Tag: South Korea

13/01/2015

Iran ‘unprepared’ for Asian Cup but ready to fight.

By: Attilla Mosony

International sanctions and lack of support from its own federation have threatened to derail Iran’s Asian Cup campaign. But the team says those setbacks have provided extra motivation to win.

As the top-ranked Asian Cup side, Iran carries the weight of expectations of a football mad nation of 85 million. But numerous issues have hindered the team’s lead up in the past six months.

So much so that coach Carlos Queiroz has declared his side the least prepared nation at the tournament. He says international sanctions and a lack of financial support from its own federation have threatened to derail the country’s Asian Cup campaign.

“Unfortunately we come to a situation that’s even worse than the World Cup, the international sanctions against Iran, we are struggling in all other actions and plans”

FIFA is still withholding almost $10 million in World Cup appearance money as a result of the sanctions, which led to the cancellation of training camps and pre-tournament games.

Since the World Cup in Brazil, the Iranians have only played one friendly match, against South Korea, before arriving in Australia. But despite the less than ideal preparations they are still considered one of the favourites. Striker Reza Ghoochannejhad insists his side can handle the pressure.

“Everybody is excited to play against Iran, and everybody is motivated, especially because we are coming from the World Cup, but this is the situation right now we can’t complain, we can’t make excuses,” he told SBS.

And for the large community of Iranian expats living in Australia the Asian Cup is a fantastic opportunity to watch their heroes live. On Sunday night 17,000 passionate fans turned up in Melbourne to create a little slice of Tehran.

The 2-nil victory over Bahrain was a huge relief for the team and fans following a troublesome build-up to the tournament. Queiroz says his side is determined to get on with the job by using its recent setbacks as motivation.

“We come here with our soul, with our art with our spirit, as we did before the World Cup, with our training session, using those problems and issues as sources of our inspiration

Iran face Qatar in its second group C match in Sydney on Thursday night.

03/01/201503/01/2015

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.

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.

28/12/2014

Queiroz seeking Pooladi & Rafei release.

Mehdi Mohammad Nabi, Team Melli manager spoke of the possibility of inviting Persepolis Captain Mohammad Nouri to Team Melli in case of the failure in getting the release of Pooladi and Rafei from Military Service.

During the Sunday training session of Team Melli, Mohammad Nabi said “As Carlos Queiroz has stated earlier, our opponents have prepared themselves quite well. On our side, we have tried our best to match them and prepare the team for this competition (…) . Our start was with the match against South Korea followed by several training camps”

“We have up to January 1^st to submit the final list to the Asian Cup Organizing committee and the AFC. Because of that, Queiroz opted to leave two vacant places for the players he wants to add.” Mohammad Nabi added without mentioning the name of the players in Queiroz’s mind. When pressed for an answer and if the two places are reserved for Pooladi and Rafei, , Mohammad Nabi said “Yes. These two players are in the plans of Queiroz and he wishes to include them in his squad. But, I and Mr. Kaffashian are law abiding and need to stick to the regulations of this country. However, there are some negotiation between the Minister of Sports and the Military on the subject matter.”

“We do not have the liberty of playing an international friendly match without the approval of FIFA. The Palestine match was registered with FIFA and the unilateral cancelation of this match by Palestine FA was totally an unprofessional act. Nevertheless, any actions to be taken against the Palestinians , is the job of Ali Kaffashian” Mohammad Nabi said in reaction to the match cancelation and the demand by Queiroz for compensations from Palestine FA..

“We have played 7 friendly games in preparation for the AFC Asian Cup and still have one more to go against Iraq in Sydney.” Mohammad Nabi thus considers playing against reserves of club teams as preparation matches !

“Carlos Queiroz assessment of the squad and the players’ forms is quite good, however more work is needed. Sometimes friendly games matches end up with results that might not be the same if it was an official match (..)”

“Our preparation program started three and a half months ago. We had a very well laid program with the help of the Football League commission. The only setback was this Palestine match cancelation which has really hurt our plans.” The Team Manager explained.

Team Melli manager said that “The Coach has the full authority to select which players he wants. He has an assessment program where the players are technically fully analyzed and evaluated according to the requirement of the game plans. Mohammad Nouri is one of the players that might be added to the list.”

24/12/2014

Even Palestine abandons a friendly against Iran!

What has this world come to for Team Melli ?

Evan Palestine has refused to turn up for a scheduled friendly match it was supposed to play against Team Melli citing logistics difficulties!

Palestine , ranked 133 in FIFA ranking which last played against Team Melli in October 2011 and lost 7-0, was supposed to be the second and the last international friendly match in the entire Team Melli preparation program before the AFC Asian Cup 2015 Australia.

Now that the Palestinians have not turned up , Carlos Queiroz and his men will be heading to Australia with only one real match under their sleeve to face the rest of the Asian teams. That was the narrow 1-0 win against South Korea in Azadi.

Despite all these downturn of events and the dismal and lackluster preparations for the continents greatest and prestigious football tournament, some players are still upbeat and think they are in with a chance of winning it

Calros Queioz , however , is much more realistic and truthful in his approach., He only promised to fight in every match, and that is the best he can offer the nation under the wretched training program the team is undergoing now. The current South African Training Camp has only one legionnaire’s player while the majority are absent.

07/08/2014

Team Melli U-23 draws with Armenia.

Iran’s Olympic football team played a goalless draw against Armenia in Yerevan on Wednesday.

Team Melli Under 23 Football Team reached Yerevan on the 2nd of August and entered camp in Avan Academy Facilities to prepare for the two friendly games against the Armenian counterparts on Monday and Wedneasday.

On arraival and after a short rest , the squad started training in Avan Football Academy. Armenian National Team manager Bernard Challandes was on hand at the Academy. He welcomed the Iranian team and came to pitch and had chat with coaching staff.

The Armenia trip is a part of the preparation for the upcoming Asian Games 2014 in Incheon , South Korea.

In the first match played on Monday 4th August , Armenia’s Taron Voskanyan U23 , scored an injury time winnere on the 90+2nd minute from a header after a cross by Aram Loretsyan. Armenia won 1:0.

Nelo Vingada was not able to take the full squad with him for the usual reasons. Some players had Visa issues while a few were injured.

The squad will be flying back to Tehran today and the players will be joining their clubs for the league. The last part of the long-term preparation of the Olympic team will be carried out in China 10 days before the Asian Games starts in South Korea. The team will play several friendly games in China before heading directly to Incheon.

Human Afazeli , said “We are trying to arrange a couple of friendly games for the squad before flying to China for the training camp. That will be a good practise for the lads ”

13/06/201413/06/2014

Asian team needs to stamp itself on the world stage

By John Duerden

The Korea Times

A European team has never won the World Cup when in South America. An Asian team has never actually won a game on the soccer-crazy continent ― although 1978 was the last time the tournament was held there.

Both trends could be broken over the next few weeks.

South Korea is joined by fellow Asian Football Confederation (AFC) members Japan, Iran and Australia in Brazil, four teams that carry the hopes of more than half of the world’s population. For Asia’s reputation as well as its hopes of being allocated more World Cup spots in the future, the continent needs to make a good showing ― two teams, preferably more, need to survive the group stage and reach the round of 16.

Japan looks the best bet. The Samurai Blue is Asian champion and is full of players active in Europe’s big leagues. Keisuke Honda of AC Milan and Manchester United’s Shinji Kagawa may not have had the best domestic seasons, but they are at least fresh ahead of games against Cote d’Ivoire, Greece and Colombia.

Lining up alongside the famous duo is an unsung player who may be ready for international stardom. Shinji Okazaki scored 15 goals for FSV Mainz 05 in the just completed German season.

Coached by respected Italian tactician Alberto Zaccheroni, Japan’s attack has been scoring plenty of late. In June, it scored a 3-1 win over Costa Rica, and then beat Zambia 4-3. However, as the scores suggest, Japan is not quite as strong at the back, but should have the talent to get at least into the second round.

“Because Japan is little known in world football, we want to play good football and make a huge impact so the world will recognize the presence of the Japan football team,” Kagawa said this week.

Japan’s prospects look much better than Australia’s. Under new coach Ange Postecolou, the Socceroos are in transition from a team of experienced veterans from the 2006 and 2010 campaigns.

The new-look team has one of the toughest groups imaginable.

Having to face champion Spain is tough enough, but then there is the small matter of 2010 runner-up the Netherlands, another star-studded opponent featuring the likes of Manchester United hitman Robin Van Persie and the supremely talented Arjen Robben of Bayern Munich. Australia’s opening game is against Chile, a dark horse, but playing on its own continent and with Alexis Sanchez of Barcelona in its ranks.

In some ways, being in such a tough group has taken the pressure off Australia. Nobody expects the team to progress to the second round, making it easier for the coach to regenerate the roster. And any points picked up will be greeted with delight down under. It is almost a no-lose situation.

Then there is Iran. The Persians finished above South Korea in qualification but have been pretty quiet since, struggling to arrange preparation games because it is not always easy to lure teams to Tehran

Former Real Madrid and Portugal coach Carlos Queiroz will need all his considerable tactical ability to get the team out of a group containing Argentina, Nigeria and Bosnia. It is a tough group, but it could have been worse. Iran’s best hope may lie in being underestimated.

In some ways, Korea’s preparation has been worse. The team has had a good deal more games than Iran, but losing four out of the last five ― the latest last week’s 4-0 thrashing by Ghana ― has everyone talking of impending doom against Russia, Algeria and Belgium.

Perhaps some solace can be taken from Japan. Four years ago, the Samurai Blue lost four out of its final five warm-up games, with leading coach Takeshi Okada offer his resignation.

Yet, this all changed at the World Cup, with Japan within a penalty shootout for a place in the final eight.

With the possible exception of Japan, Korea and the rest of Asia would settle for that.

John Duerden is writing for about Korea’s campaign at the World Cup in Brazil. ― ED.

18/04/2014

60 days to go with the wrong headlines.

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60 days to go to the start of Iran’s pursuit of glory in the World Cup, yet Team Melli is making the headlines for the wrong reasons.

While the team and the squad needs much stability , comradeship , peace of mind and hard work in training , instead, a disruptions to the plans has resulted in some unwelcome events which has already over shadowed the preparation to the camp of Team Melli.

The episode revolved around one point. The release of 4 Clubs’ player for national team duty conducting a training camp in South Africa, while these clubs were still involved in AFC Champions league competition.

Much has been said in this matter while heated argument ensued between the two sides, the clubs and the football association each accusing the other side of non-cooperation and ignoring the national interest.

If it is about taking side, then we all need to take the side of Team Melli. But, if it is about the law, respect for the regulation and if it is about justice, then there is only one verdict, and that is for the side of the clubs. FIFA regulation regarding release of the players for the 2014 FIFA World Cup is quite clear. The mandatory rest period for the players is from 19^th to 25^th May 2014. After which the players should be released for national team duty.

Why Carlos Queiroz who incidentally has reminded us , that he knows more about FIFA Rules than anybody in Iran , has failed to understand and abide by this particular FIFA regulation , is beyond our understanding.

If for argument sake , Queiroz was a coach of Portugal or England , would he dare demand that the football league competition has to stop by mid-April , 30 of the best league players from their team pulled out for a camp while denying them playing in the most prestigious and lucrative club competition of the continent , the Champions league ? The answer is simply, no way. He would have been laughed at for even suggestion that. But , he got away with it in Iran, he managed to convince the hierarchy that the league should finish early and the players be at the disposal of Team Melli for about 70 days before the World Cup duty.

How did he achieve that? Perhaps because for one, the Iranians are quite an accommodating lot especially towards foreigners and guests. It is a cultural issue to respect the foreigners and that extends to football coaches like Queiroz. Unlike their Arab neighbors, the Iranians rarely sack foreign football coaches like the Arabs do with ease and monotonous regularity, while paying them millions of dollars in compensation in the process. Cash strapped FFIRI simply cannot afford such payments and that is one good reason not to sack the coaches early.

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Queiroz justification in taking 28 domestic players for three weeks training camp, might sound logical to some. His concern about the players’ physical conditioning is one such justification. Local Iranian players, being the products of the Iranian domestic league are not in ideal physical condition. They run much less in a game than the Europeans players do and are physically weaker compared to the stronger opponents whom they will compete against in the World Cup. That is fine and quite understandable, however, what seems amiss here is the question of timing , why set up camp while clubs are involved in competitions and have already declared that they, the clubs, will not release their players for Team Melli?

What is becoming more complex in this equation is the character of the Portuguese head coach. Queiroz demeanor, an antagonist, aggressive, stubborn and begrudging person are some of the darker side of the this highly acclaimed coach.

A look at Queiroz history and you will see a list of misdemeanors as along as your arm,

Queiroz has a history of getting into trouble with others. From the time he was sacked as the coach of UAE in 1999 due to poor results on the surface when he lost to lowly Palestine , but in reality it was because Queiroz ignored his peers advise on the selection of some players, an act that did not please the shaikh. To the time that he resigned from the South Africa job despite qualifying them for the World Cup 2002 because of squabble with Jomo Sono over who has ultimate control of Bafana Bafana. Then in 2010 came the sacking from his own country’s top coaching job because of combination of poor results and insulting of Doping team staff for which he was suspended then pardoned by CAS.

Conceivably Queiroz was not always the guilty party in all of those cases, yet he continued his style in Iran. He always seems to have differences and arguments with the League coaches over various issues, continuously involved in confrontation with the media, he abruptly leaves press conference, he is expelled from a crucial match against South Korea for being too graphic in protesting a referee’s decision. Then comes that famous headline making confrontation with the petulant South Korean coach. Queiroz was lucky to escape sanctions by FIFA for provocations and insults at the end of that famous game in Ulsan.

What it seems like is that Querioz has communication issues mixed with some hot temper. Has very little time and capacity for accepting criticism and can only see it one way, and that is his way. Anything else is seems to be a sign of animosity.

No one can question the Portuguese lack of passion and sense of achievement and pride. He is a fighter alright and does not accept defeat easily. Some of his misdemeanors might be justified, but in the real world of very competitive football with lots at stake, being an accommodating and a compromising character, can go a long way towards the success or failure of a coach.

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