Team Melli started the 18th edition of the AFC Asian Cup 2023 with a convincing win against what was thought to be a tricky fixture versus the resolute Palestine. The 4-1 scoreline could have been even better if the forwards finished their chances much better style.

Although Ghalenoei’s initial lineup surprised quite a few observers, it turned out to be quite a revelation. The team played well, their intricate passing was a mark of an organized team and the individual skills added a flavor to the overall performance. Ansarifard and Ghayedi, both bench players in the squad, started and scored goals. Sadegh Moharrami, another player who is not on top of the coach’s list as a starter, played a superb match both in defensive and offensive roles.

It was an excellent performance by the team, however, as always, there were the odd concerns. Saman Ghoddos was the maestro of the team. He is becoming increasingly a key player and his importance to the team is such that his absence will negatively affect the performance. A replacement player at his level cannot be found, as no other playmaker can match Saman’s ability. The closest is perhaps Ali Gholizadeh.

On the side of the midfield role, the defensive or holding midfielder is Saeid Ezzatollahi, a player who has failed to impress for many seasons. The only positive aspect about this player is his physique and work rate. His passing, positional awareness, and individual skills including dribbling are quite suspect. Today, he gifted Palestine with an assist while it was much easier for him, a tall player, to clear the ball instead of sending it sideways. That move was difficult to digest, thankfully Team Melli was 3 goals up by that time. Rouzbeh Cheshmi, is a much better choice for a holding midfielder, with Omid Ebrahimi, even at 37, supplementing that role.

The other concern is Mehdi Taremi. There is no doubt about the quality of the Porto striker and his importance to Team Melli. He has proven time and again that he is a prolific striker who can compete at the highest levels of international football. Yet, there is a marked weakness. Taremi needs ten chances to score one goal. His rate of conversion is quite poor. He really should have finished at least two chances to score today.

On a positive note, the match against Palestine, showed the rest of the teams in the AFC Asian Cup 2023, that any team that intends to lift the trophy, it has to go through Iran.

1. Ali Beiranvand: Confident and reliable as always. He could not be faulted much on the goal conceded, as the defense should have covered better. otherwise, he was not really tested [7.3]

3 Ehsan Hajisafi: There is a trace of some pace and skill loss and perhaps hesitancy in some duels, but he stood well against the attacks and was firm. Did not venture forward much. [7.2]

4 Shoja’a Khalilzadeh: A quality performance at both ends of the field. His goal was the icing on the cake as he finished like a seasoned striker. Unfortunately, he was substituted late in the first half after clashing against a Palestinian forward while clearing the ball. [8.0]

13 Hossein Kanani: Nothing major to fault in his performance except for the early yellow card when an opposition player dribbled him forcing him to commit a foul. [6.7]

2 Sadegh Moharrami : A brilliant performance by the right back, perhaps one of the best in a Team Melli jersey. Confident, skillful, pace, and timely tackles highlighted his performance. This was quite assuring for Ghalenoei. [8.0]

6 Saeid Ezatolahi: continues to be a disappointment in Team Melli jersey. His gift to the Palestine forward that resulted in the goal, slow thinking, and wrong or incompleted passes against a modest team will be more than a concern comes the stronger matches. [6.2]

18 Mehdi Ghayedi: A delightful performance from the little winger. He was a menace to the Palestinina defense and his dribbling ability is an asset to the team. He was a good selection by Ghalenoei to start the game. His marvelous goal from Jahanbakhsh’s assist speaks volumes about his ability to finish [8.1]

10 Karim Ansarifard: A Drem start for the seasoned Team Melli forward. Passing a century of games for Iran, Ansarifard is still going strong. His moves show how much has the European experience improved his performance. Excellent finish for the opening goal. [7.8]

9 Mehdi Taremi: It was not to be his day as Taremi ended the match empty-handed, with no goals or assists. There is so much expectation from the fans that an average performance by Mehdi is considered a bad performance and disappointing. He missed many chances that a striker of his caliber should finish in the net. Saying that his presence in the team is still effective and important. [7.2]

14 Saman Ghoddos: The MVP of the match. Ghoddos is becoming a key squad player. His vision, passing accuracy, dead balls, and energy are outstanding. Two assists for the day and a near-perfect performance. [8.9]

7 Ali Jahanbakhsh: A much better performance from him and a big improvement from previous outings. Jahanbakhsh provided a quality assist to Ghaedi but he was also active throughout the match. He was winning balls and tackling well. Hardly put a foot wrong even while being constantly harrassed and fouled by a rough Palestinian defense. [8.0]

SUBSTITUTES

19 Majid Hosseini: A fine replacement for Khalilzadeh late in the first half. He hardly had any difficulty containing the Palestinians’ attacks and combined well with Kanani in the center of defense. An assuring figure if Khalilzadeh could not make the next match. [7.5]

21 Mohammad Mohebi: Replaced Ghayedi but failed to replicate the performance of his hometown teammate in the second half. Sometimes he portrays a frustrating figure especially if he does not get the proper pass. Needs to address such frustrations on the field. [6.5]

20 Sardar Azmoun: Replaced Ansarifard in the second half and his impact was instantaneous. Scored from short range to make the score 4-1 for Iran. Despite some more chances between him and Taremi, the pair could not add to the scoreline, and the communication between them failed to click. Still, his presence alone up front is an asset to the team [7.8]

23 Ramin Rezaeian: not rated due to short time on the pitch
8 Omid Ebrahimi: not rated due to short time on the pitch