Tag: Bahrain

Skocic satisfied with his team but the focus is now on Cambodia game.

Dragan Skucic, the head coach of Iran, in the pre-match press conference before tomorrow's (Friday) match against Cambodia said "I would like to express my satisfaction with the performance and the result of our match against Bahrain. While there was a lot of stress on the players in that game, we were able to get a satisfactory result."

He added: "I ask my players to forget about the game against Bahrain. In football, you need to forget memories and past results. We do not want to underestimate Cambodia and we have a lot of respect for them. I watched their games and realized that their performance is much improved and they are better than their results imply, and I would like to ask my team to keep their focus on this game and show their quality. We are going for a win against Cambodia while we have a lot of respect for them. We came to Bahrain to get the maximum points and we have nothing to do with calculations and ifs and buts," Skocic said.

Asked about the last result against Cambodia in Azadi stadium, and the impact of that game while facing them again on Friday " All the players and the technical staff are focused this game against Cambodia, and I  have emphasized on them to forget about the game against Iraq and the ifs and buts for that game. We put everything we have to play against Cambodia and we are looking for maximum points."

Dragan Skocic was accompanied by Saman Ghoddos in this press conference.

Team Melli is presently lying second after Iraq in Group C of the qualifying round of the FIFA World Cup in Qatar 2022.

Game review: Iran vs. Bahrain

Following the comprehensive 0 - 3 defeat against Iran in the return match of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 qualifiers, Bahrain head coach Helio Sousa in his post-match statement said “the difference between the two sides was that Iran had the likes of Azmoun and Taremi."

“The strength of Iran was their ability to launch attacks from the middle and we should have not given the space to do what they want,” said the Portuguese coach.

Sousa was accurate in his analysis but what he opted to mention was that he was outwitted by a less famous coach that hardly anyone has heard off beyond Iran and his homeland Croatia's borders.

Dragan Skočić's appointment as a head coach of Iran couldn’t have come at any worst time for himself and the team. The outbreak of the covid19 pandemic spoilt all his plans, in fact, he did not sit on the bench for his first match until 9 months after his 6th February 2020 appointment. His record now is a perfect 100%.

5 matches played 3 friendlies and 2 World Cup qualifiers so far. There is little doubt that he will make it 6 out of 6 comes Friday in the match against Cambodia.

There is no escaping the fact that Skočić is not a household name in Iran’s football as he coached lackluster or middle of the table teams before being appointed as Head Coach of Team Melli, however, in the few matches that he coached especially in the FIFA qualifiers, the 52 years old Croat has displayed a level of skill and vision that is unique. Give him the right players and this coach will bring glory to any team.

He rightly recognized that Jahanbakhsh despite his status is not delivering at the moment. He also rightly recognized that the team needs a skillful running player in the midfield who can supply quality balls to the forwards and hence Saman Ghoddos.

In the first half of the match against Bahrain, he recognized that Bahrain defensive plan is solid. It was a chapter from Carlos Queiroz's book which his protégé Helios Sous has learned and implemented quite well in Bahrain National Team. Before the match against Iran, Bahrain conceded one goal only in six group matches. That proves how well their defensive plan is effective.

With that in mind, introducing a player such as Ghoddos, or Torabi was the best mean of beating such defenses. It worked quite well for Team Melli and Skočić was rightly delighted with his successful plan. The second goal scored by Azmoun had all the attributes and beauties of a great goal with amove started by Azmoun himself.

No plan will work unless you have the quality players. With Taremi and Azmoun, Skocic could not ask for more. At the end of the day, these two made the difference. Clearly, if they receive the services, they will deliver. In the case of Taremi, perhaps it is a question of focus and concentration as he seems to waste many scoring chances provided to him. Perhaps that is the ceiling of his abilities, but there might be some psychological work that Skocic and other coaches can work on increase his accuracy in front of the goal. He also needs to stop acting innocent and protesting whenever he misses the goal, or loses the ball and get on with the game.

Pouraliganji was an assuring figure when he came in. Although the pair Khalilzadeh and Kanai-Zadegan have performed well, they have not really been tested properly yet. The latter is a bit of a risk and lacks the experience of Pouraliganji. Shojaa Khalilzadeh is more solid but a player that could ignite at any time. Level heads and experience are really required in the center of defense.

The midfield of Team Melli must be credited for achieving the comprehensive victory against Bahrain. Their defensive and offensive roles were played quite efficiently. It was the midfield players who restricted Bahrain forwards and cut their supplies, although to be fair Bahrain midfield players were poor compared to their previous matches. Skocic bemoaned the loss of Amiri for the rest of the competition. Amiri had a very solid game against Bahrain. However, there are better players at the coach's disposal, and Amiri’s absence against Iraq would not even be noticed.

Gholizadeh, Ezatollahi, Hajsafy, Torabi, Nourallahi, Jahanbakhsh are all available and do the job as well if not better than Amiri.

It was a good solid overall performance by Team Melli with some rough edges. The result was sweet and crucial. More of the same against Iraq will surely propel Iran to the next rounds of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.  

Dragan Skocic proud of his team's resolve and performance

Riffa: Islamic Republic of Iran head coach Dragan Skočić, praised his side’s resolve and performance in the 3-0 win over Bahrain in Group C of the Asian Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and AFC Asian Cup China 2023 on Monday.

After a relatively even first half, Iran were dominant in the second period with Sardar Azmoun scoring twice in eight minutes, before Mehdi Taremi sealed the win with a strike of his own.

Skocic was ecstatic with the result, which pushed the Central Asians up to second place on 12 points in the standings, ahead of Bahrain on goal difference. Leaders Iraq have 14 points.

“First of all, I want to congratulate my team for the valuable win against Bahrain. We started the campaign with just six points but have earned two important wins against Hong Kong and Bahrain,” Skocic said.

“The win doesn't surprise us because we entered the match with the aim of getting three points."

Dragan Skocic - FFIRI

Skocic revealed that he had made changes to Iran's style of play which produced the important win but expressed concern that Vahid Amiri is facing the possibility of being sidelined for their remaining two fixtures.

“We tried to avoid any defensive mistakes that could have cost us a lot and put an end to our chances. Congratulations to the players once again. The only negative point from this game was losing one of our best players, Vahid Amiri, and we will probably have a problem with his absence for the coming matches."

IR Iran v Bahrain - AQ (7)

“The result was based on the tactics we chose, and I’m proud of this victory. I have said before that the Bahraini team is a respectable team, and we prepared thoroughly for the match.

“Our style of play was completely different from the match against Hong Kong. We were ready for this game, and right now I want to enjoy this historic victory. We will start thinking about Cambodia on Tuesday,” Skocic added.

Iran face a must-win match against Cambodia on Friday, before playing Iraq in their final fixture four days later.

Bahrain head coach Helio Sousa didn't hide his disappointment, saying: “If there is someone who should be disappointed, it would be me. “We have built great confidence in our team and everyone believed in us to achieve victory but we faced a difficult team. “A draw would have been a better result for us rather than the defeat, of course. Now, we must reach 15 points but our chances are slim because Iraq and Iran have two matches remaining.” Sousa said the difference between the two sides was that Iran had the likes of Azmoun and Taremi. “The strength of Iran was their ability to launch attacks from the middle and we should have not given them space to do what they want,” said the Portuguese coach. “Our opponents had good quality players, including the best player in the Russian Premier League while they also have several players who play in top teams around Europe. “We made good substitutions but the second goal that we conceded affected us a lot. We were hoping to have a better result but we failed to do so although we played with a lot of bravery.”  

Brute force win Iran 3 - 0 Bahrain.

Team Melli revitalized its chances of qualifying for the next round of FIFA World Cup 2022 Qatar after a convincing and comprehensive win against Bahrain by three goals to nil.

Sardar Azmoun scored two goals (54'),(61) and Mehdi Taremi (79') scored the third. The first half of the match played in Bahrain's National Stadium ended goal-less.

The match started with both teams feeling the stress of the game. Both teams had several stray passes while Team Melli was starting its offense with aimless direct football from Kanani and Khalilzadeh from the central defense area. All their balls lacked the accuracy for Azomun and Taremi to work with. Bahrain Team tried to take the match to the Iranians but their offensive moves were far too shy and when they reached Beiravand, none of the balls created anything serious for Team Melli.

What the Bahrain team excelled in, though, was the quick transformation to multi-layer defense whenever the Iranians were building their offensive moves. Building a solid impenetrable central defensive wall with numbers. That made the job of the Team Melli forwards that much difficult. The first real chance of scoring came in the 19th minute when Azmoun and Taremi beat the Bahrain defense offside trap, but Taremi wasted the opportunity heading high.

In the second half, Dragan Skocic did a masterclass by pulling Milad Mohammad out and sending Saman Ghoddos in. The result was swift and deadly. Skocic depleted the classic mass defense breaker by instructing his player to penetrate Bahrain's solid defender from the middle playing one-two balls. Azmoun, from a clever pass that opened Bahrain defense wild, scored past the hapless Seyed Mohammed Jaffar in Bahrain goal. Six minutes later, Azmoun was on the end of a classic Saman Ghoddos defense-splitting pass, running with the ball powerfully and confidently to score again. 2-0 for Team Melli and Bahrain Team has a mountain to climb.

Seyed Mohammed Jaffar in Bahrain goals was the star of the Bahrain Team as the score margin would have been much higher if it was not for his heroics.

Mehdi Tarem scored Iran's third from Ahamad Nourallahi's assist after Torabi cleverly robbed the ball from Bahrain right back near the corner. Taremi on receiving the ball from Nourallahi, cooly wrong-footed Syed Jafar and scored the final goal.

It is a confidence-boosting win associated with a polished performance. Much credit has to go to the under-rated Dragan Skocic for his intelligent game-changing tactics and substitutions. Alireza Jahanbakhsh who disappointing against Hong Kong was given a rest with Ehsan Hajsafy taking his place. Azmoun and Taremi really clicked in this match, most probably after a long briefing by the coaching staff. Defenders were solid while the midfield played as well as they could under the circumstances.

The next Match against Cambodia might see a different lineup but with the same game plan. Iran is now second in the table behind Iraq.

Team Melli battles for qualification.

On Monday, Bahrain will be hosting Team Melli in one of the most peculiar of injustices of football. The match which is supposed to be the home game fr Iran is instead played in Bahrain! Never in the history of the FIFA World Cup, a team played both its home and away matches in one side's venue like it is happening now with Iran.

Iran not only needs to battle the politics but pass a difficult hurdle in Bahrain Team, which to its credit, has been playing very good football through the preliminaries and now occupying the top of the table with 12 points. The battle between Iran and Bahrain promises to be a spectacular encounter, as a win for either side could make a huge difference in the final outcome of Group C.

Team Melli returned to form with their 3-1 win over Hong Kong last Thursday, reviving their top spot aspirations and with a match in hand, head coach Dragan Skocic will expect his side to take the game to hosts Bahrain. The weather on Monday at kick-off time is expected to be 35 degrees Celsius with a humidity of 39% with a wind speed of 26 Km/h. Generally speaking, it is a mildly warm day for Bahrain, which could have been much worst.l

Bahrain fancies their chances as they will head into the tie boosted by their win over Cambodia and, more importantly, in the knowledge that they have already defeated Iran in the Asian Qualifiers - with Mohamed Al Hardan scoring the only goal in their October 2019 meeting. Al Hardan will be missing due to an operation on his foot.

Iran's strikeforce may be the most famous of the four lines with world-famous names like Taremi and Azmoun, however, the pair failed to score any of the three goals against Hong Kong in the last match. On the other hand, Komail Al Aswad, Ali Madan, and veteran striker Ismaeel Abdulatif all scored twice each against Cambodia and head coach Helio Sousa will be happy with the fact that his team has multiple sources for goals against a team seeking to qualify for their third consecutive FIFA World Cup Finals.

While Sousa was all praise for Team Melli during the press conference, it is no secret that he has been focusing on this match and considering it as a decider. A shrewd tactician who managed his squad rotation and substitution quite well during the Gulf Cup tournament of 2019 leading Bahrain to left the cup for the first time in their history.

Dragan Skocic has kept the starting line up close to his heart. In the Hong Kong match, when it was clear that the forwards were having difficulties, with few substitutes he revived the team. It is unknown if he will stick with Azamoun and Taremi, but most probably he will awaiting the deliveries of these two before any substitutions are carried out.

Off-field, the authorities have been hyping the fans who would be able to watch the match on TV only. Bahrain TV has broadcast that infamous match of World Cup 2002 qualifiers when Bahrain defeated Iran on the same ground to let Saudi Arabia go through.

Meanwhile, a source in the Iraqi Team delegation, confirmed, on Saturday, that Iraq Player, Ali Fayez, was infected with the Coronavirus. The source said in an interview with "Mawazine News" that "the Bahraini health authorities informed the team's delegation of the positive corona result of  Ali Fayez.

According to the regulations, the player will be isolated from the rest and will not be appearing for his team in any further matches.

The source pointed out that "the Iraqi defender will miss the Asian qualifiers due to being quarantined in Bahrain." The team’s delegation made several contacts with the Bahraini side to return the swab to the player Ali Fayez and to confirm that he was infected with the Coronavirus, so that the player was subjected to a second swab yesterday evening, Friday, the results of which appeared today, Saturday, and it was confirmed that the player was infected and who will be subject to quarantine for a period of ten days, which means his official absence from all the Iraq matches in the double Asian qualifiers against Cambodia, Hong Kong, and Iran.

Iran v Bahrain Venue: Bahrain National Stadium, Riffa Kick-off: 19:30 hours (UTC+3) - 21:00 Iran Time

Rank M W D L GF GA GD PTS
1 BAHRAIN 6 3 3 0 11 1 +10 12
2 IRAQ 5 3 2 0 9 2 +7 11
3 IRAN 5 3 0 2 20 4 +16 9
4 HONG KONG 6 1 2 3 4 8 -4 5
5 CAMBODIA 6 0 1 5 1 30 -29 1

Skocic "Everything was fine except for the goal we conceded"

In the Post Match press conference, the head coach of  Team Melli said that he was satisfied with the result against Hong Kong: "The only thing I was not satisfied with in this match was the goal we concede from this team."

Dragan Skocic said after the game  "I am completely satisfied with the result of the game for this competition because we had difficult weather conditions. Of course, we overcame these difficult conditions." Skocic added "We played with a team that was in its defensive third and it was difficult for us to play because the opponent was playing anti-football to some extent. We also rested some players so that the pressure of the matches would not be on them." Skocic continued: "The only thing I was not satisfied with was the goal we conceded. We should not concede such goals in future matches." Everything was fine except the flower we ate / we know how to overcome obstacles "Since the Hong Kong team had not played for a long time, we had little information about their playing style," he said. "However, we maintained our lead in this match, and everyone who watched the game knew which team had the upper hand." The head coach of Team Melli commented on the next match against Bahrain  "I think that our work on this field is hard and of course there is not enough opportunity to rebuild this field. There is nothing we can do about it, so we must focus on our own work." Skocic continued: "We go game by game and we have to focus on our work and be smart so that we can finish the tournament successfully. We do not want to confuse games. Each game has its own story. We are thinking about the game against Bahrain now and we do not want to think about other matches." "We have a good team. We believe in our own strength and know-how to overcome obstacles and solve problems one by one."

Iran starts with a comfortable win against Hong Kong

Iran defeated Hong Kong 3-1 in the preliminary rounds of FIFA World Cup 2021 in the match held this afternoon in Muharraq Stadium, Bahrain. Iran's goals were scored by Ali Gholizadeh (23’), Vahid Amiri (61’), and Karim Ansarifard (84’). Hong Kong's lone goal was scored by Cheng Siu Kwang (85’).

From the onset and a one-sided match, Team Melli took full control of the field, however, they found it difficult to penetrate the solid-packed Hong Kong defense. The solitary goal scored by Gholizadeh was the result of individual skill rather than a team plan.

While the result was quite satisfactory and puts Iran second in the table two points behind Iraq, it was far from polished. In a worst-case scenario, that performance was concerning. The team was clearly short of group practice and coherence. There was a definite deficiency of understanding between players with many passes going astray. The worst of these misunderstandings was upfront between Azmoun and Taremi. None of the very few passes between them, including some unnecessary back heels, were effective. The most concerning issue however was the two forwards body language. There was a hint of frustration and perhaps lack of serious application evident in their game. They were both rightly substituted midway in the second half.

Tactically speaking, Skocic boys could not find a way through the center of defense. In a system where the other team parks the bus, several other solutions, and plans have to be applied, such as dribbling and short fast passes. The inter-passing of the forwards was too slow and too predictable.

A plethora of corners for Iran failed to produce a single goal against the compact Hong Kong Defense.

After the late substitutions, including the introduction of Torabi, Ghoddos, and Ansarifard, Iran played better and managed to score two more goals in the second half.

There are a lot of areas that Skocic needs to be concerned with in this team. Lack of group practice and hence poor understanding between the players is the biggest concern for the next match, however, the commitment and the mental status of key players remains a peril. Matches are not won on history and reputations. Without 100% commitment, it will be difficult to play against mentally tough teams despite being inferior technically to Team Melli.

Iran will meet Bahrain Next. It will probably be the toughest test and a must-win. Psychological preparation is as important as physical for that encounter.

Possible Line Up against Hong Kong.

Skocic knows very well that he has no choice but to win four of his four matches in order to have a chance of qualifying for the next stage of the World Cup 2022 qualifiers and more importantly for him, to keep his job as the head coach of this team. Hence, his slightest mistake in picking the lineup could be irreparable. Team Melli, which has the most stars compared to previous years, has gone to Bahrain without a preparation game in recent months so the match against Hong Kong will not only a must-win 3 pointer, but also a preparation for the tougher oppositions ahead in form of Bahrain and Iraq. Dragan Skocic intends to deploy a 2-4-4 formation in this match, in which Alireza Beiranvand will keep his post in the goal. Skocic will continue using the pair.  Shojaa Khalilzadeh and Mohammad Hossein Kananizadegan in the heart of the defense. He will use  Sadegh Moharremi, who was called up to the national team again after months of injury, as a right-back. In the left-back post, although the coach has many options such as Ehsan Haj Safi and Milad Mohammadi for selection, his intentions seem to be on using Vahid Amiri as a left-back. The Persepolis midfielder, who has also played as a defender for his club team in the last two months, has impressed Skocic in this makeshift role. In the midfield, Skocic intends to use Ahmad Nourollahi and Saeed Ezzatolahi along with Ali Gholizadeh. The selection of the fourth player among options such as Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Mehdi Torabi is none other than Saman Ghoddos. The Brentford midfielder, who has been delayed from joining the national team due to his club play-off and subsequent promotion to the English Premier League, is set to start the match against Hong Kong.. The possible presence of Ghoddos in today's squad will be seen as a surprise from Skocic by many observers, however, it makes sense as Ghoddos has completed a successful season while Jahanbakhsh was the opposite. Skocic's easiest job was picking the two forwards. The head coach of Team Melli has a potent strike force that automatically picks itself upfront.  Mehdi Taremi and Sardar Azmoun, are the most powerful strikers of the national team in the last couple of decades and will be starting the match. Kaveh Rezaei, Mehdi Ghaedi, and Karim Ansarifard will be on the bench with the possibility of one of them being introduced late in the match. It remains to be seen how Skocic's technical thinking will play out on the pitch in the first leg of the return leg. Last minutes events could also affect his final selection.   Possible Line Up  

The long journey start against Hong Kong.

Team Melli will play the first of 4 matches against Hong Kong in Muharraq Stadium on Thursday, 3rd June as part of the FIFA Cup Qatar 2022 qualifiers.

Iran and Hong Kong have met 5 times before. The Far Eastern colony has not managed to score a single goal against Team Melli in these 5 encounters while conceding 11 goals. Perhaps it is safe to say that Team Melli will not have a very tough time against Hong Kong, however, football is known for punishing the reckless and the arrogant. Iran should not Take Hong Kong lightly.

With Hong Kong last playing an official match nearly 18 months, plus the fact that in this squad their Chinese-based players were unable to join the training camp due to covid19 restrictions, the makeshift team that coach Miku Paatelainen has assembled will be really fighting against all the odds.

Team Melli, on the other hand, is relatively better prepared but the strength of the team lies in the quality of the players and the lethal forward line in Taremi and Azmoun. Skocic has achieved perfect results winning 3 out of 3 matches so far, however, his true quality will be tested in this competition where he has to be proactive, astute, and stand the pressure of a multitude of factors.

The main issue for the coaching team is how to preserve the injury of the squad under adverse climatical conditions of Bahrain. With hot temperatures and high humidity, it is easy for the players to dehydrate and suffer physical fatigue during the 90 minutes. The later goes on, the more testing it becomes for the Iranians to keep their concentration and focus.

With the pitch of the stadium in Muharraq more suitable for grazing cattle than playing World Cup football, the team will perhaps have more difficulties playing their smooth inter-passing football. However, with both teams playing in these horrid conditions, there is no advantage or disadvantage for either side.

The 3 points of the game are quite essential, but more than that, it is the quality of football that the Team shows which will boost the confidence for tougher tests against Bahrain and group leader Iraq.

The match will be refereed by a Jordanian team headed by Adham Mohammad. Later on Thursday, Host Bahrain will play Cambodia in the Bahrain National Stadium.

Head2Head

Date Comp. H / A / N Final score Stadium Attendance
10.09.2019 World Cup Qualifier A 2 - 0 Hong Kong Stadium, Hong Kong 14,000
27.05.1988 Asian Cup Qualifier N 2 - 0 Dasarath Rangasala Stadium, Kathmandu 6,960
18.11.1977 World Cup Qualifier H 3 - 0 Azadi Stadium, Tehran 55,000
19.06.1977 World Cup Qualifier A 2 - 0 Hong Kong Stadium - Hong Kong 28,000
10.05.1968 Asian Cup H 2 - 0 Amjadiah , Tehran 28,000
   

Team Melli arrives at Bahrain

After a grueling 4 days training camp in Kish Island in the Persian Gulf, Team Melli flew the short trip to Bahrain onboard a chartered flight and landed in the evening.

The coaching staff worked on the fitness and endurance of the players under hot, sultry, and humid conditions of the Persian Gulf. Heavy breathing and hydrated bodies were evident during these sessions.

The Iranian national team has to play four crucial matches in a compromised situation orchestrated to undermine Team Melli's chances to qualify for the next round of the World Cup. Iran is not only a victim of politics and interests, a common occurrence in the world of football across the world, it has also to fight climatical conditions that historically have been not very favorable for the Iranians.

As if these two negative aspects are not bad enough, the pandemic in Bahrain has reached a record level and the country is in lockdown until 10th June. Bahrain is now in the top 5 countries in the world in terms of number of positive cases and deaths due to Coronavirus. The figures are measured in terms cases of per capita. The increased number of covid19 cases in Bahrain has not deemed a serious threat for selecting Bahrain as a host.  Ezatollahi during Training in Kish Island

This unfavorable situation prompted the technical staff to hold a camp before entering Bahrain. Team Melli training sessions were accompanied by excessive sweating and heavy breathing,

However, despite the brave effort of the coaching team in picking Kish island for the short training camp, it is hardly effective in assisting the players playing under extreme conditions. The time spent in Kish, which has a similar climate to Bahrain, is certainly too short for the players to adapt to environmental conditions. The Iranians will be fighting dehydration and loss of energy, while it favors the host team that has already acclimatized to such conditions.

Another issue that has been a major concern for the players for many years and highlighted by Carlos Queiroz repeatedly, is the poor quality of the kits used by Team Melli. The not-so-advanced training kit, which weighs on the player's body due to the lack of modern technologies for heat dissipation, has been a burden on the players.

After arriving in Bahrain and taking the corona test, the Iranian squad will train on June 11th and 12th, while on June 13th, they will face Hong Kong in their first match. Team Melli's next match would be with host Bahrain a match that might decide the qualification from this group.