Tag: Greece

Forest Boss is all praise for Karim Ansarifard

While Nottingham Forest forward Lewis Grabban snaffled up his tenth goal of the season as well as three points for the Reds, as they beat previously table-topping Sheffield United 1-0 at the City Ground and the £6m striker grabbed the spotlight again, Forest boss Aitor Karanka is delighted to have further strengthened his attacking arsenal with the capture of the Team Melli Striker, Karim Ansarifard.

Forest had to be patient while working through significant red tape to complete the signing of the 28-year-old, who had his contract with Olympiacos terminated in August, in order to facilitate his move to the Championship.

“I am really pleased to have signed him. I knew that the day would arrive,” said Karanka, who gave the player his debut as a substitute, deep into injury time. “The day has arrived yesterday, which was really good, given that we need him.

“The delay was to do with the work permit. I don’t know the exact details, but it was only ever a question of getting the right paperwork.”
I am just pleased to have him because, even in the two minutes he had on the pitch, he showed that he is crazy to play for this team.”

Karanka says Ansarifard is fit and ready to go – but says he will need some time to adapt to the Championship.

“He is fully fit and ready to go, but he will need time to settle in, having arrived in this league from another country,” said Karanka. “But he is a professional and he is a winner. I am positive.”
“He scored 17 goals for Olympiacos and he has quality. He is a good finisher.

“To score goals we need to get the ball into the box and you need players to be arriving into the box at the right time.

“We have good players and we are arriving at the right time. We have very good strikers. We have Lewis, we have Daryl (Murphy) and now we have Karim as well.

“Now we have another alternative. He is a good player and another player who is a very good person and a good teammate for the changing room.

“He only played one or two minutes, but the run he made in the last seconds can show you how hungry he is; how much he wants to help the team. “He is a good man and a good player, so I am really pleased with him.”

Karim made the cameo appearance with the minimal of preparation in the 90th minute of the game.

Three team Melli players play in the English leagues. Apart from Karim, Alireza Jahanbakhsh plays for Brighton and Saeid Ezatolahi plays for Reading in the Championship.

FFIRI to file a complaint against Greek FA with FIFA.

As the media in Iran were actively researching this new European and less known team including for information such as their foreign based players, it was announced soon after (about seven hours later) by the Kosovo Football Association that it was calling off the match with Team Melli , due to the demand to play behind closed doors without spectators.

The match was scheduled to take place at İstanbul Başakşehir Fatih Terim Stadyumu (same venue as the match against Turkey), but with the cancellation of this match, Team Melli is now only practicing in Turkey. After that, the  final list will be declared, then the squad will head to Russia to complete its last match against Lithuania.

After canceling the game, the Iranian Football Federation FFIRI condemned its Greek counterpart, saying it has suspended all relations with the Greek Football Association in a more formal and demonstrative fashion!  The statement by the federation, said “Despite the claims, the Iranian national team was always ready to play in Greece, as the documents exchanged between the two federations had an account of this issue. The FFIRI will file a complaint and report the issue to FIFA and will take all legal action for compensation for the losses incurred. Until such time as FIFA takes action on this case, the Iranian Football Association has announced that it will suspend all its relations with the Greek Football Association. “

Apparently the topic of the discussion was the venue of the game with Greece. The Greeks suggested to play in Greece, Xanthi. Then Athens was discussed as an alternative to Xanthi, but eventually the game was canceled because of the Greek Football Association sponsor! The federation statement goes on to point out the attempts to replace Greece with the new opponent and the subsequently canceled match with Kosovo:

“At the right time, all the necessary actions to find an alternative team to play the friendly match were taken on June 2nd. After seeking several options, the Football Federation of Iran began talks with the Kosovo Football Federation and a preliminary agreement for a friendly match was made. Following the initial agreement, the Iranian Football Federation accepted all the demands of the Kosovo Federation (including transport, residency, etc.), a new and final request was submitted by the Kosovo Football Federation that rendered playing the match Impossible. “

New and last-minute wishes? What the Kosovars have pointed out is very much a normal football practise of 100 of years and that is the presence of spectators. The Iranians have not accepted that and subsequently the game was called off. Now, who is desperate for a practise match, Kosovo who has nothing to play for , or Iran with a World Cup ahead in a fortnight?  Simple question , who is the loser here, regardless to the fact that Kosovo ranks 152 in the FIFA Ranking, which is even worst that Sierra Leone at 103?

That episode clearly shows the shortsightedness of the Iranian football officials and the stubbornness of one Carlos Queiroz, a coach who is not world renowned for his flexibility or diplomacy.

With this account and since it is unlikely that in these one-two days a new opponent will provide a challenge and much-needed practise for Team Melli, the Iranian side’s preparations for the World Cup was made up of a match against the Olympic team of Uzbekistan, under strength Turkish side and a match against reserves of Lithuania, ranked 91!!

Thus , Team Melli is about he worst  prepared team of the FIFA World Cup 2018 Russia.

 

Chaos supreme in Iran`s preparation matches.

The saga of Team Melli friendly games disruptions and cancellations continues unabated.

When it comes to arranging friendlies ahead of major tournaments like the World Cup or Asian Cup, one way or another it always seems that the schedule is marred by chaos and disorganization. The preparations for this FIFA World Cup 2018 is no exception.

Majority of the problems are self-inflicted, as it stems from the fact that the administration with feeble international public relations , lack of management and organizational skills added to the head coach shenanigans and antics , leads to chaos for Team Melli.

While most federations have a two-year calendar, published and known to the media and the clubs, Iran’s FFIRI plays it by the ear. Guessing games requirement , picking opponents ,  embarking on secretive negotiations thereafter striking last-minute deals, added to lack of transparency by officials, paints a grim picture of the important issue. of arranging friendly games for Team Melli.

The Federation officials always justify their failures and numerous match cancellations on factors such as sanctions and difficulties in finance transactions,  however , although this may be true in few cases, the culprit remains the poor  events management and chaotic programming of FFIRI.

Only a few days ago , yet another important test for Team Melli against Greece was canceled ! This was announced by Greece head coach only. No one exactly knows the real reason as FFIRI are not forthcoming. Luckily FFIRI found an alternative option in Kosovo. Perhaps not a stern test as good as Greece , nevertheless it was an essential match for Team Melli.

Another shocker followed soon as Kosovo also cancelled or turn it down depending on your perspective. The Reason was clear this time and quite frustrating too. Kosovo did not fancy playing an International football match behind closed-door depriving their fans as Queiroz demanded!

Queiroz has such habits which FIFA should really put a stop to it. Playing behind closed doors should not be accepted at international level. After all the National Team of any country has millions of followers and is not a private property of an individual, that is why it is called a National Team.

The last test match is now on the 8th of June against Lithuania. The fans would think at least this one will pass smoothly without any glitches, right?

Not that simple. The first surprise is that this match will NOT  be played in a STADIUM!

After Kosovo , the Lithuanian were not amused either when they discovered that the Lithuanian team will play Team Melli in the training field of the Spartak stadium in Tushino on June 8.

 RIA Novosti head coach Edgaras Jankauskas said :

“At first we thought that the match with Iran would take place at the Spartak stadium, but it turned out that we will play in the training field! We will not be able to bring our strongest team to Moscow, because the date is unofficial, and the championship in Lithuania is now going on.”

Before hoping and praying for Team Melli’ s success on the field in what looks like a really tough group, some prayers must go to the FFIRI  to get themselves competent and professional administrators who can do a better support job than what they are offering now.

The Lethal Weapon : JAHANBAKHSH

This has been a landmark week for Asian and Middle Eastern football in Europe. While the whole world focused on the US pulling out of the Iran nuclear deal, in Holland, another Iranian “lethal weapon” was making headlines.

On Sunday, Alireza Jahanbakhsh – the Iranian winger of AZ Alkmaar – scored a hat-trick in his team’s 6-0 victory over FC Zwolle on the final matchday of the Dutch Eredivise season.

Aside the fact that it was Jahanbakhsh’s second hat-trick in his past three matches, these three goals left him as the top goal-scorer in Holland.

The 24-year-old has scored 21 goals, made 12 assists, completed 78 key passes and 111 successful dribbles in 2017/2018 – in what has arguably been the best ever season for an Iranian footballer in Europe. Jahanbakhsh becomes the first Asian player to become top scorer in a major European league.

No other famous Iranian footballer – including Ali Daei, Mehdi Mahadivikia or Ali Karimi – had such a statistical feat in one European season, hinting that the young Jirandeh-born striker might be on his way to becoming one of the greatest Iranian footballers of all time.

Carlos Queiroz and his Iranian national team will now get a top forward in top form for the World Cup, and Jahanbakhsh has been linked with few notable clubs in Europe – with Italian side Napoli reported to be the favourite to add the young starlet to their squad.

Jahanbakhsh is part of a wider range of talented Iranian prospects that have made their mark in European teams in the past season.

Karim Ansarifard of Olympiakos in Greece notched up 17 goals this season; Heerenveen’s Reza Ghoochannejhad scored 10 for the Dutch club; Kaveh Rezaei contributed 16 goals for Charleroi in Belgium; and Saman Ghoddos – who was a key figure in Ostersunds’ Europa League run – finished with nine goals and five assists for the Swedish side.

With the return of Masoud Shojaei to the Iran squad, even if not in an active role on the pitch, and Sardar Azmoun – who will play at his club town of Kazan against Spain – the Iranians have a few fantastic reasons to be optimistic for the forthcoming summer in Russia.

Queiroz hopeful to make it to Round 16 in the World Cup 2018

Iran coach Carlos Queiroz said in an interview with Agência Efe that he believes he can take his team to the Round of 16 at the 2018 World Cup in Russia and chose the country where he was born in Portugal as a ” Group B” favorite, completed by Spain and Morocco.

In charge of the Iranian team since 2011, Queiroz has made the Team Melli one of the top teams in Asia, beating virtually all regional rivals in the World Cup preparation round.

Despite the confidence in his team, Queiroz acknowledges that Spain is not only favorite to pass the stage, but also to the title.

“Iran is a country that is not on the list of priorities for the press, but the work we have done in recent years deserves a little more attention. Overall, Asian football is not always present in the news, unless you speak Japan and Korea, which have a lot of influence in Europe in general, “he said.

In the friendly of this Fifa day, Queiroz chose to face two rivals of the region. First, playing Tunisia, who are in Group G of the World Cup. Then he takes his team to face Algeria, who competed in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, but did not qualify to Russia 2018.

“We always have a lot of difficulties during the preparation. There are some issues we are always struggling with, such as financial difficulties and relations with other countries, which are sometimes not easy for Iran. But we always try to do our best and, with colleagues, seek solutions, “explained the Portuguese head coach.

“We are going to play with Tunisia, Algeria and Turkey, which everyone knows is very strong even though they are not in the World Cup, as well as with Greece and Lithuania, we are better than we were in the last World Cup when we practically did not play with anyone,” he said.

Asked if group B is the group of death, Queiroz stressed that the two favorites are Spain and Portugal, but said nothing is decided. For him, Iran and Morocco are outsiders but will try to qualify for a place in the last 16 of the World Cup.

“It is no secret that Spain and Portugal are favorites, but I do know that Iran will be there, and it is very difficult to know who will advance, I do not want to choose, but it will be them (the Spanish team) who will decide, but I want Iran and Portugal to move on, “he said.

Team Melli forwards score in Europe.

Two Iranian players scored for their teams in European leagues to help their clubs grab three points in their respective leagues.

In London ,  Sheffield Wednesday delivered their worst performance of the season as they crashed to a 3-1 defeat at managerless Charlton Athletic this afternoon. Iranian contribution came from the recently injury recovered Team Melli forward , Reza Ghoochannejhad.

in the 55th minute Ghoochannejhad tapped in inside the six-yard box following a lovely move involving Makienok and Fox to score Charlton’s third goal.

While in Greece Panionios ‘s Karim Ansarifard scores the winner for his team vs. Platanias to keep his club challenge for a runner-up position ans a place in the European competition. Ansarifard chipped the ball inside the net beating the opponents keeper. 

 

For both players,  Reza Ghoochannejhad and Karim Ansarifard, scoring was quite timely as the pair have suffered difficult periods of dearth of goals for club and country. The two crucial matches in Tehran and away to Guam this week will go a long way in determining the final ranking of the table in the FIFA World Cup 2018 qualifiers Group D. Both players are included in Carlos Queiroz list.  Ghoochannejhad’s goal is especially welcome after the player has suffered a long-term injury which put him out of action for months.

 

 

FIFA World Cup 2018 Qualification

Asian Zone

Round 1

GROUP D

#   Team MP W D L F A D P Last 5 matches
1 Previous rank: 2 Oman 5 3 2 0 9 3 +6 11 WDDWW
2 Previous rank: 1 Iran 4 2 2 0 11 2 +9 8 DWWD
3 Previous rank: 4 Turkmenistan 5 2 1 2 5 6 -1 7 WWLDL
4 Previous rank: 3 Guam 5 2 1 2 3 8 -5 7 LDLWW
5   India 5 0 0 5 3 12 -9 0 LLLLL