Very few would argue against the selection of Seyed Mehdi Rahmati as the Most Valuable Player of the 2015/16 derby between Esteghlal & Persepolis which ended in a 1-1 draw in front of 90,000 fans in Azadi on Friday 30th of October. Amongst the huge crowds was the Head Coach of Team Melli, Carlos Queiroz.
Rahmati, single handedly (Literally) saved his Esteghlal team with some brilliant reflexes and, wait for it , superior aerial interception of the ball. The aerial weakness of Rahmati in goal was becoming his Achilles heel in the last few years and a source of embarrassment. Rahmati, to his credit, has remarkably improved in this department and had plenty of time to work on that weakness point and others as he was away from Team Melli.
The match against Persepolis was not the only one that Rahmati has shined in recently. With his performance against Sepahan and earlier in the league season, Rahmati has showed the masses that he is by far the number one goalkeeper in Iran, other keepers fall distant seconds and thirds even those at Team Melli.
However, no matter how many games Rahmati excels in and shows his commanding performance, the Esteghlal goalkeeper apparently has little chance to add to his 76 caps that he won for Team Melli since his debut back in 2004.
One may assume that the current No 1 Team Melli goalkeeper must be much better than Rahmati in all departments to keep Rahmati away. The sad truth is that, Alireza Haghighi who is Carlos Queiroz no. 1 choice for goalkeeper has not even played a single league match with his club Rubin Kazan this season, let alone have a chance to show his worth. Haghighi has been warming the bench for 12 games in the Russian league and several matches in the Europa league including last week’s draw against Liverpool in Anfield.
Surely , there is something odd and logic defying here. Again the sad truth is Yes, it does not make sense in football and technical terms. The problem that prevents Rahmati from claiming the No1 Jersey in Team Melli is his form or ability but past behavior. His petulant behavior and annoyance after being criticized for his weaknesses during the 2011/12 season, lead him to quit Team Melli. Without coordination or consultation with the Team management, Rahmati simply left to the anger and disgust of many and particularly , the head coach. Queiroz declared that as long as he is in charge, there is no place in the team for people who quit or lack discipline. The likes of Rahmati and Aghili who left the team hotel after not being named in the starters list, would never be invited to Team Melli.
Long months later after the dust settled and both sides calmed down with time, Queiroz announced that he is open to selection of Rahmati once again, after the goalkeeper apologized for his wrongdoing and admitted his shortcoming. Despite that, Rahmati was never selected for Team Melli although he was once named in a 40 odd list of players.
Rahmati has returned with a vengeance and this season seems to be his best year. The 32 years old custodian of Esteghlal is the undisputed no 1 Goalkeeper in the league and hence he has the legitimate right to claim Team Melli’s No. 1 jersey on merits, performance and experience.
It remains to be seen if Carlos Queiroz will act professionally by selecting the best goalkeeper for Team Melli based on performance, merits and form. Or remain stubborn, with his vengeance overruling his professional and rational decision making. The Portuguese coach is known to be stern and disciplinarian, which is in fact a good attribute for a coach to deal with many of the belligerent Iranian players, however, the interest of Team Melli, the nation and the fans supersedes any personal grudges. The Fans should not be victimized nor the reputation of Team Melli tarnished by antipathies.
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Data comparisons between Mehdi Rahmati and Alireza Haghighi.
