Some would argue against it , but Carlos Queiroz has won the approval of many Iranian football fans in his 4 years at the helm.
Despite Iran being knockout of the quarter finals of AFC Asian Cup 2015, despite the paltry showing in the FIFA World Cup 2014 , despite his team performing a dull defensive style lacking in finesse and the beauty of the game, and despite his team lacking creative players or stars , Carlos Queiroz remains a popular figure amongst the fans.
There could be quite a few reasons behind this popularity. Normally, a football coach who does not win anything of significance or championship titles does not endear himself to the fans and neither does he become popular. In Queiroz’s case, there are a few elements that defy the theories of popularity.
There are diverse reasons for him to remain popular in Iran and not all sides agree on the real reasons, while some even question that he is actually a popular coach.
Cynics point to the low level of Iranian fans aspirations and ceiling of expectations as one reason for the level of approval of Queiroz. A country that has won no Asian Cup at all since 1976 habitually becomes conditioned to failures and disappointments, some critics claim. “The Iranian football fans have grown accustomed to hearing bad news and Team Melli under achieving. They get used to it while they look for fulfillment elsewhere like in a player or a coach that they can brag about.” Said a former player and a current coach who wished to remain anonymous. “When expected to but fail to win titles and fall short, the fans develop immunity against failure and get used to it. It is not a big shock anymore after a few disappointments”
This brings us to the case of Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger, where the Portuguese coach of Chelsea said that “he (Wenger) is used to failure.” Implying that a defeat is a normal event for Arsenal!
Another theory in the case of Queiroz popularity is the fact that Iranian fans are growing tired and despondent of their own coaches and their antics. The likes of Mayeli-Kohan, Daei , Ghalenoei and others have not reflected a good image of Iranian coaches as professionals and as genuine characters. For ever complaining, blaming earth and sky for their failures and lacking grace in defeat, Iranian coaches have also been blamed for major failures at club and Team Melli levels. As such, suddenly a foreigner becomes popular because he is confronting the domestic coaches. That is regrettably a sad reflection on the local coaches’ stature in Iran.
Being a famous high profile coach, who once coached the likes of Critiano Ronaldo, helps his popularity too.
What can the Iranian coaches learn from Queiroz ? Not his tactics for sure nor his defensive mentality, however Carlos Querioz has a lot to offer for some of the local coaches. Tactical discipline on the field and character discipline off it, is one such virtue. Playing to your team’s strength, the will power to win difficult matches, not falling for player’s power and invincibility of some star players. There are several good qualities that Queiroz has which could be beneficial for the Iranian coaches.
While admittedly not a 5 star coach with exemplary behavior on and off the field, after all the Portuguese has an almost tyrannical attitude with zero tolerance for criticism, his good qualities has helped his popularity. If ever the egos of the local coaches allowed, they can improve themselves too