Tag: Keisuke Honda

The AFC Internet Circus

  • Ehsan Mohammadi
  • Iranian Journalist / Iran Varzeshi
  • Translated from Persian.

Yoval Noah Harari in the introduction to the acclaimed book “21 Lessons for the 21st Century” talks about the term “Digital Dictatorship”. A new dictatorship type that can overturn the facts. Iranian football is slowly being conquered by the army of virtual fans these days. Trench to trench. Fans who roar on social media but don’t even bother to turn up to the stadiums like real fans to watch a match and the stands of the stadia in Iran are getting emptier every year on end.

I admire the valuable functions of cyberspace, but the growth of the Digital Dictatorship is scary. It is wrong to shut down anyone who doesn’t think like us by forming a group and a mouthpiece, or to engage in facts with virtual campaigning and write history little by little in the way we like (not as it is) is Persecution. Even if 80 million people defend it, it is still wrong and unethical.

 

I wrote a few notes about AFC polls. How did come to realize how to read our hands and learned how to hold polls to increase visits, clicks and votes so that thousands of Iranians could be attacked under the influence of encouragement and to beat the drums happily and then consider success in this childish campaign a sign of excellence and rewrite, and distort history.

The issue of online polls is no different. The best goal of Asia, the most popular player in Asia, the best legionnaire in Asia, the most beautiful player, etc. It doesn’t matter what poll it is, we always win! Why? Because we are Iranians and we have to be the best.

One of the social reasons for this virtual struggle is “trying to clear up the feeling of being left behind.” Assuming that we can get our rights in Asian football with a few likes, clicks and pressing a button on the keyboard, a right we can’t get on the football field!

It has been 50 years since we qualified for the Olympics, we haven’t won the Asian Cup for almost half a century, and the last time an Iranian club won the Asian Champion League (or the Asian Clubs Championship), half of the current league players weren’t even born!

In the latest example, the AFC website ran a poll to choose the best Asian player in the FIFA World Cup.

The Candidates were:

Park Ji Sung / South Korea (three appearances, three goals scored and fourth place title in 2002)

 Sami Al-Jaber / Saudi Arabia (four appearances, three goals scored and one assist)

Tim Cahill / Australia (four appearances, five goals and one assist)

Keisuke Honda / Japan (three appearances, four goals and three assists)

Alireza Beiranvand / Iran (one presence, a clean sheet and Ronaldo’s penalty save)

The result was shocking! Beiranvand topped the table with 68% of the votes, followed by Honda, a distant second with 24%, Sami Jaber 6%, Park Ji Sung with 1% and Tim Kahil with 0%!  Beat on the drum boys and rejoice!!

Even a cooked chicken would giggle at this result, but the media and news agencies in Iran boasted that “Beiranvand became the best Asian in the history of the FIFA World Cup!” Really ….. the best Asian player in the history of the World Cup ?! Do we even believe this ourselves? When reputable news outlets, websites and sports publications publish such unrealistic news without criticism, then they endorse it and recognize it as a fact.

If it was just a hobby in the days of quarantine, it could be bypassed, but it’s ridiculous and dangerous when it goes down in history and is repeated so often in general as a document that no one else dares to criticize it.

 

I was constantly reminded of the famous story of Hans Christian Anderson when a child shouted “The king is naked”! Why don’t all the journalists and news outlets who know that these kings of the AFC site are not wearing their uniforms not only shout that they are also putting firewood on the fire so that you can go and vote and raise the Iranian flag! With a handful of likes and clicks ?! Isn’t this complicity in a mistake and falsification of history, or has prejudice blinded us so much that we prefer a pleasant lie to a bitter truth?

A few days later, when the professional and real specialists examined the performance of the players (without passion, clinched fists and happy drum rolls), the results were reversed and Alireza Beiranvand ended up at the bottom of the list. According to the experts Park Ji-sung topped the table, followed by Tim Kahil, Sami Al-Jaber and Honda.

 

This article does not seek to criticize Beiranvand, who is a distinguished player and probably the best goalkeeper in Asia right now. It condemns the credibility and integrity of the AFC circus. Want to be the best in Asia? Then prove it on the football field, otherwise be honored by Championships and trophies that are won on websites by likes, clicks and virtual campaigns. China and India have a population 20 times that of our country, and they can choose any player in their top ten as the best player in the history of the World Cup above the stars like Pele, Maradona and Messi and Ronaldo! …

If this happens, won’t we laugh at them?

Don’t doubt that many in Asia are laughing at us now with our virtual and imaginary internet honors. If we are about national pride, we should not fool ourselves into believing such fallacy.

AFC Annual Awards in need of reforms.

Once again the pathetic AFC Annual Awards are upon us, and once again the much criticized set of awards is being flaunted as the première platform of Asian Football top awards. Accusations that the awards are highly politicized, has very little to do with reality and lack of transparency has marred this annual process. All hopes of improvement and reform has been meat by deaf ear of the hierarchy of AFC with the announcement of this year’s list.

Unfortunately, it is the only award that the rest of the world looks at , as because no other forum or reputable organization nor any strong media in Asia bothers about creating a highly respectable alternative. So, for the those World Media unversed and the less informed in Asian football  , these awards can be mistakenly be taken as the representative of the best of Asian Football excellence while the reality is so far from it.

Year after years and without any culpability, the AFC announces a short list of names for the awards which has little relevance to reality or actual standards. The worst of the awards is the “AFC Player of the year”  which has been the main target of critics and frankly has been scandalous on occasions. All sort of criticism and accusations have been targeted by many who were affected by these nominations.  Political clout, influences and lobbying has been said to play the major part of nomination and selection of supposedly the best Asian footballer. No all criticism were impartial though as the West Asian Arab states have been always vocal when their nominees were absent from the list!

In reality, the flaw in the nomination process seems to be apparent when previous candidates and winners are scrutinized.  A quick look at the historic data and past winners will confirm to any knowledgeable person that the AFC list is out of touch with the real world. AFC Player of the year has even been selected on nepotism during Bin Hamam’s days and hardly improved ever since.

Whether the new President is willing to tackle this issue, or even if he has any interest in reforming this particular process or maybe very well be covenant with the highly unpopular process , is yet to be seen. However, the secretive on goings behind the scene or under the table in the nomination and selection procedures, is quite a thorn in AFC’s credbility.

At least the FIFA award has some transparency and is much closer to reality . That is hardly the case with the Asian version of the award.

Take a look at this simple and no brainer  list of quality Asian players who had made headlines in Europe with their exploits in European Champions League and the Leagues like Son Heung-min (Tottenham) , Sardar Azmoun (FC Rostov) and Keisuke Honda (AC Milan)  and what AFC thinks who should the best in Asia 2016 based on God know what ; Omar Abdulrahman (AlAin & UAE) , Hammadi Ahmed (Air Force & Iraq) and Wu Lei (Shanghai SIPG & China PR)

Not that the AFC nominees are bad players, but when it comes to the top awards, the excellence has to be measured in a systematic method. There is no way that these players have anything near the three top Asian players in performance and quality, but then again you be the judge.

Iran vs. Japan, clash of the titans.

Team Melli will meet Japan in a friendly international match in what is considered to be the clash of the titans of Asian football. The teams will play in Azadi on Tuesday 13th October 2015.

Both teams will be looking for a moral win , Japan to prove that they are the best team in Asia, While Iran to confirm their FIFA Ranking as the top team of the continent.

Iran and Japan will have an off day in the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers which will be played across Asia this week.  The two rivals had similar difficulties in navigating the qualifiers in their respective groups. Both had disappointing openers with Iran drawing away against lowly Turkmenistan, while Japan could not do much better than a goalless draw at home against Singapore.

However both teams recovered well as Japan registered three straight wins, Iran with two wins then stumbled again against Oman in Muscat in the last round.

Iran is still leading the table on goal difference , but the worrying part for the Iranian fans is the vulnerability of the team to have two different standard  in short span of time. The display against Oman was at best, a one point gained away from home, in an otherwise a forgettable match for the fans.  The team played without spirit, lacked the punch, and the worst attribute could be the tendency to revert to emotional performance when the team is behind.

Technically speaking, Japan is the better team in organization and discipline. Individually, Japan has quite a number of stars playing at the highest level of European football, while there is a lone Iranian player doing his business in the Dutch league.

There is very little weakness in Japan team and at their best they can be formidable. The defense is solid and they have yet to concede a goal in the World Cup qualifiers after 4 matches. Iran’s defense, on the other hand is probably the most vulnerable of all its lines.

In the midfield, Iran has a slight advantage, but as seen in the match against Oman, when Dejagah was easily neutralized, the midfield can be disjointed and in tatters. Combination of Dejagah and Teymourian control the midfield well , but separate them and the team feels under the pressure.

Japan has so many option in the midfield and forward lines with household names like Honda and Kazawa giving the Japanese a powerful offensive capability. Iran could also match the Japanese strength up front with Sardar Azmoun who could inflict the damage especially  if he is properly fed from  the midfield players or from flanks. Azmoun’s aerial prowess will certainly inflict damage and will be testing for Japan’s defenders.

The Bosnian coach Vahid  Halilhodžić  reign with Japan has not been long, however he has not made any substantial changes to a well built and balance team which still has many highly experienced players such as  Hasebe,  Okazaki and Nagatomo in the line up. While the much longer serving Queiroz has boldly made major changes for Team Melli in his selection building a youthful teams that can deliver the goods given the opportunity.

It will be an interesting battle between the two powerhouses of Asian football. Two teams that have lots of respect for each other. Iran and Japan have always played very tightly against each other and the margins of wins have been minimal. Team Melli has yet to fully convince the fans of its quality and form thus it is unlikely that Azadi will fill with capacity despite the respect the Iranian fans have for Japan.

Great tournament but Asia still fights credibility gap

By Nick Mulvenney

SYDNEY Sun Feb 1, 2015 3:48am GMT

(Reuters) – There is no doubt that to some jaundiced eyes, Australia winning the Asian Cup at their third attempt will be just further evidence of the weakness of the game on the world’s most populous continent.

The Socceroos became the eighth different winners of the title in the 16th edition of the continental tournament with their 2-1 victory over South Korea after extra time in front of 76,000 fans at Stadium Australia.

It was a Saturday night thriller worthy of bringing a close to a tournament that was organised with usual Australian efficiency and embraced by a nation normally in thrall to cricket and tennis at this time of year.

sardar azmoun Iraq

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I thought it was a beautiful game. It’s what football is all about,” Australia coach Ange Postecoglou told reporters after a pulsating match.

“It’s a final. It’s two teams going at it, giving everything they’ve got because they know what’s on the line. No team took a backward step.”

Postecoglou had joked earlier in the tournament about his team giving headaches to FIFA statisticians trying to figure out how such a lowly ranked team could be playing such good football.

The fact is though, for all the anomalies of the ranking system, Saturday night’s final matched the 100th-ranked hosts against the 69th ranked Taegeuk Warriors.

Both countries were among a four-strong Asian contingent that returned from last year’s World Cup in Brazil without a win between them.

Player of the Tournament, Australia midfielder Massimo Luongo, will fly back to Europe this week to rejoin Swindon’s campaign for promotion from England’s third tier.

The energetic 22-year-old may not be stuck in Wiltshire for too long, though, after he sealed a breakthrough campaign with a well-struck goal to give Australia the lead in the final.

That goal undoubtedly helped him edge out Omar Abdulrahman for the top player award despite the 23-year-old Emirati leaving a bigger stamp on the tournament with his exquisite ball skills and imagination.

Another of the standout players of the tournament, attacking midfielder Son Heung-min, recovered from illness early in his stay in Australia to take South Korea very close to ending their 55-year wait for a third Asian title.

There was plenty of quality goalkeeping on show as well with Australia’s 22-year-old Mat Ryan taking the award for the top shotstopper and also perhaps destined for a bigger European league than Belgium’s top flight.

Kim Jin-hyeon might have claimed the award had South Korea won the final having helped his team keep clean sheets in all their matches until the final, while Uzbekistan custodian Ignatiy Nesterov also deserved a mention.

fans and players mingle in brisbane

GREAT ACHIEVEMENT

Ali Makhbout was the top goalscorer of the tournament with five and his combination in attack with Abdulrahman and Ahmed Khalili made United Arab Emirates a threat to any side.

Of the bigger names to coming into the tournament, Tim Cahill’s brace in the quarter-final defeat of China took his tally to 39 goals in 80 internationals and proved there was plenty of life yet in the 35-year-old.

AC Milan striker Keisuke Honda’s disappointing campaign reflected that of Japan with their continuing problem of converting well-worked approach play into goals.

It was perhaps summed up when he blasted the opening penalty in the shootout against the UAE, that saw the defending champions crash out in the quarter-finals, high over the bar.

That came on the same night as the match of the tournament, when Iraq overcame Iran in a two-and-a-half hour rollercoaster ride played out in a sensational atmosphere in Canberra that ended with a 7-6 shootout victory to the 2007 champions.

That the match probably turned on the controversial dismissal of Iran’s Mehrdad Pooladi by Australian referee Ben Williams was a reminder that Asia still has plenty of work to do to improve the quality of officiating in the region.

Qatar’s early departure does not augur well for their hopes of qualifying at least once for the World Cup in 2018 before hosting the finals in 2022, while the decline of three-times champions Saudi Arabia continued as they were bounced out in the group stage for the second tournament in a row.

Carlos Queiroz’s work with Iran proved the value of quality coaching to mould raw Asian talent, while Postecoglou, South Korea’s Uli Stielike, Alain Perrin with a fast-improving China and Emirati Mahdi Ali also had good tournaments.

Postecoglou and German Stielike are at different stages in rejuvenation projects but after their experiences in the Asian Cup, will be confident of taking much stronger sides to represent the continent at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

“The goal for this confederation should be to break the European and South American monopoly on the World Cup,” Postecoglou said.

“It’s a great achievement but it’s not the end of the journey. It’s the beginning for us.”

 

five star players and five must-see games

Sebastian Hassett

 , The Sydney Morning Herald , Football reporter

 

Quick on the ball: Attacking midfielder Ashkan Dejagah will be a threat in Group C for Iran.Quick on the ball: Attacking midfielder Ashkan Dejagah will be a threat in Group C for Iran.

 

FIVE PLAYERS TO WATCH

Ashkan Dejagah (Iran) 

Iran v Nigeria: Group F - 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil
One to watch: South Korean superstar Son Heung-Min dazzles against Paraguay. Photo: Getty Images

You might have seen Dejagah before, for his two years with Fulham in the English Premier League will have many fans well-aware of his dazzling talents. Granted, they weren’t enough to keep the Cottagers in the top flight, and Dejagah duly swapped the rigours of the Championship for the riches of Al-Arabi. The Qatari club didn’t mind shelling out to get him, either – they had to pay up to $12 million to bring him across. He’s worth every cent. Probably the quickest player on the ball in the entire continent, with his blistering pace on the ball arguably the biggest weapon Iran has at their disposal. Dejagah is at his best when he’s given room to move out wide and he’ll give great service to Iran’s front line, led capably by Reza Ghoochannejhad and Karim Ansarifard. He hasn’t always produced his best form for Team Melli but they certainly need him to this January.

Khalfan Ibrahim (Qatar) 

Flashback to 2006 and the Asian football world was more than a little shocked at the AFC awards night when the name Khalfan Ibrahim was named as Asian player of the year. He’d only made his international debut that same year, aged 18, although it was the year Qatar won football gold at the Asian Games and Ibrahim was the key player. He would throw in the occasional starring role thereafter but apart from a blinding 2008-09 season with Al Sadd (scoring 15 goals in 21 games), his potential probably wasn’t being realised. But after rediscovering his scoring boots in 2011, he hasn’t looked back, landing some incredible goals for club and country (his one-man “Maradona” effort against Al-Rayyan is a must-see on YouTube). He’s only ever played for Al-Sadd (his father’s club) but would cut it any league in the world. Expect to find him on the left-side of the attacking front three – and expect to see him dazzling the crowds with his dribbling and finishing.

Son Heung-min (South Korea) 

There’s a fine tradition developing of young Korean and Japanese footballers plying their trade in Germany and Son may very well be the best of them. Since swapping Hamburg for the mighty Bayer Leverkusen in 2013, his career has gone from strength to strength. Still only 22, who knows how good he’ll become in the coming years. He’s been linked in the past few weeks with a $38 million switch to the premiership – where Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham are said to be potential suitors. Not a bad list of admirers, although Bayern Munich would surely fancy him as potential replacement for their ageing wingers. This is the youngest South Korean team seen for some time and it looms as the most exciting generation since the 2002 side that went all the way to the semi-finals of the World Cup on home soil. Without question, Son will be their creative inspiration for years to come.

Keisuke Honda (Japan) 

Has probably wrestled back the “best player in Asia” tag after Shinji Kagawa’s recent troubles at club level. After struggling at first in Italy, he’s now adjusted and is arguably the best player at AC Milan and one of the best in Serie A. What makes Honda so good is simple: his razor-sharp technique is up there with the very best in the world. That amazing first touch and control means he is rarely thrown off, even by very physical players. He’s adept as a big-game player and loves the grand stage, as evidenced in winning the Asian Cup golden ball four years ago. He’s now 28 and has only improved as a player since, maturing into a world-class playmaker. Deadly from set-pieces, he’s also a huge goal-scoring threat, and is just as capable splitting open a defence with the deftest of passes. He’s got a certain swagger – confidence or arrogance, depending on your view – that some find off-putting but when you’re this good, why not?

Omar Abdulrahman (United Arab Emirates)

Big hair, bigger talent. Is coming into this tournament under an injury cloud but if he’s anywhere near full-fitness, watch out world. This is the guy who might just change how you think about Middle-Eastern footballers. There are probably only a few clubs in the world who could fork out the transfer fee his club, Al-Ain, will seek. Not that the club’s owner, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, needs to sell a player of his huge talent – although Manchester City (also owned by Abu Dhabi royal family) are tracking him and may be an obvious fit. The worry is that he hasn’t played since picking up an ankle injury in the Gulf Cup semi-final against Saudi Arabia in November and has scarcely trained since. Be hopeful he’s feeling on his game: his ability to control a match makes him a contender to knock off Honda and co as the best player in Asia. In this Asian Cup, the Emirates’ destiny lands on his shoulders.

Son Heung-Min

No Iranian in the 2014 AFC Player of the year list.

2014 AFC Player of the Year nominees announced

Kuala Lumpur: Al Hilal striker Nassir Al Shamrani, Al Ain ace Ismail Ahmed and 2006 AFC Player of the Year Qatar’s Khalfan Ibrahim have been nominated for the 2014 AFC Player of the Year award.

The AFC Annual Awards will be held in Manila, Philippines, on November 30 in conjunction with the AFC’s 60th anniversary celebrations.

None of the nominees has achieved anything of significance in Asian football this season or the one before.

The list is reflecting the poor standard of the Asian football players, as none of the finalist has any reputation in Asian let alone World Football. It also highlights the Arab influence in the AFC as the nominated players are all Arabs and none have exactly set the continent or even their domestic leagues alight. With the criteria for selection of players in AFC being a peculiar system of accumulating points in the AFC champions league match, the whole process loses authenticity and legitimacy.

When Asian players such as Shinji Kagawa , Makoto Hasebe,  Son Heung-Min and  Keisuke Honda who all play in the best leagues of the world against the best players yet a players  named Nassir Al Shamrani suddenly becomes a candidate for best Asian player, then all one can assume is that nominations process has a serious flaw and has very little to do with superior performance or excellence in Asian Football , but more like a ceremonial presentation for some players based on feeble foundation of  criterion.