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.”

Iran’s Omid football team lost in a decisive match against Uzbekistan 1-0 on Tuesday. By this final group match, the chance to lead Group H in the first round of the Olympic qualifiers was also lost and with it the opportunity to directly qualify for the second round of this competition.

Among the best second-placed teams, and because of more yellow cards than Malaysia, Iran’s U23 team lost the chance to be amongst the 4 best second places of the groups. The Asian qualifiers were carried out in 11 groups at the first stage of the competition, with the top team from each group directly qualifying for the final stages, and the top four teams of the second stage were also added to this group to join the 16 nations final stage of the Olympic selection in Qatar.

Reza Enayati’s team won against Hong Kong and Afghanistan in the first stage of the Olympic qualifiers and lost the match against Uzbekistan, in the end, without counting the winning points against the last team of the group, Hong Kong, they were placed second in their group with 3 points with goal difference of +3. Iran’s Omid football team added to the misery and failures extending it to 52 years after half a century without qualifying for the Olympics.

Before the match against Uzbekistan, the Omid team’s performance and results in both matches were worrying for the observers. With a highly inexperienced coach, in Enayati, the omen was not too good for Iran against a powerful and organized team in Uzbekistan. But the irony is that the Iran Omid team was knocked out because of negative disciplinary points. It is a sad reflection on Iranian football as the players, with some very good skills and individual talent, lack discipline and are hardly coached in professional behavior and the importance of discipline. The immature behavior and unnecessary indiscipline have cost Iran the chance of making it to the Olympics, although in truth, even if they qualified for the next round, the chances of making the Olympics were remote.

Team Melli played the African team Angola in Azadi and managed a comfortable win in Azadi Stadium. The first half ended 3-0 with goals from Mehdi Taremi (8th & 16th minutes) and Sadegh Moharrami (21st minute). In the second half, Shahriyar Moghanlou added a late goal (87th minute) to make it 4-0.

The first half was a jolly ride for Iran as there was total control of the match played at a comfortable pace that suited Ghalenoei’s men. The early goal from a nice assist by Torabi opened the scoring for Taremi. Soon, Iran made it 2-0 this time Milad Mohammadi providing the pass to the far corner, with advancing right back Moharrami sliding the ball into the net. Taremi scored his second with another Torabi assist.

In the second half, while Taremi was on a hat-trick, Ghalenoei pulled him out and the Porto forward did not seem very pleased with that. With a few substitutes, this half Team Melli’s performance deteriorated and only a late goal made the score line respectable.

Angola was hardly a team that could have bothered Iran in the match. It is hoped that the next match against Jordan, would at least make the team work harder and be better prepared.

The race to qualify for the AFC U23 Asian Cup™ Qatar 2024 will reach its finishing line on Tuesday. The 11 group winners and four best second-placed sides will join Qatar in the April 15-May 3, 2024 Finals.

Uzbekistan holds the edge, thanks to their superior goal tally but Iran will be up for the challenge.

That sets the stage for a thriller, with both 2018 champions Uzbekistan and Iran having impressed with their attacking football. 

The match will be a serious challenge for head coach Reza Enyati who has still to convince the critics of his value for the teams. Despite some good individual players like Salmani, Sayyadmanish, Hezbavi , Hosseinnejad, and Touranian , to name a few, the overall teamwork has not been as expected. As usual, discipline is an issue too.

Failure to win the match will put Iran U23 in a difficult situation to qualify as the rest of the 11 groups have several teams with at least 6 points. However, the handsome goal difference could very well help Iran U23 to qualify as second in case of defeat.

Group E

Hassan Rowshan, in an interview with Mehr’s sports reporter, decried the status of Team Melli’s readiness which is busy preparing for the upcoming AFC Asian Cup in Qatar.

Team Melli defeated Bulgaria 1-0 away and will be playing in Azadi against Angola on Tuesday as part of these preparations. Hassan Rowshan a star in his own right, who also played and scored Iran’s goal in its first qualifying to the FIFA World Cup 1978, indicated that he is not so optimistic about the chance of Iran Lifting the trophy that eluded it since 1976, which Rowshan lifted with his teammates.

“Becoming the champions of Asia has become elusive,” Roswhan said: “Team Melli is actively involved in training for the Asian Cup but without playing against powerful teams in order to test all its lines and mitigate the shortfalls. We Have not won the Asian Cup for over 4 decades. Asia has become an unattainable dream. We should not expect success from this team.”

He continued “We should not expect success from the national team either. The Japanese national team plays against Germany, which is one of the great football teams in the world, and we are satisfied playing against the 2nd tier European team, Bulgaria, which cannot be a good benchmark for our national team.”

“We will not go far with such standard of preparations,” the football veteran stated: “If we are looking for a championship, we will not go anywhere with these poor preparations. It is factual that we have some excellent players who are known in the world of football, but football is a team game that requires teamwork not depending on individual players. High standards require tactical coordination and collaboration, unity, and understanding of each other. You cannot count on being successful based on individual performance.

Deceptive wins

“The games against Bulgaria and Angola and teams like those do not determine the caliber of the national team, and winning in these games will deceive us and raise expectations from Team Melli. We should remain longing for the Asian Title.

In response to the question, “What solution will make the national team successful?”, the Iranian football veteran said: “All teams make the best use of FIFA Day. Many camps, and games with teams can expose the weaknesses of our team so that the technical staff can deal with them, and work around them to mitigate failures. Our competitors started working years before the championship started, In Iran, it is always last minute rush. This is the premiere continental championship and lifting the trophy of the AFC Asian Cup is the demand of all the fans. Teams such as South Korea, Qatar, Japan, and Saudi Arabia are all contenders for the title. and with the financial resources they have, they choose to play with the best teams in the world, but because we don’t have their ability and deep pocket we have to contend playing with 2nd and 3rd-grade teams, so we shouldn’t expect success with such level of preparations, and I still think we would miss the chance of becoming champions in Asia.

Esteghlal in crises

Hassan Rowshan then turned to the situation and heavily criticized the club for its poor performance on and off the field saying that the current management structure, including the coaching staff, has marginalized Esteghlal.

He noted: “Esteghlal needs a capable manager, a manager who can take ownership of all the problems facing the team whether it is financial or technical. Esteghlal in this critical situation. Esteghlal needs a manager who talks less and gives fewer interviews while doing all the work on the field.

This football veteran noted: that Esteghlal’s weak and ineffective managers did not solve the financial problems, did not pay the demands of the players, and did not manage to attract the quality coaching staff. So it is useless for them to stay in this position and they should be replaced by a worthy manager, a manager who has a good interaction with the coaching staff and players, who is all focused on the success of Esteghlal.

“How do you evaluate the first four weeks of the league?”, Rowshan was asked “We must be frank and honest, and first look at what facilities do we have. If we want a quality league, the absolute basic minimum is a decent field with proper lawn standards. Unfortunately, even the grass field of Azadi Stadium is of poor quality and the teams are protesting. Let’s understand the depth of the disaster Rowshan continued: When the head coach of Persepolis says in a press conference that we don’t like to play in Azadi because of the bad quality of the grass, we must understand the depth of the disaster. Our football has talented young players who can secure the future of Iranian football, but with such facilities, it can not attract young footballers. We have to have proper infrastructure so that our football can grow, otherwise, we will play alone as always.

“We don’t want beautiful football from the Iranian league, Hassan Rowshan pointed out in the end: “Our football is result-oriented, teams and managers are only looking for points and they don’t care about the beauty and the quality of football. It has been like that for decades. The first week of the league was full of goals, and in the following weeks, the number of goals decreased and the teams are looking to collect points, so we should not expect beautiful and spectator-friendly games.”

Hassan Rowshan, has played in the FIFA World Cup 1978, and Olympic Games 1976 and lifted the AFC Asian Cup trophy with Iran in 1976, the last time Iran won the trophy and before the Islamic Revolution. He has played 38 times for Iran scoring 12 goals

Following the injuries of Alireza Biranvand and Ramin Rezaian, in the match against Bulgaria, the two players were given time off and referred to the medical staff of the national team for treatment and recovery.

Accordingly, the coaching staff of Team Melli invited Hossein Pourhamidi, Tractor Tabriz goalkeeper and Saleh Hardani, Esteghlal’s defender, to the national team camp to complete the list of players for the friendly match against Angola.

Both players have already appeared for Team Melli with Pourhamidi making his debut recently in the CAFA Nations cup.

These two players will be joining the squad tomorrow (Saturday). Iran will host Angola in its second friendly match on Tuesday September 12th.