In one of the most critical periods of Iranian football approaching a crisis situation, a Haidar Baharvand is suddenly pushed or pressed or appointed as the Acting President of Iran’s Football Federation following the supposed resignation of Mehdi Taj due to cardiac arrest.

 The 59 years old Taj was taken ill in Turkey while negotiating with the wantaway Belgian coach Marc Wilmots. On his return home, he was hospitalized in Tehran for checkups and possible coronary surgery. None of these were verified by Taj himself and/or direct family members. More significantly, Taj has not publically announced his resignation.

Yet, a couple of days after Taj was hospitalized, a replacement was appointed. The Irony or more like the mockery of all this is that the FFIRI executive committee met and removed without anyone seeing or reading the Resignation Letter of Mehdi Taj! As such, such an appointment raises many legal and ethical questions but most importantly, it suspiciously smells fishy and a part of a plot.

The urgency of removing Taj, by a hopeless and ineffectual federation, in itself was enough to trigger rumors and conspiracy theorists. The idea is that Mehdi Taj was pushed aside by the government following the poor results of Team Melli and blamed for appointing Marc Wilmots who is seen as a failure, especially since the Belgian did not last more than 6 months in his last job before being fired by Ivory Coast.

There were also many accusations of financial irregularities since Taj refused to disclose the terms of the contract with the Belgian but most importantly the value. The matter has been taken by Majlis whose members urged the government to investigate.

It is no secret that the powers to be wanted the duo Kaffashian and Taj out of the system for a long time. They managed to get rid of the former but the latter was more difficult to dislodge as he threatened to use FIFA as a defense mechanism to thwart all attempts to unlawfully remove him. Some even say that Taj has actually complained to FIFA in secret.

But first, who is Bahravand?

The Resume of the man who was and still is the head of the Football League committee makes depressing reading. His involvement with football started as a Head Coach of Aflak and Khyber Khoramabad, fifth or sixth tier club, then following not so successful career in coaching he tried his luck with management. He was the Football Director of Lorestan Province then became the Board Chairman of Lorestan and from then became the Board Member of the Iranian Football Federation FFIRI. His highest-profile appointment was the President of the Iranian Football League Organization & Vice President of the FFIRI.

Not exactly a CV of a career professional in football, but then again strangers things have happened in Iran’s football.

Not that Taj was an excellent and skilled manager or will be missed in Iran’s football but that should not diminish the fact that the perennial government involvement has resulted in the appointment of series of unprofessional, poorly qualified and incompetent personnel. The selection criteria have hardly been competence, suitability, and experience.

As such, Iran football has and will suffer as long as these interferences continue.

No country in the world one sees the portrait and images of the Minster of Sports of a country in the media as much as Iran. Most football fans in the world would have no clue who their Minister of Sport is if there was one, but in Iran, this man’s pictures are more frequently published than the likes of Azmoun, Jahanbakhsh or other football heroes. Simply the man pokes his nose in every football issue and becomes a newsmaker.

But behind the curtains, the Minster wants everyone to know that his approvals are vital for every matter relating to football from appointing middle to senior managers in clubs to the appointment of members of the board in FFIRI and the Team Melli coaches too.

In the shambolic management of Iran’s football that is being increasingly exposed by the media and the fans too, a simple protocol like selection or more like the appointment of a new head of the organization can be so messy and error-prone it borders comedy. An emergency meeting is held to replace the President, while there is no documented confirmation or evidence of such resignation. They have taken the decision on hearsay!!

And then, this decision that is taken by the Federations’ board is immediately conveyed to the Minister of Sport for his approval!! A member of the Board has the audacity to admit this fact to a news agency too!

Now…..who can deny that the government is running Football in Iran?