Year: 2014

Foolad Khuzestan wins the league title

Foolad Khuzestan the proud team from South of Iran has won the Persian Gulf League title in a dramatic last day of the season.

A goal by Team Melli defender Mehrdad Jamaati in the 37th minute of Foolad’s match against Gostarish in Tabriz , was enough for Hossein Faraki men to win the championship.

Foolad Khuzestan , a young team and well-known for its pedigree of producing talented young players , were chasing the title from the onset of the season , however a tough competition with Naft Tehran , Sepahan , Persepolis and Esteghlal was ensued until the last day of the season.

This is the second title won by Foolad Khuzestan , the first was in 2004-05 season. The team will be competing in the next season AFC Asian Champions league while Foolad is still very much alive in the current Champions league and has a good chance to qualify for the knock out rounds.

The season ended in a very sore note for the defending champions Esteghlal. After the loss to Tractorzasi 3-1 at home in Azadi on Friday, Esteghlal dropped to fifth and lost it spot in the AFC Champions League. It is the first time in 6 seasons that Esteghlal will not participate in this major continental clubs competition.  The other big loser was Sepahan . The team from Esfahan which holds the a record 4 league titles lost its spot in the same competition despite defeating title contender Naft Tehran.

On the other hand, Persepolis will return back to the AFC Champions league for the first time after an absence of 3 seasons. Ali Daei’s men , despite huge financial problems  managed to beat Esteghlal Khuzestan in the final day and climb to the second position.

Karim Ansarifard , Tractorsazi and Team Melli forward won the top scorer title with 14 goals

 

Final League Standing

Persian Gulf League Season 2013-14

#

 

 Team

MP

W

D

L

F

A

D

P

Last 5 matches

1

 Foolad Khuzestan

30

16

9

5

36

24

+12

57

WLWDW

2

 Persepolis

30

16

8

6

34

15

+19

55

WDWWD

3

 Naft Tehran

30

15

9

6

39

23

+16

54

LWWDW

4

 Sepahan

30

14

12

4

36

20

+16

54

WWDDW

5

 Esteghlal

30

15

9

6

34

25

+9

53

LWLLW

6

 Tractor Sazi

30

11

13

6

39

33

+6

45

WWLLL

7

 Malavan

30

13

6

11

40

33

+7

44

LLWWL

8

 Saipa

30

7

14

9

26

31

-5

35

DDDDL

9

 Saba Qom

30

8

9

13

32

38

-6

33

DDWLD

10

 Gostaresh Fola…

30

7

11

12

31

34

-3

32

LLLDD

11

 Rah Ahan

30

7

10

13

25

34

-9

31

LDWWD

12

 Esteghlal Khuz…

30

6

11

13

26

37

-11

29

LLLDD

13

 Zob Ahan

30

6

11

13

24

36

-12

29

WWLLL

14

 Fajr Sepasi

30

6

11

13

20

34

-14

29

WDDWD

15

 Damash Gilan

30

5

12

13

30

40

-10

26

DLLDD

16

 Mes Kerman

30

1

19

10

21

36

-15

22

DDDDD

 

 

 

List of League champions by season

2001–02               Persepolis

2002–03               Sepahan

2003–04               Pas Tehran

2004–05               Foolad Khuzestan

2005–06               Esteghlal

2006–07               Saipa

2007–08               Persepolis

2008–09               Esteghlal

2009–10               Sepahan Esfahan

2010–11               Sepahan Esfahan

2011–12               Sepahan Esfahan

2012–13               Esteghlal

2013-14                Foolad Khuzestan

Kaffashian “It is worth it for the government to extend Queiroz’s contract.”

Ali Kaffashian was in Khuzestan on a visit when reporters quizzed him about the current issues related to Team Melli and its future coaching situation.

The question of Carlos Queiroz remaining with Team Melli and whether his contract will be extended , was once again asked.  In response , Kaffashian said “The management committee of the football federation has come to a conclusion that Carlos Queiroz is a competent coach and hence we have decided to offer him an extension of the contract. Queiroz has asked for an increase for himself and his assistants in the new contract. The additional fees will come to around US$ 5 or 6 million. Since we have a large number of national teams at different levels and age groups and many other expenses that we already have difficulty to finance, we really cannot afford to pay the extra that is demanded by him. Of course, if we do not come to an agreement , Queiroz will leave and we have to find an alternative coaching team. Saying that however, nothing is certain as we speak!”

[quote]I think it is worth it for the government to provide us a budget to renew Queiroz contract[/quote]

ISNA reporter asked if this uncertainty regarding Team Melli coaching staff is an issue of concern to his administration and himself, the Head of IRIFF said that in any case, we have to work within our limit. There are league clubs that have not worked around their limitation and hence have accumulated huge debts that they cannot deal with.   We have to properly manage our finance if we need to renew the contract with Queiroz so as not to harm the rest of our activities including the national teams.

“I think it is worth it for the government to provide us a budget to renew Queiroz contract. When we signed the initial contract, the Ministry of Youth and Sports promised to financially assist us and partially bear the amount of contract, but this has not happened. If the government is willing to bankroll the extension of contract, then we will agree to Queiroz new terms.”

Neither Kaffashian nor his administration hardly ever talk about the federation’s plans and strategy in generating its own revenue to self-finance its activities. Instead , the IRIFF always prefer to pass the hat around looking for handouts or seek the government aid from the public coffer.  With the inflation at its highest in Iran and difficulties of normal Iranian families to make ends meet and proceed with their daily life, it is outrageous for Kaffashian and his administration to seek millions of dollars from the public funds to spend on coaches. During Nowrooz, the issue of Iranian footballer’s contracts has surfaced to the discontent of many ordinary citizens.

The same situation exists with the clubs. While clubs spend multimillion tomans and even into the billions tomans on contract fees with the professional footballers , only a small fraction of this money is actually self-generated by the clubs ,  while mostly the source of such money is from government or government-owned organization.

Persepolis and Khalatbary on the brink of FIFA Sanctions.

Mohammad Reza Khalatbary and his club Persepolis are on the brink of suspension after the Club failed to pay the UAE League club Ajman the reminder of the payment for the player’s transfer.

Ajman has given Persepolis one week ( 15th April) to fork out US$ 250,000 outstanding from the player’s transfer deal. Ajman has claimed that the amount is already six month overdue and will not tolerate any further delays by the Iranian club.

Khalatbary signed a 1.5 Million dollar contract with Ajman last year, however before he even played a single match for Ajman, Persepolis came calling for the Team Melli Midfielder and on the assertion of the former CEO Mohammad Rouyanian , they managed to strike a deal with Ajman for his transfer back to Iran.

The deal raised many questions in the football circles, mainly because Persepolis had acute financial difficulties which were well publicized and known among all concerned. Somehow Persepolis managed to pay the transfer fee for Khalatbary , but the club refused to disclose the source of the transfer fee. This transfer occurred at a time when many Persepolis players and staff wages were not paid for several months. The Khalatbary transfer created some discontent in the dressing room.

Now, it has been disclosed that Persepolis has not paid the full transfer fee to Ajman.  The balance of US$ 250,000 must be paid within 1 week else Ajman will file a complaint with FIFA. If Persepolis fails to adhere to the clause of the transfer agreement, FIFA can rule to suspend Persepolis from football activities, ban it from transfer market (selling or buying players) , deduct points or impose a heavy fine.

While Persepolis is in a perilous position, Khalatbary may also be suspended if FIFA deems it necessary. That would be a severe blow to Carlos Queiroz who is preparing the squad for the World Cup. The rest of the Persepolis players with Team Melli should not be affected by any FIFA ruling against their club and will be allowed to play for Team Melli.

Zamani, the agent of Khalatbary , shed some light on the transfer details. He said that the agreement between the two clubs required Persepolis to initially pay US$ 500,000 then the second payment of US$300,000. Persepolis paid US$ 400,000 initially and then with a lot of delay, it paid US$ 150,000 , which was half the agreed amount it should pay to Ajman. Eventually , Hossein Hedayti , paid the remaining US$ 150,000 “

“However , there is still US$ 250,000 remaining and an additional US$ 50,000 as interest fees due to delays in payment,”

Zamani said that “FIFA usually makes quick decisions when it is faced with cases of nonpayment of contracts. All evidence and document shows that Ajman Club has the full right and as such Persepolis might face heavy penalties from FIFA and might regret delaying the payment.”

Hertha has Dejagah in their sights

Kicker Magazine

Hertha BSC intensified its planning for the future. Many talents are already training with the pros. One who is in Berlin was formerly part of the “young guns” to the Boateng brothers, Patrick Ebert and Sejad Salihovic could return to the capital under certain circumstances:

According top confidential Information that kicker has received,  Hertha wants a deal with  FC Fulham to bring back Ashkan Dejagah if the London club is relegated from the Premier League. Under observation also has two second-division attacker.

Ashkan Dejagah

With six games to go, the situation for the German coach Felix Magath’s London club is threatening: The team is five points adrift in relegation zone already, also Fulham has already played one game more than the competitors placed above. Dejagah who has won the confidence of the club at last, has scored three goals in the last five matches. At the crucial 1-0 home win against Newcastle United recently he succeeded in scoring the winning goal.

The 27-year-old, has a contract with Fulham  until 2015 plus option, had played from 2000 to 2007 for Hertha, before he moving to Wolfsburg.

Ghoochannejad scores the winner for Charlton Athletic.

Reza Ghoochannejad scored the winner for the championship side Charlton Athletic away against Leeds United. The midweek match played on Tuesday evening was crucial for the London club fighting against relegation.

The strike by Team Melli forward came early in the second half (54th minute) , to make it 1-0 for Charlton Athletic. The result remained unchanged despite several wasted chances by both teams. This was the first goal scored by Ghoochannejad in English football.

The win thanks to Gucci’s goal lifted Charlton Athletic from the relegation zone  and with two games in hand , their chances of survival is strong against teams below them.

Ghoochannejad was subbed out in the 85th minute to get a standing ovation from the small Charlton Athletic away crowd.

Charlton boss Jose Riga, could not be happier after his side won their third game in seven matches under the Belgian, with just two defeats. Riga appears to be winning over Addicks fans after replacing the popular Chris Powell on March 11.

“It was a very big win for me and certainly for Charlton,” said the 56-year-old former AC Milan academy coach.

Regarding Ghoochannejhad’s stunning winner, Riga added: “I know what Reza is able to do and he was good in the game.”

“He was part of the game and I’m not totally surprised. This guy needs some confidence, he needs to work hard, offensively and defensively and he did that and it’s good for the team too. This (result) is only one step more for me because we have very important games ahead against Yeovil and Barnsley, so the story is far from ended.”

Winner: Charlton Athletic's Reza Ghoochannejhad curled in his first goal for the club to win the game.
Winner: Charlton Athletic’s Reza Ghoochannejhad curled in his first goal for the club to win the game.

Qatar coach “Iran is quite strong and a team with a global reputation.”


The Algerian coach of Qatar National Football team , Djamel Belmadi said that we have to accept the result of the draw that placed Qatar to face of Iran, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.”

In an interview with Al Kass TV ,  a Qatari sport network broadcasting from Doha,  he added “At this level you should accept the results and the draws. We must be ready for all situations.”

In his assessment of the teams that will compete with Qatar in Group C ,  Belmadi added “The Iranian national team is quite strong and a team with a global reputation beyond the region. UAE team is stubborn and went through an successful evolution recently, while the Bahraini team should always be respected … generally speaking, it will be difficult and a tough group”.

The 38 years old  Belmadi admitted that the national team did not perform well in the West Asia Cup despite winning the title, but said that “we will have enough time to get ready for the competition and to perform up to expectation  in the AFC Asian Cup 2015.”

He continued “We will have a preparatory camp and we have a good opportunity to prepare well. We are entering a different competition in the Asian Cup, unlike West Asian (WAFF) competition. In Australia, we will be facing the best and we must prepare for that and be at our best.”

“Our hopes and our aspirations are legitimate, as we have what it takes at this level of competition.”

“With our resources and standard, it is our legitimate ambitions to go far in the competition and do well but despite this ambition, we also need to remain realistic.”

He continued “We have to aspire to be better and start looking beyond mere participation by challenging the title.”

The Algerian coach of Qatar made a tour of Australia to inspect stadiums and sports facilities in order to familiarize himself with the quality of the facilities, “That tour shall result in a more efficient preparatory program that can enhance our team chances in the tournament and enable us to perform with all of our strength.”

“I have a long list of candidates for the national team. I will choose players from league matches and the Gulf Cup.” With regard to the final list that will be chosen to represent Qatar in the AFC Asian Cup 2015 , Bulmadhi explained “ it is still too early, but initially we will invite players who are already in the current squad.”

He added “There are a lot of players who can be with the team, but in the end there are league matches and the Gulf Cup competition which will allow us to truly appraise the potentials and the level of the players.”

 Djamel Belmadi has been appointed as the head coach of Qatar football Team two weeks ago. He played as a professional in several European clubs including Paris Saint-Germain, Marseille, Cannes, Celta Vigo, Manchester City, before heading to the Persian Gulf to play for Al-Ittihad and Al-Kharitiyath in Qatar. He had a 2 year spell with Southampton in the Championship between 2007–2009 before hanging his boots with Valenciennes.

He is a young coach who started with Kharitiyath and Qatar B team. His selection as a head coach has raised a few eyebrows in Qatar who normally look at high profile experienced coaches. The Qatar FA , like mny of the Arab states of Persian Gulf , are notorious for sacking coaches.

 Djamel Belmad is the 13th coach of Qatar since years 2000 , making it an average of 1 coach every year.

Dejagah wonder strike not enough for Fulham.

Team Melli and Fulham player Ashkan Dejagh came in as a substitute in the 65th minute of the Premiere League match against Everton to score a stunner and level the match 1-1.

The match played in Craven cottage , the home of Fulham in South West London , was mainly dominated by Fulham from the onset of the game. Howevr , the home team , despite creating many scoring chances, failed to capitalize as the half ended scoreless.

In the 2nd half, Everton went ahead when Fulham player Stockdale scored an own goal on 51′. Ashakan Dejagah was substituted in on 65′ for Richardson and 6 minutes later he scored a stunning goal from a fine individual effort.

However K. Mirallas 79′  (assist by A. McGeady) and then  S. Naismith 87′ scored two goals for Everton for Fulham to lose this important match and remain at the bottom of the league ranking and very much on the path to relegation.

 

Team Melli needs a major overhaul for Asian Cup 2015,

Regardless to the outcome of the result by Team Melli in the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2014, Team Melli needs new blood, new mentality and a whole new idea to put Iran firmly on the Asian Football map for the AFC Asian Cup 2015 competition. This current generation of players of Team Melli is aging and Iran could very well be the oldest team in the World Cup. Apart from a few number of players in the current squad, Team Melli must look at the new generation.

Iran has never been short of young talents and potentials in football, what is lacking in this area , is management and utilization of these talents. The worst examples of misguiding and poor handling of young talented players are the league clubs. With the pressure to succeed or avoid relegation as the case might be, almost all the Iranian clubs are hesitant and reluctant to give opportunities to talented young players.  It is very obvious if these young players are not given playing times, their chances of progress are limited or slowed down, some never reaching the potential. Subsequently, if there is no playing time at the club level, it will be even more difficult to be selected for Team Melli

It is simply quite difficult for the coaches of Team Melli to select a young talents into the squad without him being able to make the first team in his club.

There are some exceptions though as seen in Foolad Khuzestan club. The club from the south has won the league years back with one of the youngest or least experience squads on records. This season with 3 matches to go , Foolad Khuzestan  might very well repeat that feat and win the title again by a young team. So, the myth that a team requires older and senior players to win league title is ,  not strictly true.

Currently , Iran is blessed with some wonderful talents in the right age brackets. Kaveh Rezaei , Payam Sadeghian, Alireza Jahanbaksh , Mohsen Mosalman , Sardar Azmoun, Bakhtiyar Rahmani , Arash Afshin , Milad Sarlak, Yaghoub Karimi , Ali Karimi (Sepahan), Amir Mohammad Mazloum, Mostafa Hashemi , Mehrdad Jamaati , Jallaledin  Alimohamadi , Omid  Allishah , Omid Ebrahimi , Shoja’a Khalilzadeh, Mehdi Sharifi, Milad Fakhreddini , Shahryar Shirvand  are amongst the best. Many of them have represented Iran at international and continental levels in age group levels , most suffer lack of regular playing time.

With Carlos Queiroz being unlikely to be the head coach of Team Melli in January 2015, it all depends on the future coach’s  vision and whether he will be influenced in using the same old players , or be courageous enough to go for the youth or a right balance of talented and seasoned players.

Nekounam , Shojaei , Khalatbary , Amir Hossein Sadeghi , Hosseini , Ahmadi ,  Jabbari and many others are on the twilight of their careers and have been less prominent in Team Melli outfits recently,  The replacements are already available, it only needs a firm , ambitious and aspiring mind set to make it happen.

Arsenal make £2million offer for ‘Iranian Lionel Messi’ Sardar Azmoun

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Arsenal make offer for ‘Iranian Messi’
Arsenal are keen on Sardar Azmoun (Picture: Getty)

Arsenal have made an offer for highly-rated Rubin Kazan striker Sardar Azmoun – who has been dubbed the ‘Iranian Lionel Messi’.

The 19-year-old, who has made a handful of first-team appearances for Rubin, is rated as one of the best young players in Russia at present.

He has been linked with both AC Milan and Juventus recently, but Arsenal have been tracking him for a while, and have now made a move.

According to reports, the Gunners have offered Rubin £2million for the striker, who was scouted playing for Iran’s Under-20 team last year.

 

Azmoun told the Russian press at the time that Arsenal scouts had approached him, and that a transfer to the Emirates ‘would be a dream’.

And it now seems that Arsene Wenger is ready to go all out to sign the player, with club officials believed to be locked in negotiations with Rubin to try and thrash out a move.

A quick, skilful and agile striker, Azmoun only moved to Europe in 2013 from Iranian Pro League outfit Sepahan Isfahan.

Omid Namazi Named Assistant Coach for the U.S. Women’s National Team

CHICAGO (March 26, 2014) – U.S. Women’s National Team head coach Tom Sermanni has named Omid Namazi as a full-time assistant coach to his staff.

“Omid brings significant experience in women’s and men’s soccer, at both club level and internationally,” said Sermanni. “He brings a fresh perspective but with a high degree of knowledge on the players and the women’s game. We’re on the same page philosophically on how we want the team to play and he’ll be a valuable asset to our program moving forward.”

Namazi, who holds a U.S. Soccer “A” coaching license, comes to the WNT from his position as an assistant coach for the Iran Men’s National Team.

Namazi served as an assistant coach for Iran from 2011-2014 and helped the team qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil by winning Group A in the Asian Qualifying Tournament ahead of the Korea Republic. Namazi was coaching in Iran as an assistant for Premier League club Steel Azin when he was tabbed to join the U.S. Women’s National Team staff.

Namazi has had an long coaching career in both men’s and women’s soccer, and was head coach of the San Diego Spirit of the Women’s United Soccer Association (WUSA) in 2003, leading the team to its first and only playoff berth, as well as the Chicago Red Stars in Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS), taking over the team mid-season in early June of 2010 after the former head coach was let go.

“It’s a new challenge and an exciting one,” said Namazi. “It’s a great time for women’s soccer in the United States with the NWSL starting its second season, our Youth National Teams getting more and more support from U.S. Soccer and with the 2015 Women’s World Cup on the horizon. I’m sincerely enjoying working with some of the best players in the world and helping work to bring the team to an even higher level.”

After a successful college career at West Virginia, Namazi played 18 years of professional soccer for various indoor and outdoor clubs and was the MISL Defender of the Year for the Philadelphia KiXX in 2001. Namazi turned professional in 1988 with the Washington Diplomats of the American Soccer League.

Namazi, who has a bachelor’s degree in exercise philosophy from WVU, played for the U.S. National Futsal Team in 2002-2003, earning five caps while scoring two goals. He resides in Sewell, N.J. with his wife and two young sons.

[divider]

 

Former Iran assistant Namazi joins Sermanni’s staff

by Paul Kennedy, March 26th, 2014

Iranian-American Omid Namazi, who recently left Iran’s World Cup staff in part because he had not been paid in five months, has joined U.S. women’s national team head coach Tom Sermanni’s staff as a full-time assistant coach.

Namazi, who U.S. pro career included stints at 15 indoor and outdoor clubs, has coached two women’s pro teams: the San Diego Spirit of the Women’s United Soccer Association in 2003 and Chicago Red Stars in Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) in 2010.

“It’s a new challenge and an exciting one,” said Namazi. “It’s a great time for women’s soccer in the United States with the NWSL starting its second season, our youth national teams getting more and more support from U.S. Soccer and with the 2015 Women’s World Cup on the horizon. I’m sincerely enjoying working with some of the best players in the world and helping work to bring the team to an even higher level.”

The Utah-born Namazi was coaching Steel Azin in Iran when he joined Carlos Queiroz’s coaching staff. Another American, Dan Gaspar, was also part of the staff that led Iran to the group title in Asian qualifying for the 2014 World Cup. Gaspar remains with the squad that has struggled to get funding because of the impact of international sanctions, but Namazi told the New York Times he had not been paid in five months.

Namazi’s one game in MLS came in 1996 for the MetroStars when Queiroz was their coach.