Assistant Minster of Youth and Sport, AbdolHamid Ahmadi accused the football federation of failing to act as it is mandated and divert its weakness and shortcomings on others.

In a statement to ISNA , the Assistant Minister who was on his way to Yazd said “The ministry of Sport has no role in the contract negotiations between the sport federations and their coaches. We have highlighted this so many times. Those who claim that the Ministry is interfering in the negotiations or influences the outcome of FFIRI and Queiroz, contract talk,  are simply covering up the real culprit. It is the feeble football federation that has left Iran’s National Team (Team Melli) without a program and without a coach. We do not pay the coach wages, the federations does.”

“It is not our business to lay conditions on any federation, the legislations and the role of the ministry is quite clear. We are a supervisory body and will provide consultation and assistance to any of our national sport federations.”

Mr. Ahmadi reserved his sharpest criticism for the Iranian media and accuses it of being the instigators of a lot of side issues in sport by their prejudiced reporting influencing people into hostilities.

“Instead of promoting sport as a healthy lifestyle and practice, the media here continuously create controversy by picking news items that involves a conflict between one party versus another. By doing that, the tension between the two quarreling sides increases and people start taking sides. Most of these quarrels or differences have nothing to do with sport but a lot is generated due to personal conflicts and issues.”