After a lot of huff and puff, threats, and taking the case to arbitration in CAS. Team Melli will have to play its return matches in the FIFA World Cup 2022 Qatar in one venue, Bahrain. Apart from the fact that this is also the home ground of one of its main rival teams in the group, the dates of the matches in the midst of heat and humidity is oneself the greatest challenge for Team Melli in Bahrain.

However, the challenges for Iran to qualify for the World Cup for the third time running is enormous and do not end at the obvious bias against the Iranians. Iran however, should brush the politics aside and focus on the field.

Dragan Skocis has been to Kish island to review the facilities as Team Melli will be camping in the Persian Gulf resort prior to the qualifications in June. The facilities, climate, and pitches are ideal for Team Melli to have good practice sessions.

In its only international friendly so far, Team Melli played an acceptable and satisfactory match against Syria winning by a 3-goal margin. The result, however, did not reflect the game as Syria was not deserving of a 3 goal defeat while Team Melli was not the dominant team of the match. In any case, Team Melli remains undefeated under Skocic and that is fine, except we have to remember that under the woeful Wilmots, the Belgian coach gave the fans a false impression of superiority as the results of victories in his first 3 matches.  So, while three wins out of three look good on paper and for the archive, however,  it could be misleading.

In this article, we will address what seems like a shortcoming observed in the last couple of years and in the team under Skocic.

Dysfunctional midfield.

Starting from the goalkeeper, it is quite safe to say that Team Melli is enriched by the presence of Alireza Beiranvand with capable replacements in the shape of Niazmand and Hamed Lak. Even third and fourth choice of keepers are dependable enough in the present squad.

The same can be said of the defense and forward line where Skocic is spoilt for choice. The two new debutants, Salmani and Jalai were excellent additions as they performed against Syria. It gives the fans a lot of confidence. In the forward line, there is no argument as Team Melli has its two most expensive and valuable assets in Azmoun and Taremi while Ansarifard, Sayyadmanesh, Shahbazadeh are all capable force on their own.

The worry is the midfield. With Shojaei and Dejagah leaving the team, a big gap is evident. Iran lacks a maestro in the midfield team, a strong player who can lead and dictate the pace against tough oppositions. With weaker, or less capable teams, coaches resort to a tactic where they fill the midfield with 5+1 players. The lone striker also becoming an additional midfield player.  As such, any opposing team that needs to score in such a scenario must have a strong capable midfield. A set of players who can break this 6 players midfield cum deep defense by skillful manipulation of the ball, quick passing and perimeter offensive crosses. Iran can find itself in such a situation against Bahrain and Iraq both of whom set deep and pounce on counterattacks.

 Vahid Amiri has been a regular for many years and he is a fine player too but hardly a player who would shine and play a leading role in a difficult match.

Ahmad Nourallahi has been steady lately and has fine attributes including some fierce long-range shots, but like his club mate, lacks the character and the leadership qualities in midfield. The team captain Ehsan Hajsafy is now operating in midfield. His defensive work is immaculate, but he has lost his offensive traits in changing his role from right back. The only dependable and consistent midfielder is Omid Ebrahimi. However, Ebrahimi is aging and in dire need of proper and quality support.

Azmoun and Taremi, need good supply of passes and crosses from their teammates to finish the job, particularly from the midfield players. Their value and importance will be diminished with an also-ran ineffective midfield. They need much better support and quality players behind them.

Players Mental toughness & Attitude.

Iranian players suffer from weak mental toughness. While physically they are amongst the best in Asia and when it comes to individual skills, the same can be claimed, their mentality, attitude, and professionalism are far from the best, in fact, it is a liability.

The reason behind this is debatable and needs and discussion of its own but signs of weak mental agility and professionalism are evident all the time. Many other weaker teams have noticed this weakness in Iranian players and at times they have cleverly taken advantage and managed to beat Iran.

There is a tendency for the Iranian players to become emotional and irrational under pressure. They easily lose their calm and concentration. Shrewd and crafty opponents use this weakness to intimidate and harass the Iranian players leading them to lose their temper and fall foul of the law.

The examples are aplenty and the solution is well beyond National Team coaches like Skocic. It is a cultural problem and starts from the roots. While the young talented kids grow up to become skillful players, in the midst of all that, the art of discipline, self-restraint, the rationale is not in the syllabus of Iranian coaches. Many of the coaches themselves lack these traits and are a bad example for the kids. Just switch on the TV and watch any Iranian league match and observe how the coaches behave on the touchline to get an idea.

All that Skocic can do at this stage is to remind his players over and over again,  to concentrate on playing football, and not to lose their heads under pressure. It also is a good idea for him to be a strict disciplinarian and to the level of banning players from the team if there are major disciplinary issues on the field or in training camp.

Although Carlos Queiroz was very good in the discipline department, he was not truly exemplary because he himself had short fuse and was liable to combust at any time.