After the failure of the Omid team to make it to the last 16 teams of Asia, let alone qualify for the Olympic games, the criticism intensified against the whole system and how football is becoming a mockery in Iran,

Piruz Ghorbani, a former Team Melli, Estghal player and current coach is one of the outspoken persons who had some harsh words. “Nobody knows what pecking order was Enayati when it came to the selection of the head coach for Omid. The federation approached at least 20 national coaches, and none of them accepted the job for one reason or another but generally, it is believed that it is a no-win situation mission and one that is doomed to fail. Enayati accepted because it is better than nothing!”

“Not even in another 150 years, we will qualify for the Olympics under this mentality and management. We still do not know whether the responsibility of the Omid team lies with the National Olympic Committee (NOC) or the Football Federation (FFIRI).”

About the elimination of the Omid national team from the Asian U23 qualifiers, Ghorbani said “No one agreed to become the coach of the Omid team for reasons. It was evident that this team would not qualify. Of course, let us not forget that the coaching staff of the Omid team performed quite poorly against Uzbekistan yesterday and could not fulfill the expectations of the fans.”

We should have been eliminated.

He commented on the fact that the management staff of the Omid team did not know the rules of the games and qualification process: “These issues are not new in Iranian football and I am sure it will happen again. In general, I must say that despite some efforts, it was not enough for the Omid team and inherently, we should have been eliminated. We won’t go to the Olympics in 150 years with such management and system.”

Kenya and Angola play against Iran when there is no one else to play against.

He continued: “Iran has the best potential at the Omid and senior team levels. We can’t criticize Ghalenoei for the matches against weak teams, because it seems that they have to fill FIFA Day out of necessity. We have to accept that Angola and Kenya play with Iran whenever they have no one else to play against. If Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and Australia play against Iran, we would be holding a quality match and a challenging experience based on the levels of the opposition. Such teams are testing for us and demand excellence from our players”

We are only fooling ourselves,

The former Esteghlal player said: “Football is not an individual sport that we can perform on our own. We must have long-term planning. That does not exist here and it has always been our downfall. What plan did we have for the Omid national team to expect success now? Why are you raising the level of expectation from TeamMelli now? The team I coach (Gachasaran Oil and Gas in the First division) could have beaten Angola. Bulgaria is the fourth-tier team in Europe. Watch the countries around us and their level of preparation; They attract top talents such as Ronaldo to improve their league and players’ standards. It may seem crazy to do such things, but when we see the grass of the Azadi Stadium, we feel embarrassed and sorry for Iran’s football. We are making fun of ourselves with these conditions.”

Ghorbani said: “If we speak out, it is out of affection for this land and dignity. We do hope that the senior national team will achieve something in the Asian Cup.”