Mohammad Khakpour, Iran’s U23 (Omid) coach announced his plans for the team from now until January 2016, when Iran will join 15 other finalist in a tough battle to qualify for the Rio De Janeiro Olympics football competition. The final rounds of the qualification for Rio Olympics will be held in Doha, Qatar.
In his briefing with the sport journalist, Khakpour express his gratitude to the clubs who helped the case of Omid team with their timely release of the players for the inaugural WAFF U23 tournament. Khakpour was over joyed by the results achieved in this first tournament of its kind, where Iran’ U23 won the title defeating Syria 2-0 in the final.
“The first order of business in to set up a short camp in UAE, were we were hoping to play against Iraq and Australia. The latter match is 100% confirmed but the Iraq match is yet to be finalized” Khakpour said. “After that we will be going to Turkey foe another short camp followed by a local camp either in Kish Island or in Khuzistan (Ahvaz). We hope that by that time , we will have all our players available for the best preparation of the squad.” Khakpour continued.
The reporters then quizzed Khakpour on several topics including the readiness of Arya Hashemi. Khakpour said that this player will not be fit on time to join the team.
About Iran’s prospect for qualifying to that eluded prize of Olympic Games, Khakpour responded “We should be under no illusion that qualifying to the next round from the group is not an easy task at all. Qatar is the host, China is one of the strongest teams in Asia at that age level, and we have all seen Syria play against us with strength and skill. So, it is not going to be an easy task, but we are not going there to surrender either.”
About his abrupt resignation after winning the WAFF U23 tournament, Mohammad Khakpour admitted his mistake as he particularly apologized for Mohammad Mayeli-Kohan and Habib Kashani for this hasty move. “Both these gentlemen put a lot of faith in me and I let them down. I like to sincerely apologize to them and also to my compatriots for such an act and admit that it was out of emotions and not rational.” the Iranian U23 team coach said. Khakpour also apologized for the media in an unprecedented move! As such , this is a rare occasion that an Iranian coach admits his fault and apologized for it. So, there is still hope left in Iranian coaches!
The head coach of U23 team however, did not conceal his disappointment with Ali Kaffashian and the general lack of support for Omid Team from the federation. Khakpour said that the main reason for his resignation was the one-sided contract that he was offered in which he was held accountable for everything , while it hardly mentioned anything about the federations responsibilities.
2016 AFC U-23 Championship
Qualified teams
The following 16 teams qualified for the final tournament
| Team | Qualified as | Appearance | Previous best performance |
|---|---|---|---|
 Qatar |
Hosts | 1st | Debut |
 Iraq |
Group A winners | 2nd | Champions (2013) |
 Jordan |
Group B winners | 2nd | Third place (2013) |
 Saudi Arabia |
Group C winners | 2nd | Runners-up (2013) |
 United Arab Emirates |
Group D winners | 2nd | Quarter-finals (2013) |
 Syria |
Group E winners | 2nd | Quarter-finals (2013) |
 Australia |
Group F winners | 2nd | Quarter-finals (2013) |
 North Korea |
Group G winners | 2nd | Group stage (2013) |
 South Korea |
Group H winners | 2nd | Fourth place (2013) |
 Japan |
Group I winners | 2nd | Quarter-finals (2013) |
 China PR |
Group J winners | 2nd | Group stage (2013) |
 Thailand |
1st best runners-up (Group G) | 1st | Debut |
 Iran |
2nd best runners-up (Group C) | 2nd | Group stage (2013) |
 Vietnam |
3rd best runners-up (Group I) | 1st | Debut |
 Yemen |
4th best runners-up (Group D) | 2nd | Group stage (2013) |
 Uzbekistan |
5th best runners-up (Group E) | 2nd | Group stage (2013) |
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