Category: Sports & Games

Saman Ghoddos Ineligible to play for Team Melli

Tehran

The excitement of the Swedish-born Iranian appearing for Team Melli has turned to a major disappointment after FIFA declared that Saman Goddos is ineligible to play for Iran.

An unnamed administrator in FFIRI has informed Khabar Varzeshi newspaper that FIFA has rejected Iran’s application due to lack of proper documentation and proofs. As such, the chance of Ghoddos making his debut tomorrow against Syria has disappeared.

As a result of his Iranian parentage, Ghoddos was eligible to be called up by both Iran and Sweden. In December 2016, Ghoddos was called up by Sweden manager Janne Andersson for friendlies against Ivory Coast and Slovakia. He scored his first international goal for Sweden in a 6–0 win over Slovakia on 12 January 2017.

In June 2017, Ghoddos revealed that he had been approached by the Iranian football federation. In an interview in July 2017, Ghoddos stated that he may accept an invitation to play for Carlos Queiroz’s Iran if he is asked. He applied for Iranian citizenship on 21st August, stating that it is an honor to play for Sweden and his decision to represent either country is “fifty-fifty”.

Ghoddos was not called into Sweden’s World Cup qualification squad on 23 August, with Janne Andersson opting to choose expatriate footballers and stating that Ghoddos is not far from a call-up if he were to remain with the Swedish national team.

 in an interview on 25 August 2017, Ghoddos confirmed that he received his Iranian passport from the embassy. The following day, 26 August 2017, he announced on his Instagram page that he would be joining Team Melli for their 2018 World Cup qualifiers against South Korea and Syria.

The Östersunds FK midfilder was called up for the first time to Team Melli squad on 27th August 2017 by Carlos Queiroz for Iran’s 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches against South Korea and Syria.

FIFA Demands Explanation Over Ousted Iranian Footballers

FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association), has demanded the Islamic Republic to provide further information over its decision to drop two footballers from Iran’s national team, after they played for their Greek side against an Israeli team.

Captain of Iran’s National Football team, Masoud Shojaei and his teammate, Ehsan Hajsafi played for full ninety minutes in their Greek team, Panionios home match in Athens against the Israeli club, Maccabi Tel Aviv on Wednesday, August 3.

The midfielders were not present at the away match in Israel.

Nevertheless, Iran’s Football federation last week strongly condemned their participation in the home leg of the matches.

Meanwhile, conservatives in Iran bombarded the pair with threats.

“Hajsafi and Shojaei’s move in no way constitutes endorsement and it will certainly be addressed according to regulations and the law,” said Director of Security at Iran’s Sports Ministry, Mohammad Javad Ababaf, adding, “Most probably the pair are going to lose their spots in the national squad. Nevertheless, we should wait for officials’ final verdict.”

Then, on Thursday, August 10, Ministry of Sports’ deputy, Mohammad Reza Davarzani put the final nail in the coffin, declaring, “Both footballers have lost their spot on Iranian National Team… they crossed Iran’s red line”.

Previously it was announced that the final verdict will be issued after a person to person interview with Shojaei and Hajsafi.

FIFA’s statutes ban political interference in its affiliated national associations, which can be suspended if the rule is breached.

Argentina's Lionel Messi fights for the ball against Iran's Mehrdad Pouladi (L) and Ehsan Hajsafi (R) during their 2014 World Cup Group F soccer match. June 21, 2014

Argentina’s Lionel Messi fights for the ball against Iran’s Mehrdad Pouladi (L) and Ehsan Hajsafi (R) during their 2014 World Cup Group F soccer match. June 21, 2014

“We are currently monitoring the matter and will request additional information from the Iran Football Federation,” said a FIFA spokesperson in an emailed statement to Reuters. “We have no further comment for the time being.”

If a country’s FA is suspended, it means both the national team and its clubs are barred from international competition.

Iran has already qualified for next year’s World Cup, making it an especially delicate matter for FIFA.

FIFA statutes state that “each member association shall manage its affairs independently and without undue influence from third parties”.

However, positive reactions to the pair’s move on social media were quite significant. In most comments, Shojaei and Hajsafi were praised for their courageous “professionalism” and respect for sports international regulations.

There were also comments that branded the move as “an end to the regime’s injustice against Iranian athletes”.

Moreover, a twitter campaign labelled as #NoBan4Ourplayers has been launched by Iranians to defend Shojaei and Hajsafi’s “courageous move”, protest against their elimination from the national side and raise concerns over its consequences.

An internationally known former Iranian football star, Mehdi Mahdavi Kia wrote on his Instagram account, “The moments you made people of Iran joyous will never be forgotten. Let’s hope for the day that politics leaves sports behind and action replaces words”.

Now is not the time for silence!

 

The announcement of the ban of the two national team players led to widespread negative reactions. FIFA spokesman has requested an explanation about the incident and if the FFIRI is adhering to the principle of the independence of the federation from Iranian authorities. It apparent that FIFA requires a quick and clear response from the Mehdi Taj.

According to ISNA, after the Panionios Greek club was grouped with a Zionist regime in the European League playoffs, the club announced in a statement that Masoud Shojaei and Ehsan HajSafy would not be used for the game in Tel Aviv, in respect to their beliefs. But the Greek club declared that the two Iranian players are needed in the return match due to the defeat in the away game and placed them in the starting lineup. Both the Iranian players came out to the pitch with wristbands in the shape of Iranian flag.

After that, the debate about the future of the two players intensified, until the Football Federation and the Ministry of Sports condemned the incident. They both announced that “soon a review their situation with the presence of the two players will be conducted”. In fact, the federation and the ministry of sport tried to enforce the statute of the football federation and, on the other hand, refused to take a hasty decision to make the situation worse.

A few days later, Ali Motahari, the vice chairman of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, condemned the presence of these two players against the Zionist regime, saying that Shojaei and Hajj Safi could apologize to the people and promise that such an affair would no longer be repeated to close this subject.

However and unexpectedly,  the relative calm situation that was prevailing was suddenly shattered with the interview that was given by the deputy minister of sports. “The two players have crossed the red line and hence are banned from playing with the national team.” Such types of statements have put Iranian football in a serious challenge and jeopardy.

The problem that could have been resolved by keeping it under discreet internal discussion,  was soon taken blown over and became a topic in world media and well outside our borders. Serious questions are being asked. Is the Iranian Football Federation Independent? Is there chronic government interference in football affairs in Iran? Is this ban of the two footballers consistent with football rules and regulations as sanctioned by FIFA? Does Iran want to be part of FIFA and play up to the rule or face sanctions like many other nations for such political interference?

Now that the national team has done the difficult part and qualified the World Cup and Persepolis is in the Asian Champions League quarter-finals with a good chance of winning the title, the repeat of history and the possibility of a football suspension can be very unpleasant affair. As of now in the football federation, from “Taj” to “Saket” and  the members of the board of directors of the FFIRI, know that FIFA is demanding an answer, however it is not clear what the federation and its officials are doing these days, maintaining absolute silence in this frenzy, and providing no explanations or answers. Neither to public opinion nor to the official football institutions!!

These days, an official statement from the officials of the Iranian Football Federation (FFIRI) may be that water required for the fire of those with hateful intentions for the national interests of Iran.

The football federation has done well by maintaining silence up to date, but anything more than that “silence” is not acceptable. Taj and his directors should take a position soon in fact, very soon. It should be announced that the Football Federation is an independent body and no football events have taken place without its decision and administration, and it will not allow it to be manipulated by those who have ill-intention and malice for the national interests of Iran

Team Melli Captain chastised by fundementalists.

 Ehsan HajSafy and Masoud Shojaei , the two Panionios players who faced Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. have been chastised by extremist elements of the Basij for playing against what it called the enemy of the people! The two Iranian players who play professional football for the Greek Team, have been both involved in the match UEFA Europa League Third qualifying round, Game 2 played in Stadio Néas Smírnis on Thursday, August 3. The Israeli team won 1-0 away and advanced to the next stage of the UEFA Europa League while Panionios was eliminated from that European competition.

HajSafy and Shojaei training with the Greek club

In a communique full of religious and zealous rhetoric from a group calling itself  “Sazman Basij Varzeshkaran” virtually translated into “Organization of Mobilized Athletes”  it accused Team Melli Captain Masoud Shojaei and ex-Sepahan left back Ehsan Haj Safy of betraying the Islamic cause by playing against the Israeli team. It is believed that this shadowy group belongs to the large and omnipresent paramilitary organization with multifaceted roles, which acts as the eyes and ears of the Islamic regime. It is present in schools, universities, state and private institutions, factories, and even among tribes. It is an extremist ideological organization which has very little popular support amongst the Iranians; however, it has considerable power because of its close working relations with the clergy and the ruling religious hierarchy.

The Basij , with its many arms , is the main oppressors of the Iranian youth both male but especially females. Their extremist views on religion and forcing hijabs and Islamic dress code on females have made them the people’s enemy number 1. Their anti-western values, is also not going down well in the younger Iranians communities and circles.

The Greek first division club Panionios, respected the Iranians wish not to travel to Israel for the away leg due to the political issues and allowed them both to stay at home. However, in Athens, it was a different story. There was no reason for the Iranians not to play in Greece and refusal to play would have been interpreted as demonstrating political opposition which is against the rules of UEFA and FIFA.

The two players are the only known athletes in post-revolution Iran who have indeed played against Israeli teams or competed against individual Israeli athletes.

It is not clear if the two players will face sanction by the FFIRI or any other government authority. Team Melli , already qualified for the FIFA World Cup, will be playing South Korea late this month. Both Shojaei and Haj Safy are important and fixed players of the squad. Sources close to the Football Federation in Tehran believe that the two players have consulted FFIRI before the match and quietly received the green light to play against Maccabi.  This could not be confirmed officially.

 

Iran defeats Costa Rica in FIFA U-20 World Cup

 

  • Iran pick up their first win at the FIFA U-20 World Cup since the inaugural edition in 1977
  • A tight encounter of few chances decided by solitary goal
  • A low left-footed strike from Iran’s No9 undid Costa Rica

Mohammad Mehdi Mehdikhani secured an opening win for Iran as his late goal saw off Costa Rica 1-0 in FIFA U-20 World Cup Korea Republic 2017 Group C.

Despite Iran’s fairly well-established FIFA World Cup™ pedigree, having appeared at three in the last 20 years, this was only their third ever outing at U-20 level – and the first of those came in the inaugural tournament. Because of that, you could forgive them for being a tad ring-rusty. In truth though, Costa Rica were not much sharper.

Both struggled to fashion opportunities in a tepid first half. Iran began the brighter of the pair, looking to utilise a distinct height advantage. As time wore on, Costa Rica’s stronger possession game saw them begin to dictate the pace of the match, though a sloppy final ball undermined their chance of fashioning any clear openings.

The pattern continued until the latter stages where Iran first came close from an audacious Omid Norafkan corner, clipping the top of the bar, before the deadlock was broken with nine minutes to go. Unmarked at the far post, Mehdikhani chested down and fired low into the bottom left corner to snatch three points from what looked like a certain stalemate.

It took Iran 40 years to register its only 2nd win in the FIFA Youth World Cup, now known as the FIFA U-21 World Cup. 

Despite a few good moves , Costa Rica did not manage a single shot on goal in the match, while the Iranians did shoot on target  although none were effective except for the Mehdikhani goal late in the game.

After Iran scored,  the habitual problem of Iranian football was evident in their game.  Iranian teams from club level all the way to Team Melli , have problems controlling the games when ahead , or as it is commonly know, putting the game to bed. Despite the solid and strong defense by the Iran U-21 team which the skillful Costa Rica’ forwards failed to penetrate during the whole match, their last few minutes were erratic, confusing and quite weak. Both the defenders and midfield players lost the ball in tackles, passed the wrong ball and in general were in disarray with only minutes left of the match.

Thankfully the opponents shooting was not up to scratch and their finishing , a lot to be desired, In reality, Iran should have closed the game in a much better style.

Iran U-21 next match is against Zambia who beat former champions Portugal 2-1 in the earlier game in the same group.

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Group matches – Group C
Iran     IRAN      –    COSTA RICA       Costa Rica
FULL-TIME
1    –      0
 
 Iran

1 N.MIRZAZAD (GK)      2 A.SHAHSAVARI ;  3 M.DERAKHSHANMEHR ; 5 N.TAHERI ; 6 M.SOLTANI (65′ N. MOKHTARI); 8 A.SHOJAEI (79′ A. RAZZAGHPOUR) ; 9 M.MEHDIKHANI ; 10 R.SHEKARI ; 11 R.JAFARI  (90′ S, KHADEMPOUR); 16 O. NORAFKAN (C) ; 20 A.AGHASI

Costa Rica
13 PINEDA. E (GK) ; 2 MESEN. D ; 4 SMITH. I ; 5 GONZALEZ .E; 6 HERNANDEZ. L (C) ; 8 MARIN. J ; 10 MARTINEZ. J ; 11 LEAL. R ; 19 SALINAS. Y; 20 JUAREZ. E ; 21 TORRES. G

Ando Teymourian transfer to Esteghlal halted!

The former Team Mell Captain, whose transfer to Esteghlal Tehran club has been announced as void, is extremely upset by this turn of events. Esteghlal Club has been sanctioned by FIFA and is banned from any transfer activities until such time they settle a pay dispute with the German born Moroccan International Adil Chihi.  The 28 years old Moroccan made 6 appearances for Esteghlal in 2016 before leaving Tehran. The Player subsequently filed a claim with FIFA against the Tehran giant for non-payment of dues.

Despite various letters from FIFA asking Esteghlal for proof, there was only one response from Esteghlal and that was considered inadmissible. The club Chairman, without admitting any guilt or wrongdoing claimed that his club has fully paid the Moroccan but because of the international sanctions, the bank transfer of funds was not carried out!!!

FIFA issued the sanction by a letter submitted to FFIRI on 9th January 2017 banning Esteghlal from any transfer activities.

Andranik “Ando” Teymourian, who is hoping to revive his flagging career by joining the blues, is at a crossroad now. Due to the official signing & registration with Esteghlal, he is ineligible to play for another team or go back to his last club, Mchine Sazi . He is, for all intents and purposes, a victim of circumstances beyond his control. His chances of selection and playing for Team Melli seems to be at minimal with the current situation prevailing.

Unless the FIFA sanction is removed after Esteghlal settles the dispute including payment of fines and legal cost, neither Teymourian nor the Uzbek player Server Djeparov who like Ando signed for Esteghlal, can play competitive football.

In a related development, Mehdi Taj, the Head of FFIRI has said that the matter is being calmly resolved, while the chairman of Esteghlal , a civil servant appointed by the government and typical to the class of administrators running football in Iran for the past few decades, made an appeal to Mehdi Taj to negotiate a discount from FIFA …. Truly pathetic and comical act.

FIFA has also indicated that Esteghlal has a long history of violations and financial irregularities. In general, Iranian football is becoming quite notorious for payment delays to foreign players and coaching staff, partly because of banking restrictions due to sanction but mostly due to poor financial discipline of Iranian clubs federation. The mentality that they can bargain their way out of financial commitments is still rife and very much practised!

AFC Annual Awards in need of reforms.

Once again the pathetic AFC Annual Awards are upon us, and once again the much criticized set of awards is being flaunted as the première platform of Asian Football top awards. Accusations that the awards are highly politicized, has very little to do with reality and lack of transparency has marred this annual process. All hopes of improvement and reform has been meat by deaf ear of the hierarchy of AFC with the announcement of this year’s list.

Unfortunately, it is the only award that the rest of the world looks at , as because no other forum or reputable organization nor any strong media in Asia bothers about creating a highly respectable alternative. So, for the those World Media unversed and the less informed in Asian football  , these awards can be mistakenly be taken as the representative of the best of Asian Football excellence while the reality is so far from it.

Year after years and without any culpability, the AFC announces a short list of names for the awards which has little relevance to reality or actual standards. The worst of the awards is the “AFC Player of the year”  which has been the main target of critics and frankly has been scandalous on occasions. All sort of criticism and accusations have been targeted by many who were affected by these nominations.  Political clout, influences and lobbying has been said to play the major part of nomination and selection of supposedly the best Asian footballer. No all criticism were impartial though as the West Asian Arab states have been always vocal when their nominees were absent from the list!

In reality, the flaw in the nomination process seems to be apparent when previous candidates and winners are scrutinized.  A quick look at the historic data and past winners will confirm to any knowledgeable person that the AFC list is out of touch with the real world. AFC Player of the year has even been selected on nepotism during Bin Hamam’s days and hardly improved ever since.

Whether the new President is willing to tackle this issue, or even if he has any interest in reforming this particular process or maybe very well be covenant with the highly unpopular process , is yet to be seen. However, the secretive on goings behind the scene or under the table in the nomination and selection procedures, is quite a thorn in AFC’s credbility.

At least the FIFA award has some transparency and is much closer to reality . That is hardly the case with the Asian version of the award.

Take a look at this simple and no brainer  list of quality Asian players who had made headlines in Europe with their exploits in European Champions League and the Leagues like Son Heung-min (Tottenham) , Sardar Azmoun (FC Rostov) and Keisuke Honda (AC Milan)  and what AFC thinks who should the best in Asia 2016 based on God know what ; Omar Abdulrahman (AlAin & UAE) , Hammadi Ahmed (Air Force & Iraq) and Wu Lei (Shanghai SIPG & China PR)

Not that the AFC nominees are bad players, but when it comes to the top awards, the excellence has to be measured in a systematic method. There is no way that these players have anything near the three top Asian players in performance and quality, but then again you be the judge.

Political interference in football is unfavorable, says IRIFF

Hamid Reza A’sefi , the international spokesperson of the Football Federation has stated that his organization does not approve of political decision making in football affairs. A’sefi was speaking to ISNA on the possibilities of Iran withdrawing from the  2016 AFC U-19 Championship . The 39th edition will be held in Bahrain between 13–30 October 2016. Iran has qualified for the finals.

“The federation is not in favor of politicians making decision in football affairs. It is against our wishes and is not acceptable by international standards. However, if there are strong objections from the government on security ground, then of course we have to oblige.”  A’sefi said. “We know that playing in Bahrain is akin to playing in Saudi Arabia , as the country is a satellite state of Saudis and run under their supervision. By withdrawing from this tournament we give the Saudi the best of excuses. It is exactly the what they seek for not playing in Iran. Their propaganda machine has been active for sometime now but we should not be deceived.”

“We have no issues playing in Bahrain. of course we will demand security precaution and assurances, else there is no other concerns.” 

“As for postponing or delaying the match against South Korea because of Ta’sooa , I think it will be extremely difficult. It is a holly day in the Iranian calendar , but FIFA does not entertain such demands and with the tight schedule already , I doubt that FIFA will even respond to such request. It is unfortunate, but we have to oblige and go along with the rules of FIFA” A’sefi responded on the question if Iran will demand a change of date for the South Korea match in Azadi on October 11th.

Iran is in Group C of the  2016 AFC U-19 Championship along with Japan , Qatart and Yemen.

The matches:

14 October 2016    19:30     Qatar v Iran
17 October 2016    16:30     Iran v Japan
20 October 2016    16:30     Yemen v Iran

FIFA proposes two-and-a-half-year ban for Qatar official Al-Mohannadi

A two-and-a-half-year ban and a CHF 20,000 fine have been suggested by FIFA after an investigation into Qatar official Saoud Al-Mohannadi. 

FIFA’s Ethics Committee has recommended a two-and-a-half-year ban from football for Qatar Football Association (QFA) vice-president Saoud Al-Mohannadi who is running against Ali Kaffashian as AFC candidate in FIFA’s Executive Committee. 

World football’s governing body has investigated the QFA official for an alleged failure to cooperate fully with a separate anti-corruption probe.

“The investigation against Mr Al-Mohannadi concerned his failure to properly cooperate and provide truthful information to the investigatory chamber in the framework of another investigation not related to the awarding of the 2022 FIFA World Cup,” a FIFA statement read.

“In his final report, the chief of the investigation recommends imposing a ban of no less than two years and six months and a fine of no less than CHF 20,000 on Mr Al-Mohannadi for an alleged violation of art. 13 (General rules of conduct), art. 18 (Duty of disclosure, cooperation and reporting) and art. 42 (General obligation to collaborate) of the FIFA Code of Ethics. 

“Until a formal decision is taken by the adjudicatory chamber of the Ethics Committee, the accused party is presumed innocent.”

Al-Mohannadi had been the general secretary of the QFA when its bid to host the 2022 World Cup was launched.

He had been approved as a candidate to run for a place on FIFA’s ruling council this month, having last year withdrawn from the race for the Executive Committee claiming he did not want to divide support for West Asian candidates.

Al-Mohannadi is the second Qatari official to be involved in a major corruption scandal involving FIFA. Mohammad Bin Hammam was banned for life for bribing his way to FIFA Presidency election in December 2012. Although FIFA was not forthcoming about the details of Al-Mohannadi’s misdemeanour, it is believed that the Vice President and the strongman of QFA has hidden documents, falsified records and used strong-arm tactics and direct threats against anyone revealing incriminating evidence that would have harmed QATAR hosting of the 2022 World Cup.

Faghani referees FIFA Club World Cup 2015

Alireza Faghani, The Iranian referee who took control of the AFC Asian Cup 2015 has added another honor to his list by being appointed as FIFA Club World Cup 2015 referee.

The final match between Barcelona FC and the South American Champions  River Plate of Argentina is played in  Nissan Stadium (Yokohama) on Sunday 20th December.

Fagahi is the considered the top Asian referee and in recognition of his standard and record, FIFA trusted him with the most important match in its club competition calendar where players such as Messi, Neymar and Iniesta face the tough tackling Argentinian team known for their rough play.

Alireza Faghani is assisted on the line by Reza Sokhandan and Mohammad Reza Mansouri for the Final match.