Amir Ghalnoei, the head coach of Team Melli said “Fair criticism is what football needs, but the problem will not be solved by “hitting” the football federation and the national team.”
In comments published by FFIRI official website, Ghalenoei, following Iran’s 3-1 victory over Jordan, added “Jordan has been in good form for the last two years and has not lost to any Asian team except Australia. The fact is that this pitch was not in good condition and the match played earlier before ours, made the conditions even worse. This poor-quality pitch had a great impact on our game.”
He added: “Overall, I am happy that we won the match and advanced to the final. Of course, I am not satisfied with the way the team played and I expected to play much better quality football, but the fact that we beat Jordan by two goals margin is important. We had some flaws in the defense format that we need to analyze and fix our weaknesses”
Referring to the country’s football’s need for empathy for the success of the national team, Ghalenoei said: “There is a saying that collective consensus is equal to success. We have less than 100 days until the AFC Asian Cup and I say let’s all come and help. Weakening each other does not happen anywhere in the world. Criticism is not the same even if we want to express some other issues. The football federation is struggling. We have difficult financial conditions, but Mr. Taj, Mr. Nabi, the board of the Football Federation, we are all trying to solve the problems. Many others are also helping. My request is that we all get together and criticize fairly if there is any issue so that the national team can be better prepared to solve the problems. Attacking each other will not solve the problem. There is nothing wrong with constructive criticism, but it is not right to say things that are detrimental to the federation and football in this situation. Let’s all help each other and be sympathetic to the country’s football so that, God willing, we will be better prepared for the Asian Cup.”
On the next match against Qatar, the Team Melli head coach said ” Congratulations to the Qatar team and Queiroz for advancing to the final match. Queiroz has worked hard for our football. I hope the match against Qatar will be a good game, but the reality is that the quality of the pitch is not desirable. You saw the Iraq-Qatar game, which ended 0-0 and there were very few opportunities, but our game against Jordan had four goals and could have had five or six more goals. I am happy that Team Melli plays beautiful football and scores three goals even on a bad day. Of course, the problem is in the defense structure, which we will fix, God willing.”
FACT CHECK: Jordan was beaten 5 games in a row including a 6-0 thrashing by Norway. The last win for Jordan was over a year ago, in September 2022, when they beat Oman 2-0. In the process, Jordan FA sacked the coach and appointed the current one, Hossein Amoota, who is still winless after three matches. So, one should take Ghalenoei’s comment about how good the Jordan team is, with a pinch of salt.
Despite the admission by Ghalenoei that Team Melli’s performance was not satisfactory, especially the defense line, he has not mentioned the full reality, which is a right he reserves, of course. The problem is more than the defense and starts at the poorest line of the three and that is the midfield. Lack of creativity, vision, pace, and poor basic techniques such as passing, was so obvious in the midfield players, that they might as well have dispenced with it and only stuck two lines for Team Melli, defense and Forward.
A player like Saeid Ezatollahi should have no place in Team Melli. It is amazing how his successive poor displays for the team have been camouflaged for years and can still make the starting lineup ahead of Cheshmi and Sarlak to mention a few. As a defensive/Holding midfielder, his only good attribute is his physique, nothing else. Ahmad Nourollahi has hardly been noticed in this match but at best he is not a creative midfielder and a leader who can turn the match around. Jahanbakhsh continues his sub-standard form and gradual deterioration at club and country level. Surely lack of competitive matches has affected him as he is a bench player in Feyenoord.
The fact is, the group of players that both Queiroz and now Ghalenoei had faith in, is aging and some have passed their sell-by dates. These players are not going to be able to compete at the highest levels and when Iran plays against the might of Japan, Korea, or Australia, they will struggle badly. Since there are less than 100 days to the Asian Cup, there is little likelihood that Ghalenoei will introduce any young Iranian players to the team. That is why Ghalenoei, in semi-desperation, is asking the public to refrain from criticism, and the full support of the fans and the media, while it is his responsibility to select the squad, ensure the correct game plan, and utilize his best resources comes the crucial matches.
It is rather silly to blame the pitch for the poor performance of Team Melli, but again, Ghaleneoi like the rest of the Iranian coaches, has his little book of justifications. Regardless, what is important is that Ghalenoei accepts his team played badly and is going to do something about it. The fans hope that such a positive attitude and thinking will refect on the teams’s prospects.