Category: News

AFC Women Asian Cup Chinese Taipei v Iran

Navi Mumbai: Chinese Taipei and Iran are set for a collision course in their final Group A fixture of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup India 2022™ at the D.Y. Patil Stadium on Wednesday.

Both sides are still chasing their first win, with Iran falling to a 7-0 defeat against China PR, while Chinese Taipei opened their campaign with a 4-0 loss to the Steel Roses.
At stake will be the runners-up spot, which will confirm the second team from Group A into the quarter-finals.

Despite starting their campaign with a defeat, Chinese Taipei head coach Kazuo Echigo is optimistic of his team’s chances of advancing into the quarter-finals.

“This is a very tough competition, and the Chinese team was very well prepared, but we did what we could do,” said Echigo. “Everybody gave their best efforts throughout the game, we made a point of that.
“Looking ahead, I believe we can make some improvements for our next match. I’m sure the players will be eager to show what they are capable of.”

#WAC2022 – Group A | China PR 4 – 0 Chinese Taipei

“This is a very tough competition, and the Chinese team was very well prepared, but we did what we could do,” said Echigo. “Everybody gave their best efforts throughout the game, we made a point of that.
“Looking ahead, I believe we can make some improvements for our next match. I’m sure the players will be eager to show what they are capable of.”
Meanwhile, Iran head coach Maryam Irandoost wants her team to be focused on the match despite their heavy defeat against China on Sunday.
Iran held their own against China before conceding the opener in the 28th minute and the eight-time champions went on to score six more goals to seal the win.

#WAC2022 – Group A | Islamic Republic of Iran 0 – 7 China PR

“It was a very tough game, but my players tried hard until the last minute,” said Irandoost. “We have seen, even in the men’s World Cup, some great teams can concede seven goals. It’s the first time we’ve participated in this tournament, and it is a great experience for us.
“After the final whistle, I gathered my players and told them we had finished that match. I told the players to promise me that they would put it behind them. We have two training sessions left, and we will shift our focus towards the Chinese Taipei match and be prepared for it.”

The heavy weather in Turkey affects WC Qualifiers of the Asian Teams!

The Lebanese Football Association announced the cancellation of the flight of the South Korean delegation, which is scheduled to arrive in Beirut this evening, due to a snowstorm in Turkey.

Lebanon is preparing to face Korea, on Thursday 27th January, at Rafic Hariri Stadium in Sidon, in the final qualification rounds of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.  The Federation said, through its official account on Twitter: “The South Korean team’s trip has been canceled, Which was scheduled for today, due to bad weather, and work is underway to find a second flight as soon as possible.” The Korean team delegation was supposed to arrive this evening, at 6:30 Beirut time. The failure to find a second flight to Lebanon in a quick time threatens to play the match on schedule”.

Team Melli is also affected by the same as several players who have chosen Turkish airport as transit airports to Tehran, are stuck without being able to leave Istanbul. Amongst those players are Mehdi Taremi.

The exciting young forward linked with a move to Hull City

Hull City are expected to complete the signings of Aleksandar Pesic and Allahyar Sayyadmanesh as new owner Acun Ilıcalı looks to strengthen the squad before the January transfer deadline.

The Turkish businessman finalised his purchase of the club last week and he made it clear that he will invest to improve the current group.

Therefore, it’s expected to be a very busy final week for the Tigers in the market and it appears that a few moves are already lined up.

That’s after reporter Yağız Sabuncuoğlu revealed that Pesic is set to join from Karagumruk in a 2.5m euros deal, whilst Sayyadmanesh is expected to link up from Fenerbahce.

Both are forward players, with Pesic having enjoyed a fine individual campaign in the Turkish top-flight, scoring 12 goals in 21 games. The 29-year-old has been prolific at different stages of his career, having also shone with Red Star Belgrade, Maccabi Tel-Aviv, and Seoul.

Meanwhile, 20-year-old forward Sayyadmanesh is an Iran international who is contracted to the Istanbul giants but he has had two successful loan spells in Ukraine with Zorya. Hull City are working on a £5 million deal to lure the youngster to the MKM Stadium before the end of the transfer window.

City supporters have seen their side linked with a host of names in the aftermath of Aseem Allam’s departure as the new regime looks to keep the club in the Championship.

One player reportedly attracting interest from the Tigers is Allahyar Sayyadmanesh, with Hull Live understanding Grant McCann’s side and Anderlecht are vying for his signature.

HullLive profiles the youngster ahead of his potential switch to the MKM Stadium…

Background

Sayyadmanesh is 20-years-old and has already been capped four times for Iran, making his debut in 2019.

The striker is contracted to Fenerbahce but spent last season on loan to Ukrainian outfit Zorya Luhansk – bagging 15 goals.

In December 2020, he even bagged the decisive goal in a 1-0 win to defeat Leicester in the Europa League at just 19-years-old.

Playing style

The Iranian is described as a physically imposing striker who has an instinct for finding the net.

At six-foot-tall, he possesses the strength to outmuscle defenders but prefers to run in behind and score the majority of his goals from inside the penalty area.

He averaged a 28 percent conversion rate while on loan at Zorya Luhansk, highlighting his ability to finish.

Sayyadmanesh’s flaws are seen as his dribbling but, at 20-years-old, there is plenty of time for him to work on his game.

Where does he fit in?

Grant McCann has played 3-5-2 this season but rarely has his frontline consisted of two strikers, with Keane Lewis-Potter occasionally operating out of position.

Tom Eaves – despite bagging his second goal of the season against Blackburn on Wednesday – has struggled to find the net, and Josh Magennis has left for Wigan.

Sayyadmanesh’s arrival would see him given one of the two starting berths upfronts and allow Lewis-Potter to play in his most effective role out wide.

Contract situation?

Sayyadmanesh is contracted at Fenerbahce until 2024, meaning any permanent deal would command a considerable fee.

Ahmad Nourollahi is out of the camp and Mehdi Ghaedi to be PCR tested again.

On the first day of the training camp of Team Melli, the PCR test returned a positive result for Shabab Al-Ahli player, Ahmad Nourollahi which also prompted the medical team of Team Melli to retest his club teammate Mehdi Ghaedi.

Nourollahi was immediately replaced with Kamal Kamiabinia.

Meanwhile, Sardar Azmoun’s PCR test has not arrived from St. Petersburg, which has alarmed the Team Melli coaches. This means he will miss one day of training until his PCR test in Iran is conducted.

In a statement to Mehrnews, Mahmoud Reza Rezaei, the media director of the Iranian national team, confirmed the news about the Covid19 issues of the Iranian national team camp.

There are 5 players on the standby list for Team Melli.

 

Team Melli commences the training camp.

Team Melli started training camp as of today in preparation for the matches against Iraq and the UAE at the Olympic Hotel.

 On the first day of the camp, the players from the domestic league, along with Ahmad Nourollahi and Mehdi Ghaedi both members of Shabab Al-Ahli of Dubai, began with initially going through the strict health protocols and underwent PCR testing with the technical staff of the national team. The whole camp will be quarantined until the negative results them being part of the squad.  After the test results are confirmed, the teamwork will start and the rest of the players and legionnaires, according to the schedules, will introduce themselves to the technical staff this morning and will go to quarantine to find out the results of the tests.

The Squad will be holding two sessions of training on daily basis in two groups from 15:00 to 17:00. After the legionnaires’ tests are out and assumed to be negative, the first training of the national team will be held tomorrow with the presence of all the players. According to the rules and requirements of the Asian Football Confederation, in compliance with health protocols, the national team will train behind closed doors.

Dragan Skocic has named a list of 27  players for these two matches, although the regulation allows a squad of 23 players for the match. It is announced that no players will be sent home but a list of 23 players as required by the regulation will be announced for each of the two matches.

Shahab Zahedi, who plays for Zorya in  Ukraine has finally been selected for the first time. His recently departed teammate Allhtae Sayyadmanesh is also named in the squad. The list includes one legionnaire player who is under suspension by the Federation’s disciplinary committee the case of Hossein Kanani-Zadegan was charged with offenses not related to a match but to derogatory remarks he made,  which has gone viral on social media. When quizzed about this, a spokesperson for Team Melli said that “unless we receive specific instruction from the concerned department of the federation, any player can be selected for Team Melli.”

The squad welcomes back Mehdi Taremi, another player who was in trouble after he created unnecessary problems for himself and hence left out of Team Melli’s last two matches both of which Iran has won.

Squad for Iraq and UAE games announced.

Team Melli which is on the verge of qualifying for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, will play against Iraq and the UAE on January 27th and 2nd February. Iran needs one win only to qualify. The coaching staff has announced the list of players invited to the national team camp.

The names of the invited players and the waiting list of players for the team :

    • Goalkeepers:
  1. Alireza Biranvand
  2. Amir Abedzadeh
  3. Payam Niazmand
    • Defenders:
  4. Sadegh Moharremi
  5. Mohammad Hossein Kananizadegan
  6. Shoja’a Khalilzadeh
  7. Majid Hosseini
  8. Omid Nourafkan
  9. Milad Mohammadi
  10. Siavash Yazdani
  11. Saleh Hardani
    • Midfielders:
  12. Saeed Ezatollahi
  13. Milad Sarlak
  14. Ehsan Haj Safi
  15. Vahid Amiri
  16. Mehdi Torabi
  17. Ahmad Noorollahi
  18. Saman Ghoddos
  19. Alireza Jahanbakhsh
  20. Ali Gholizadeh
  21. Allahyar Sayadmanesh
    • Forwards:
  22. Mehdi Taremi
  23. Sardar Azmoun
  24. Karim Ansarifard
  25. Kaveh Rezaei
  26. Mehdi Ghaedi
  27. Shahab Zahedi

 

the Standby List: Mohammadreza Akhbari, Danial Ismailifard, Aref Aghasi, Kamal Kamyabi Nia, Zubair Nikonfs, Soroush Rafiei

The following players have been excluded due to positive results of the Coronavirus test:  Mehdi Mehdipour & Amir Hossein Hosseinzadeh

Sardar Azmoun signed by Bayern Leverkusen in the summer

Bayer Leverkusen have confirmed the signing of Sardar Azmoun from the summer of 2022, with the Iranian international joining from Zenit St. Petersburg on a five-year contract.

Azmoun, a 27-year-old forward with an eye for goals and assists, will compete for a place in Leverkusen’s starting attack with Patrik Schick and Lucas Alario when he makes his move to Bundesliga football in the summer.

“[It is] a step from the best club in Russia to one of the best leagues in Europe,” he told the Bundesliga club’s website.

“Bayer Leverkusen have a really great squad. I’ve been keeping an eye on the club for a long time and am impressed by the team’s style of play. It’s incredibly exciting for me soon to be able to play in the Bundesliga. And I’m convinced I’ll make the team even better with my footballing ability.”

Capped 60 times by Iran, an impressive 39 goals for his country compliments his selection for the World Cup in 2018 and two Asian Cup squads in 2015 and 2019.

As well as being the youngest Iranian to score in a UEFA Champions League game, he is also the Iranian record-holder for the most goals scored in the competition with six goals.

He has spent his professional career entirely in the Russian top flight with two spells each at Rubin Kazan and Rostov preceding his transfer to Zenit in 2019.

In St. Petersburg, he has found the net 62 times in 104 appearances across all competitions. He was named Russia’s Footballer of the Year for 2021 and his impressive goal stats have continued into this season, in which he has scored 10 goals in 21 games – including two strikes in the Champions League.

“We’re delighted to have completed this transfer,” said Leverkusen’s sporting director Simon Rolfes.

“Sardar Azmoun has been one of Russian football’s top goalscorers for several years. He’s been champion three years in a row there with Zenit, regularly played in the Champions League, and shown himself to be of international class at the highest level. Our attack gains extra quality with him. Sardar will make our attack even more unpredictable and powerful.”

Managing director for sport, Rudi Völler added: “He’s very quick, good in the air and has a good sense for space. But he’s not just a goalscorer. Sardar Azmoun also sets up a lot of goals and is an outstanding fit for the Werkself as a player who combines well with others.”

Miguel Rodrigo turns down Futsal Team Melli assistant coach post.

Vahid Shamsaii after being appointed as the head coach of the Iranian national futsal team said they will have a Spanish coach on the technical staff cadre. In this regard, negotiations were held with several Spanish coaches, but some of them refused the offer to join the technical staff of the Iranian national futsal team. One of them is Miguel Rodrigo, a 51-year-old experienced Spanish coach. Miguel, who has worked for the national futsal teams of Japan, Thailand, and Vietnam and has comprehensive knowledge of Asian futsal, refused to work as an assistant in the technical staff of the Iranian national futsal team. In a conversation with Mehr reporter, while confirming the negotiations has been held between him and the FFIRI, this coach explained the reason for rejecting Vahid Shamsai’s offer by saying  ” I am a head coach and not an assistant. I thanked him for this offer, but I am not interested in being Shamsaii’s assistant.”

The news increases the pressure on the futsal team as many critics have questioned Shamsaei’s appointment. While none deny his legendary status as a player with world-class quality, very few believe he is ready to coach Iran’s futsal team into continental and world competitions. The appointment of a quality coach to cover his coaching skills and lack of experience seemed to be the proposed solution.

Omid Team to start a training camp alongside Team Melli.

The Omid National Team Camp begins at the same time as the Team Melli at the National Team Camp. According to ISNA, with the plans made by the technical staff and the announcement of Mohammad Mohammadi, the head of the Omid national football team, the camp of this team will start on the 24th or 25th of January, and players under the age of 23 will be called to the national team camp after three months. . The Omid national team camp will be held at the same time as the senior national team camp – which is preparing to meet Iraq and the UAE in the FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifiers – and MahdaviKia’s boys will hold several training sessions and two preparatory matches for a week.

According to the plan, two Premier League teams will be the opponents of the Omid national team, to help the U23/Olympic team prepare better. Mehdi Mahdavikia and his assistants will arrive in Tehran in around the 21st of January. Previously, the work visas of three foreign assistants of Mahdavikia have been issued b

In the period between the departure of Mahdavikia and his assistants from Iran, the games played in the Premier League have been regularly reviewed and analyzed. One of Mahdavikia’s assistants has been assigned to evaluate new and potential candidates for the Omid team in Iran’s first and second division leagues for a long time so that new faces can be added to the Omid national team in the upcoming camp. Over the next five months, Mahdavikia seeks to identify new members and bolster his team’s strengths and ensure the weaknesses are mitigated in order to participate in the AFC Under-23 Championship, which will be held in Uzbekistan in mid-June.

List of Iran National Women Football Team for AFC Asian Cup 2022

 

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 GK Zohreh Koudaei 24 November 1989 (aged 32) 30 0 Iran Zob Ahan
2 DF Fatemeh Amineh 3 June 1997 (aged 24) 12 0 Iran Shahrdari Sirjan
3 DF Hadieh Kor 0 0 Iran Malavan
4 DF Melika Motevalli 6 May 1998 (aged 23) 15 2 Iran Shahrdari Sirjan
5 DF Ghazaelh Banitalebi 5 0 Iran Zarebatrie
6 MF Zahra Sarbali 13 August 1993 (aged 28) 21 0 Iran Bam Khatoon
7 FW Afsaneh Chatrenoor 14 April 1998 (aged 23) 16 0 Iran Shahrdari Sirjan
8 DF Behnaz Taherkhani 22 May 1995 (aged 26) 20 3 Iran Bam Khatoon
9 FW Sara Ghomi 20 August 1987 (aged 34) 52 17 Iran Heyat Alborz
10 MF Sara Zohrabi 13 November 1996 (aged 25) 25 6 Iran Sepahan
11 MF Samaneh Chahkandi 28 March 1989 (aged 32) 21 3 Iran Bam Khatoon
12 GK Maryam Yektaei 19 June 1993 (aged 28) 32 0 Turkey Beşiktaş
13 MF Yasaman Farmani 12 February 1995 (aged 26) 8 0 Belgium Charleroi
14 MF Elham Farahmand 12 September 1993 (aged 28) 10 0 Iran Zob Ahan
15 DF Zohreh Jalali 16 February 1999 (aged 22) 0 0 Iran Zarebatrie
16 MF Zahra Masoumi 18 June 2004 (aged 17) 3 0 Iran Heyat Alborz
17 FW Negin Zandi 20 January 2004 (aged 18) 4 1 Iran Bam Khatoon
18 MF Melika Mohammadi 28 March 2000 (aged 21) 6 0 Iran Bam Khatoon
19 DF Fatemeh Adeli 16 July 1995 (aged 26) 22 0 Iran Sepahan
20 FW Hajar Dabbaghi 22 March 1999 (aged 22) 16 6 Iran Sepahan
21 MF Marzieh Nikkhah 25 November 1992 (aged 29) 3 0 Iran Sepahan
22 GK Arefeh Seyedkazemi 1 0 Iran Shahrdari Sirjan
23 MF Sana Sadeghi 12 June 2000 (aged 21) 7 1 Iran Sepahan