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27/11/2022

Queiroz tells Klinsmann to resign and visit Iran camp after BBC comments

German said fouls and confronting officials was ‘in their culture’

Carlos Queiroz has demanded Jürgen Klinsmann resign from his role on Fifa’s technical study group after calling his comments about the Iran team “a disgrace to football”.

After Friday’s 2-0 win over Wales, the BBC presenter Gabby Logan talked about Iran’s “gamesmanship” and said they just stayed on the right side of the law before handing over to Klinsmann. “Yes, that’s their culture,” he said. “Their way of doing it, and that is why Carlos Queiroz fits really well [with] the Iranian national team.”

Queiroz demands that former striker resigns from Fifa role

The former Germany international added: “[Queiroz] struggled in South America, he failed to qualify with Colombia, and then he failed with Egypt to qualify, and then he went back and guided Iran, who he worked already with for a long, long time. So this is not by coincidence, this is done on purpose.

“This is just part of their culture and how they play, then they work the referee, you saw the bench always jumping up, working the fourth official and the linesman, constantly in their ears, constantly in your face. Kieffer Moore will probably tell you more after the game about little incidents that we didn’t see.”

On Saturday evening Queiroz was moved to respond to Klinsmann in a series of tweets in which it was clear the Iran manager was furious. “No matter how much I can respect what you did inside the pitch, those remarks about Iran Culture, Iran National Team, and my Players are a disgrace to football,” he said.

“Nobody can hurt our integrity if it is not at our level, of course. Even saying so, we would like to invite you as our guest, to come to our national team camp, socialize with Iran players and learn from them about the country, the people of Iran, the poets and art, the algebra, and all the millennial Persian culture. And also listen from our players how much they love and respect football.”

27/11/2022

What are the possibilities for Team Melli qualification?

On Day Two of the Group stages in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. Team Melli valiantly defeated Wales 2-0 to earn a precious and vital victory after a bitter opening-day defeat to England. The goalless draw in the other group match between USA and England gave Iran some breathing space and a very good chance to qualify from the group for the first time in its history.

In this edition of the FIFA World Cup that has turned into a political battlefield, the two nations that have received a barrage of criticism and attack are the host nation Qatar and Iran. The reasons are all politically and at times racially motivated. Iran’s Team Melli is perhaps the worst affected of the two side nations and has been the subject of much criticism, anti-team slogans, accusations of representing a tyrannical regime, and promoting the oppressors of the people. On the other hand, there are groups who support Team Melli without indulging in politics. p

The fact is that Team Melli players are in a predicament and have emotional stress. They are between a rock and a hard place. Those who accuse them of being government agents just because they wear the Jersey of a country that is totally controlled, physically and spiritually by radical and religious clans., alas ignore the duty of any athlete and or footballer to represent the country to the best of his ability to bring joy and pride to the people. Granted, the politicians and the opperssors will manipulate these victories and credit themselves for it.

Victory for Team Melli will be celebrated by the regime and forms the biggest propaganda. But the real winners will be the people of Iran.

The players, or some of them at least, dedicate the victory of Team Melli to the oppressed people of Iran and remind us all that they are playing for the people of the country.

so, with that in mind, Team Melli is looking forward to the vital, knock-out-like match against the USA. The ultimate, political and sporting match.

At this time all four teams in this group have a chance to advance. to the next Knockout round (Round 16). In the meantime, the undoubted qualification solution would be for Team Melli to defeat the Americans on Tuesday. which is easier said than done as it would be a difficult task. However, a draw could also suffice depending on the other result between Wales and England.

Iran’s win will give it 6 points, and regardless of the other result, it is assured of qualification.

A loss will be the end of the road for Team Melli and with it the end of the dream. The USA will have 5 points and will qualify. England already has 4 and even if it loses against Wales , it will be a case of head-to-head and goal difference.

How will Iran become the leader?

Scenarios.

Iran vs USA – Win for Iran
England vs Wales – Draw

If Team Melli can defeat the USA and the match between England and Wales ends in a draw, Iran will have 6 points and will qualify as top of the group. England will qualify as well as the second stage with 5 points.

Iran vs USA – Draw
England vs Wales – Draw

Team Melli’s draw against the USA and England’s draws against Wales means Iran will end up with 4 points, while England will have 5. Both Teams qualify with England as the group leader

Iran vs USA – Draw
England vs Wales – Wales win

Team Melli’s draw against the USA and Wales beating England means three teams on four points. The USA is eliminated with 3 points. With head-to-head, disciplinary records, and goals difference, Iran stands to lose out and Wales and England qualify.

So, it is clear that Team Melli has to go for a win against the USA. That requires Queiroz to change his mindset and be brave enough to attack and abandon his park-the-bus mentality. Something similar to the game plan against Wales will most probably be enough to defeat the Americans who have several vulnerabilities.

27/11/2022

Pulisic: US still has a ‘lot of work left to do’ to make World Cup’s last 16

espn.com

AL KHOR, Qatar — United States midfielder Christian Pulisic said he hoped his side’s performance in a 0-0 draw with Group B favorites England “made a lot of people proud” back in the US, but also acknowledged that he and his teammates have “got a lot of work left to do.”

The result leaves the US in third place in Group B, two points behind leaders England and a point behind Iran, who defeated Wales 2-0 earlier on Friday. The US faces Iran in its group stage finale on Tuesday.

It was a game where England had more possessions, but the US created the better chances, with Pulisic rattling the bar with a shot in the first half. England did put the Americans under pressure at times in the second half, but the US defense, ably marshaled by Tim Ream, held firm.

“A draw’s not the worst thing, but I felt like there were stretches of where we showed confidence and had a lot of the play, and created chances, and even could have won the game” Pulisic said.

“But all in all, I thought we managed it quite well.”

The game had been hyped as an opportunity for the US to show it could go toe-to-toe with one of the game’s heavyweights. Pulisic feels the US did that to a degree, but he knows reaching the knockout rounds will do even more to win over new fans.

“Everyone back home watching, I hope we made a lot of people proud,” he said. “But the job isn’t even close to done, so we’ve got a lot of work left to do.”

US manager Gregg Berhalter echoed many of Pulisic’s sentiments, saying his side delivered a “disciplined performance.”

The US now goes into its final group game with Iran knowing it needs a win to advance to the World Cup knockout stages for the fifth time since 1994.

“The final product still could be better… I’m overall pleased with the performance of the group, most importantly the belief of this group because that never wavered,” Berhalter said.

“We played with a ton of spirit but we’re going to have to be up for it [against Iran]. We want a chance to advance… We know it’s going to be a difficult game, and I’m looking forward to the opportunity.”

Of concern for the US is that it is still struggling to make the most of its chances, with Weston McKennie missing a wide-open opportunity in the first half.

Berhalter said he was happy with the positions his team got into, but noted, “It’s hard to score goals.”

Information from Reuters was used in this report.

26/11/2022

Wales coach admits his team ‘weren’t in the game at all’ after disappointing Iran loss

Rob Page struggled to contain his annoyance after saying too many Wales players endured off-days in the defeat by Iran that left their chances of progressing to the last 16 of their first World Cup for 64 years hanging by a thread.

Iran had a first-half goal disallowed and twice hit the woodwork before scoring twice in second-half stoppage time to earn victory. Wales, who salvaged a late draw against the USA on Monday, again struggled to stamp their authority and had Wayne Hennessey sent off on 86 minutes after he inadvertently wiped out the Iran striker Mehdi Taremi when attempting to clear the ball.

Page said he would lift his players, many of whom crashed to the floor at full time, before Tuesday’s final Group B match against England. “We can’t sit and cry about it,” the manager said. “We want to give our supporters something to cheer about. They have shown massive commitment to come over [to Qatar] and it really disappoints me that we’ve given them that. We’ll bounce back. We’ll pick them up and go again.”

Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey were among the Wales players who seemed to wilt in the intense afternoon heat before Iran prospered. “We weren’t in the game at all,” Page said. “Even in the first half, before the sending-off … you can carry one or two players if there are off-days but, when the majority of the team are not quite at it, there is only going to be one outcome, unfortunately. It [qualifying] is out of our hands now.”

Hennessey was initially booked for clattering Taremi as the striker latched on to a through ball before a VAR review led to his caution being upgraded. Page acknowledged his side were second-best.

“Before the sending-off I wasn’t happy with the performance,” he said. “They hit the post twice, they had a goal ruled out for offside, which was marginal. We just couldn’t get going in the game and that disappoints me the most. We fell well below the standards that over recent months have given us the success to qualify for the World Cup … when you do that in top competitions you get punished.”

Carlos Queiroz, Iran’s head coach, said he was delighted with the way his players responded to their 6-2 thrashing by England. Queiroz dedicated the victory to Iran’s fans, many of whom inside the stadium jeered his players singing the national anthem after they had remained silent during Monday’s anthem.

“It was very emotional but special because we rebounded from a difficult situation,” Queiroz said. “Nobody likes to lose and, when you lose with those numbers, it is always a tough job. We went back to our roots. I think we played brilliantly. We wanted to give this gift to Iran fans. This game was a gift to the fans from the north, south, east, west – it’s a gift to all of them.”Rob Page struggled to contain his annoyance after saying too many Wales players endured off-days in the defeat by Iran that left their chances of progressing to the last 16 of their first World Cup for 64 years hanging by a thread.

26/11/202205/02/2024

Iran vs Wales: Player Ratings

The players rating against Wales in which Team Melli achieved a convincing win 2-0 scored by the two unlikeliest players.

Rouzbeh Cheshmi : Substituted in with 12 minutes remaining of the match. His major contribution was the goal he scored from about 30 meters in added time. Not only it gave Iran a deserved lead but boosted the morale so effectively that the second came soon after his goal. 8.0
Mehdi Taremi: He was overshadowed by Sardar Azmoun, yet his moves disturbed the Welsh defense. Slow in transition and missed a few good opportunities to create possession for his teammates. Provided the assist for the second goal to Rezaeian 7.60
Sardar Azmoun : His presense was immensly felt in the team. Always willing to run and tackle while doing defensive. duties Provided the pass to Gholozadeh to score the disallowed goal after VAR review. Hit the post too. His contribution was helpful to the team but the injury was worrying. 8.10
Ali Karimi: Came in as a late sub without contributing much in the few minutes.6.20
Mehdi Torabi : As a sub, he had limited time on the field but a good attempt to open the scoring deserves a good rating. 7.3
Karim Ansarifard: A sub for Azmoun with limited time and contribution to the game 6.6
Ali Gholizadeh : Was one o the better player on the field. He was slightly offside when he received Azmoun’s ball to score. His dribbling and ball control was a breath of fresh air. 7.95
Ramin Rezaeian: Started the match badly with some wayward crossing that irritated the forwards. Slowly he came on well and started gelling with the rest. Defensive work. His delightful dink to score the second was all class. Got himself booked unnecessarily for useless protesting 7.85
Alireza Jahanbakhsh: A bench player for this match who came in with 12 minutes to play. Not only he had no effective contribution, but he also got another yellow card and is hence suspended for the next match against the USA. 6.00
Ehsan Hajisafi: Solid defensively and hardly put a foot wrong. It seems that he is not a 90 minutes player and more but for the time he was on the field, he was reliable and did a good job 7.80
Saeid Ezatolahi: A much better performance than the last match yet still missing some vital skills in his play. Defensive work from the midfield was fine when combining well with other players 7.45
Majid Hosseini: More confident and less error-prone. He combined with Pouralganji to create a solid wall in front of Hosseini preventing the Welsh penetration from the heat of the defense. 7.70
Ahamad Noorollahi: Lacks the speed and agility for fast transitions however, he played his role well and prevented the Welsh from taking hold of the midfield areas. 7.70
Hossein Hosseini: Was not really threatened by the Welsh player thanks to a solid defense. His Aerial work was fine and had no problem catching most of the crosses aimed toward his goal. Kept a clean sheet. 7.78
Milad Mohammadi: Had a calm day and did not need to exert lots of pressure on defensive duties. His incursion into the Welsh half on the wing was limited. 7.78
Morteza Pouraliganji : Did a fine job in combination with Majid Hosseini despite the lack of playing together for many years. 7.75
Carlos Queiroz: Must be credited for the changes he made in the starting lineup including playing with two center forwards, Taremi and Azmoun. On the other hand, there was no sign of a definitive game plan for ball distribution from the midfielders as he opted for route one football, balls directly sent from the back directly to the two forwards. Although some of the midfield players were capable of distributing the ball more efficiently. Had no solution for the slow transition from defense to attack and for the lack of pace. A player such as Torabi would have been ideal for that purpose. 7.8

25/11/2022

Iran grab stoppage-time goals to claim stunning win over 10-man Wales

espn.com

Iran scored two goals in stoppage time to claim a stunning 2-0 victory over 10-man Wales at the World Cup on Friday.

Roozbeh Cheshmi and Ramin Rezaeian scored in the 98th minute and 101th minute respectively to hand Carlos Queiroz’s Iran a real chance of qualifying for their first World Cup knockout stages, leaving Wales with it all to do to make the next round.

Rob Page’s Wales struggled to find any rhythm throughout the game and they faced an uphill task when Wayne Hennessey was sent off late on, before Iran made them pay. Iran have three points after two games ahead of their clash against United States next week, while Wales remain on one point.

England will effectively qualify from Group B with a draw against the U.S. later on Friday, and will effectively win the group if they beat Gregg Berhalter’s men.

“We are gutted, there is no other way to say it,” Wales captain Gareth Bale told the BBC after the match. “We fought until the last second and we need to go again.

“We are all gutted but we have to pick ourselves up straight away. It is going to be difficult for us for sure. We will have to see.”

There were off-field incidents before the game as Iranian pro-government fans harassed anti-government supporters outside the stadium. In contrast to their stance against England, the Iranian players decided to sing the national anthem amid loud jeering from the Iran fans in the ground.

Both teams started the game well and Kieffer Moore had the first big chance after 12 minutes when his close-range header was saved by Iran goalkeeper Hossein Hosseini.

Less than five minutes later, Iran had the ball in the back of the net through Ali Gholizadeh but VAR ruled out the effort for offside. The match ended goalless at half time, which has now happened in the last five matches at the World Cup.

Iran, who lost 6-2 to England in their opening match, were the better side after the break and struck the woodwork twice in a matter of seconds. Sardar Azmoun was put through on goal but his effort hit the post. The ball then fell to Gholizadeh and his curling shot struck the other post before Hennessey stopped Azmoun’s rebound.

Hennessey was called into action once again after 73 minutes as he produced an excellent save to deny Saeid Ezatolahi.

Iran sparked scenes of jubilation with their goal in the 98th minute when Cheshmi struck a stunning strike from the edge of the box. Rezaeian then wrapped up the points after a quick counterattack to clip the ball over substitute goalkeeper Danny Ward.

“This is just the beginning, but we need to finish the job,” Iran head coach Quieroz told the BBC. A wonderful day for us. All respect to my players, today showed they love to play football.

“Our players deserve to be supported. We want to play for the fans.”

Wales 0-2 Iran

VAR overturn: Red card for Hennessey

What happened: In the 84th minute, Mehdi Taremi chased a long ball through the centre and Wales goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey came rushing out of his area and crashed into the Iran forward. Referee Mario Escobar of Guatemala booked Hennessey for stopping a promising attack.

VAR decision: Yellow card upgraded to red.

VAR review: There was a covering defender, Neco Williams, who was likely to mop up the loose ball, so the referee was correct not to show a red card for denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity. But the nature of Hennessey’s challenge was without doubt endangered the safety of an opponent and the VAR, Canada’s Drew Fischer, made the correct decision to instigate a review for serious foul play.

Hennessey was in mid-air when he completely missed the ball in attempting a clearance and crashed into the upper body of Taremi with his thigh.

VAR overturn: Gholizadeh goal disallowed for offside

What happened: Ali Gholizadeh put Iran into the lead against Wales in the 15th minute, but there was a check for offside.

VAR decision: Goal disallowed.

VAR review: One of the more obvious VAR offside goals, with Gholizadeh unsure whether to celebrate after putting the ball past goalkeeper Hennessey.

The Iran forward was ahead of the ball when Sardar Azmoun played the ball. If he had held his run and stayed behind the ball he would have been onside, even though he was in front of the last defender.

25/11/2022

Team Melli stuns Wales with two late goals.

Rozbeh Cheshmi and Ramin Rezaeian scored two late goals against Wales in Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Al-Rayyan, Doha to ensure Team Melli grab all three points in an exciting and dynamic match.

The 2-0 win puts Iran in the second position in Group B on goal difference behind group leader England. The USA is third and will be meeting the leaders later this evening.

Team Melli had five changes from the previous match with Azmoun making the starting lineup and Jahanbakhsh benched. Gholizadeh also made the start-up. The match was balanced in the early stages but slowly Team Melli managed to take a grip on the match. However, efforts by Azmoun and Taremi did not yield any results. Ali Gholizadeh scored a goal from a nice assist by Azmoun but he was deemed offside.

The first half ended goalless

In the second half, Iran was much the better team and threatened Wales consistently. The poor finishing and the slow transition from defense to attack marred Team Melli’s performance. Azmoun shot against the post and seconds later Gholizadeh curled a beauty into the far corner of Hennessy but that ball also hit the upright.

In the dying minutes of the match, Taremi was released from a long ball. He beat the offside trap and was one-to-one with Hennessey, The Welsh keeper came all the way outside the box to cut the ball. He fouled Taremi in the process and also denied him a goal-scoring opportunity, a clear red card case. However, to the shock of the Iranians, the referee opted for a yellow card to the Welsh Keeper. Moments later, the referee was invited to look at the situation by VAR referees. The review resulted in the rightful decision of sending Henessy off.

Dying minutes of the added time. Rozbeh Cheshnmo lathed at a loose ball from outside the box to score from a low powerful shot right into the corner of Welsh goal. 1-0 to Iran. The Welsh then went on an all-out attack leaving their backlight. two minutes later, a counterattack and a beautiful pass by Taremi ended up with Rezaeian chipping the Welsh keeper to make it 20-0.

Iran deserved this valuable win against the 10-man Wales and needs a similar result to assure qualification to the next round.

25/11/202225/11/2022

Azmoun in the starting lineup against Wales

Queiroz realized his blunder against England and opted to change the shape of the team for the match against Wales in Group B of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. In defense, the same poor lineup is maintained though, except for the right back where Ramin Rezaeian is replacing Moharrami. In the midfield, Karimi and Cheshmi are out, replaced by Gholizadeh and Ezatollahi. The biggest surprise was the exclusion of Alireza Jaganbakhsh who had a bad day against England, with Sardar Azmoun.

The line-up is as follows:

24	Hossein Hosseini
8	Morteza Pouraliganji
23	Ramin Rezaeian
19	Majid Hosseini
5	Milad Mohammadi
3	Ehsan Hajisafi
21	Ahmad Noorollahi
6	Saeid Ezatolahi
17	Ali Gholizadeh
9	Mehdi Taremi
20	Sardar Azmoun

24/11/2022

Iran vs. Wales: 5 talking points

Players to observe in the Welsh Team

Wales has two household names on the team. Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey. Fortunately for Team Melli, they are in the twilight of their careers, but still players to be reckoned with nonetheless. There is also another veteran in Joe Allen. The Swansea midfielder is fit enough to play some part after missing their World Cup opener.

The 72-times capped Allen, so fundamental to the way Wales operate, has not played since damaging a hamstring on September 17. But Allen has stepped up his fitness push over the past few days and joined the main group after spending the first few days in Qatar training on his own. It is still not clear if he will be recalled by Coach Page.

At 6ft 5ins Kieffer Moore is difficult to miss and the absence of his name from the Wales teamsheet for the opening game against the Americans was a shock for many Welsh fans.

Page realized the error of his ways after a futile first 45 minutes and Moore changed Wales’ fortunes after being sent on at half-time, holding the ball up to bring Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey into play. It is possible that Moore will be in the starting line-up on Friday, especially after England showed in their handsome opening 6-2 win that Iran could be defensively fragile in the air. The coaches of Iran need to pay particular attention to their players.

2. Environmental Condition

Wales had the luxury of a 10 pm kick-off local time against the United States and playing in cooler conditions. But the Iran game is first up on Friday, with the action kicking off at 1 pm. The weather in Doha is still warm. The temperature is expected to be around 29 degrees Celsius at kick-off, so will that prove an advantage for Iran players more used to hot conditions?

3. The Fans Factor

The Iranian fans in Doha could very easily outnumber the Welsh by a large margin in and out of the stadium. Team Melli fans could always depend on the vociferous Iranians and the passionate fans to give the team a morale boost during major championships. This time, however, and due to the political situation back in Iran, a split and a crack has developed within the ranks, with some fans accusing this very team of representing the suppressive regime of the Mullahs. The arrogant and patronizing Carlos Queiroz has worsened the situation by bad-mouthing the Iranian fans who showed their anger at the team after the England defeat. It does not sit well with those fans and could be of a negative impact.

It is not known if this will be a factor, but be rest assured that a good Team Melli performance and better still an early goal will ignite the passion and pump up the Iranian fans, even those who have reservations about the team and players.

4. Queiroz’s Game plan

One does not need to be a genius to figure out that the lineup and game plan against England was a pretty pathetic failure. Even a dogmatic person such as the Portuguese coach knows that despite the fact that he blames the earth and sky for his now repetitious failures. The problem is that Queiroz is an aging coach and it is difficult to teach an old dog new tricks. If he deviates from his defensive mode, he might feel discomfort and not be at ease. Yet, he has to change to survive this. His contract is short term and a failure in this World Cup means he will be looking for his third job in as many years. Changes in personnel and game plan are a must for Iran.

5. Team Melli player’s morale.

This one is the most difficult to predict. No one really knows what the status of the players is in the camp especially after the whole team displayed unity in sympathy for the public cause and sided with the people of Iran by not singing the national anthem. For the sake of the team and the nation, one hopes that this time, the players unite and show their worth in front of the world against a team that they can beat under normal circumstances. The onus is on the players, provided the coach, plays his cards right.

Tehran clash

Azadi Stadium Tehran, Iran — Iran and Wales played a 1978 friendly at the Aryamehr Stadium (Andrew Budd/PA)

Whereas England had never played Iran until Monday’s World Cup meeting, Wales has previously met the three-time Asian Cup winners. A Tehran friendly was arranged in April 1978 as the Liverpool-supporting son of the Shah of Iran wanted to invite a British side to play in the country.

Wales won the game 1-0 with Cardiff’s Phil Dwyer scoring the only goal in front of a 50,000 crowd.

24/11/2022

Iran vs Wales: Match preview

Wales and Iran will both be going in search of their first wins of the 2022 World Cup when they face off at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium on Friday. After the trouncing by England, Team Melli is looking for a strong comeback to keep their qualifying hope alive. Team Melli will be without their main goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand who has a broken nose and will sit it out for the rest of the tournament. Amir Abedzadeh is making a strong claim for a starting place ahead of Hossein Hosseini who conceded six goals against England.

Iran will have to have a major facelift if they are going to beat Wales, as the lineup against England was the catalyst in this big defeat. Saman Ghoddos was sorely missed in the middle of the field so was Kanani to lead the defense. As for the Forwards, it is likely that Queiroz, who is an aficionado of parking the bus and under immense public pressure, will start with both Azmoun and Taremi up front. The midfield in particular is in a dire need of a leader and orchestrator. Jahanbakhsh needs to stand up and be counted. Says applies to Nourollahi and Eztollahi.

Rob Page‘s Wales side rescued a point against the USA in their opening fixture, while Iran was on the end of a 6-2 pummelling at the hands of England as their World Cup campaign began in the worst possible fashion.

Hopes will be higher of picking up points against Wales, although both sides may be going into the game uncertain of what to expect with the two having only previously met on one occasion.

That contest came all the way back in April 1978 too, when former Cardiff City defender Phil Dwyer scored the only goal of the game on his debut in a friendly in Tehran’s Arayamehr Stadium.

It was not an ideal warm-up for the 1978 World Cup for Iran, who went on to finish bottom of their group behind Peru, Netherlands and Scotland – against whom they picked up their only point – in Argentina.

WALES VS. IRAN HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD

Wales wins: 1
Iran wins: 0
Draws: 0
Wales goals: 1
Iran goals: 0

MATCH HISTORY

April 18, 1978: Iran 0-1 Wales (International friendly)