confirmed but which will likely take place in Tehran, according to Match TV.

The match against Kyrgyzstan is scheduled for September 24 in Bishkek’s Dolen Omurzakov Stadium and will be the first football meeting at this level between the two nations.  

The coaching staff of the Russian national team is happy to have the opportunity to get together again and hold a full-fledged training camp,” said manager Karpin, who later announced a provisional 35-man squad for the meeting with Kyrgyzstan.

“Iran are a World Cup participant, a team with a good rating. There are questions about the dates of the matches, Iran plays the first match on November 21 at the World Cup [against England].

“Negotiations are underway,” added Karpin when asked about an exact date.

Russian official outlines plan to tackle UEFA & FIFA bans

The Russian national team has not played since a World Cup qualifying defeat to Croatia in Split back in November.

That loss ended their hopes of qualifying directly for Qatar, although Russia was due to play Poland in a European qualifying playoff semifinal in Moscow in March, before a potential qualifying final against Sweden or the Czech Republic.

Russia is currently ranked number 35 in FIFA’s men’s ratings, with Iran in the 22nd spot and Kyrgyzstan down in 95th.

Skocic is sacked and replaced by Queiroz

Iran once again led this team. According to ISNA,

after about three years and 8 months away from Iranian football, Carlos Queiroz was once again weaseled his way and appointed as the new head coach of  Team Melli.

Mohammad Jamaat, the media manager of the Iranian national football team, wrote on Twitter: "The federation is grateful to Dragan Skocic for his continuous efforts and qualification for the World Cup, but with the approval of the board of directors, Carlos Queiroz has been chosen as the new head coach. We hope the national team repeats the same success as the previous two World Cups, under Queiroz, results that have satisfied the people and an honorable show is repeated. In his first term on the bench of the Iranian national team, Queiroz led the Iranian team for 8 years and was able to achieve the best result in the history of the Iranian national football team in the World Cup. He was in charge of the Iranian national team from April 4th, 2011 to January 28, 2019.