"ON THE Asian football scene, Iran are still a power to be reckoned with," says Ali Parvin, head coach of the Iran national team.

Regardless of the money being spent by the other competing nations in the final round of the Asian qualifiers, Iran will be tough challengers. "If our players follow my instructions, and if they connect with one another, there is every chance of us reaching the World Cup finals," he says.

The Islamic Republic of Iran, along with Iraq, Japan, North Korea, Saudi Arabia and South Korea are scheduled to meet in Qatar in the final round of Asian qualifying matches, between October 15 and 28.

 Parvin  (above) believes that Iran's first game against South Korea is the most crucial, and will determine the fate of the team. After playing one another once, the top two teams will advance to the 1994 World Cup.

Despite Iran's success in reaching the last stage of the qualifying rounds, the national team's performance has been less than impressive. Draws against Syria and Oman during the first round of the competition in Tehran caused great concern among officials and enthusiasts. After a change of venue from Tehran to Damascus for the return leg, the Iranian team gained confidence and a sense of purpose, but two draws against Syria and one against Oman, and a narrow win over Oman in Damascus, will not cause the South Koreans or Saudis to lose any sleep. Only the defeats of the hopeless Taiwanese (6‑0 in both legs) salvaged what could have been a disaster.

The team has set up camp in the United Arab Emirates for the last two weeks before the competitions. They will work on conditioning, play friendly matches with local teams and get accustomed to the weather.

Parvin thinks more should be done in terms of proper planning and arranging regular matches against formidable opposition, but this is difficult. A scandal erupted when Detmar Kramer, a German coach, and his "all-star European team" accepted an invitation to play.

Kramer and his team received $50,000 to compete in two matches against the Iranian national team. But the big‑name players did not show up and a team with players who were up to 40 years old arrived in Iran. The game was a joke, Kramer's team lost 5‑2, and were asked to leave.

Ali Parvin is a familiar name to Iranian football fans. He was perhaps the most famous and skilful player of his generation, and played 108 times for the national team. During that period, the Iranian team won three consecutive Asian titles, qualifying for the 1972 and 1976 Olympics, and for the 1978 World Cup, where they drew 1-1 with Scotland but lost to Holland and Peru. "That team were not prepared to compete in the World Cup," he said. "In those two games, we completely lost ourselves halfway through."

He believes his World Cup experience, as a player will be a great asset to him should the team reach the 1994 finals. For one thing, he intends to halt all club activities so attention can be focused solely on the national team.

Hamid Derakhshan, the 34‑year‑old captain, feels that Iran have nothing to fear from other Asian nations. "From the technical point of view, we have nothing less than what our opponents have to offer," he said. "The main difference is the high level of support from their federations. "The lack of sound financial support for the team's preparation is among Parvin's biggest concerns. Both Parvin and Derakhshan believe that professionalism is the stimulus that will propel Iran to Asian domination.

"Banks and financially‑stable companies should invest in our domestic game so that we can meet Japan, South Korea and Saudi Arabia on equal terms," said Parvin

Derakhshan added: "When a player knows he can make a decent living for himself and his family by working and concentrating on his profession, that helps him become a better player." Professionalism is a hotly‑debated issue in the Iranian community. Parvin and Derakhshan believe that it is the inevitable next step and the sooner the federation accepts this fact, the better it will be for Iranian football. The debate is likely to continue for some time.

Hassan Rowshan a speedy winger, who played in the 1978 World Cup, is operating a football school for eight to 19‑year‑old players. Rowshan after receiving a coaching license from the FA  in England, started this unique school with the help of Reza Esmaili,  a top Iranian boxer. "The school loses money every day of its operation," Rowshan said. "At this rate, it will be almost impossible to continue the school beyond the next five or six months, unless the federation take us under their care."  One can only hope that such education programmers will become a mainstay of Iranian football.

 Action from the 1978 World Cup finals as Iran's Parvin (7), goalkeeper Hedjazi  and Nazari  try to stop Scotland's Macari  (16).

Reporter: BABAK  YEKTASAR

Hamid  Derakhshan  (right) and Mehdi Fonoonizadeh enjoy a good read.