Tag: Korea Rep.

Omid Team arrives in Thailand

Iran’s Omid Team arrived in Thailand to start preparing for the upcoming AFC U23 Championship 2020. The squad flew to Bangkok then transferred to a domestic flight to fly south to Songkhla near the border with Malaysia.

Hamid Estili has made sure that the players have enough time to acclimatize before the competition starts on the 9th Jan against Uzbekistan.

Iran is unquestionably in the most difficult group facing the powerful Koreans, the defending Champion Uzbekistan, and the aspiring Chinese team. In simple term, there is no easy matches for Omid team in Thailand. A win in the first match will be the perfect result but by no means an assurance to qualify for the next round.

This championship is also the qualifying rounds for the Tokyo Olympic Games. The top 3 teams from this tournament will make it to Tokyo.

AFC Futsal Championship Turkmenistan 2020 draw.

Ashgabat: The path to Asian futsal glory has become clearer for the Continent’s top 16 teams after the AFC Futsal Championship Turkmenistan 2020 official draw was conducted at Ashgabat’s Olympia Hotel on Friday.

The ceremony separated the 16 qualified teams into four groups ahead of next year’s competition, where the best in Asian futsal will compete for the title of Continental champions.

Host nation Turkmenistan will begin the competition with what is sure to be a hotly anticipated clash against tournament debutants Oman on February 26, before rounding their Group A commitments with matches against Tajikistan and Vietnam. The final will be played on March 8.

The defending champions Iran were drawn in Group D alongside Korea Republic, Saudi Arabia and Southeast Asian champions Thailand.

Newly crowned AFC Futsal Player of the Year Tomoki Yoshikawa will lead Japan in an intriguing Group B, which also includes Lebanon, Kyrgyz Republic and Kuwait, while four-time runners-up Uzbekistan will begin their campaign against Indonesia after both sides were drawn in Group C, which also contains Bahrain and China PR.

The AFC Futsal Championship is Asia’s flagship international futsal competition, also serving as the final stage of FIFA Futsal World Cup qualifying, with the top five sides in Turkmenistan to represent the Continent at Lithuania 2020.

With 12 titles in the 15 previous editions of the competition, Iran is the most successful side in AFC Futsal Championship history, with three-time champions Japan the only other nation to have lifted the trophy.

The Futsal Team Melli will have to battle it out with Thailand for the lead in the group. Winners and runners up will then meet the Group C two top teams in the quarter-finals.

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Match Schedule

27th February 2020 Iran Saudi Arabia Main Indoor Arena, Ashgabat.
29th February 2020 Korea Rep. Iran Main Indoor Arena, Ashgabat.
02nd March 2020 Iran Thailand Martial Arts Arena, Ashgabat.

Group A: Turkmenistan (host), Vietnam, Tajikistan, Oman

Group B: Japan, Lebanon, Kyrgyzstan, Kuwait

Group C: Uzbekistan, Bahrain, China .Indonesia

Group D: Iran, Thailand, Korea Rep. , Saudi Arabia

Team Melli and Omid Team will set up joint Training camp.

Iran’s Team Melli and Omid Team will be setting training camps at the same time and end up playing a friendly match after the conclusion of the camp at the national teams’ Training camp in Tehran.

From 10th to the 15th of July, there will be a busy period for the national football federation teams in the training camps. The objective of this Team Melli camp includes further familiarization by Marc Wilmots with the team members.  Wilmots will be unable to call upon the foreign-based players of Team Melli and has to contend with the domestic league players.

However, in order for the Belgian coach to gain more knowledge of his players and to make changes as he deems necessary, this will be a good opportunity for him to discover further talents and proceed on his changes by allowing younger players the chance to perform.

Wilmots hopes to have a more solid idea for the team formation for the month of September and to organize a game on the official FIFA day. In the last two friendlies,  Wilmots used a mix of AFC Asian Cup and World Cup players in both the Syria and South Korean games. He is working on the team’s weaknesses, including defending, and said he was looking to fix the team gradually. Nevertheless, Wilmots said he is pleased with his team performance in the last two matches, his first at the helm of Iran, and in his recent interview, he said that he is glad that former national team coach, Carlos Queiroz.he had left a good legacy for him.

On the other ground, there will be also another national team training. Iran’s Omid Team Olympics hopefuls will set up camp at the same time sharing the facilities with the senior team.  Farhad Majidi , who has already set up a training camp in June, is looking to further improve the team for the much tougher assignment in Thailand in the qualifiers of the Olympics.

He will be focused on technical and psychological issues of the squad, which will mainly consist of previous players from the Omid team’s past camps. Majidi will continue to invite new players for the camp, especially since there will be tough competition for places and players need to show their ability to be part of the Omid Team, Majidi said.

The young head coach of the Omid team who is hoping to qualify for the Olympic Games is looking forward to the match with the senior team. Wilmots and Majidi teams will play a competitive friendly at the end of the five-day camps, which is likely to be played on No. 2 ground that has a natural grass surface.

It is also likely that Pejman Montazeri, who has just announced his retirement from international football, will be honored and appreciated by his teammates in the same camp. Montazeri played for Team Melli for about 10 years and has represented Iran in the World Cup and Asian Cup.

Wilmots will continue his offensive style for Team Melli

Team Melli’s head coach said that his team will continue playing an offensive style.

Marc Wilmots said in a post-match press conference after drawing 1-1 with South Korea ” although it was a friendly game , in my opinion, it was a highly competitive match played at high level in front of a capacity stadium. Both teams showed a lot of resolve. I think the fans were quite satisfied and happy to watch such a match, in which  lot of opportunities were created by both teams.

Wilmots spoke about his experience in confronting South Korea in the 2014 World Cup and the difference between the two games: “I think the conditions are not comparable to this game. Currently, the league has ended for several weeks, but the Korean league is ongoing. Nevertheless, Iranian players were able to play a great game. They fought for every ball and were truly competitive.

The team’s head coach noted that “our team will continue to attack. The Iranian team is a complete team and everyone is important and influential.” Wilmots also said: “We had a good game. Although the match was friendly, it had a high quality. Congratulations to Bento on this game because his team had a lot of coordination and played good football. We observed how both teams wanted to win and saw an offensive display. My team prevented the Koreans from controlling the game. It’s good that we had almost 10 scoring chances.”

In response to a question about Iran’s four wins against South Korea since the last time Korea won, Wilmots said: “These match can not be compared. The atmosphere of each game is different. Each game can have different conditions and circumstances. We tried to win this game. In the future, the same attitude will continue, and we will be offer more offensive options.”

The Koreans are desperate for a win against Team Melli

Paulo Bento, The Portuguese coach of South Korea who led his team to a 1-0 win against Australia, is determined to lead the team to victory against Iran too.

South Korea, ranked 37th in the FIFA rankings, has been out-ranked 9th, 8th and 13th spots lower against the 21st ranked Iran, who are also the top ranking team in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).

In the last five matches, Korea never won against the Iranians managing only one draw and four losses.

Bento in his pre-match press conference at the PFC NFC (Training Center for Football) on October 10, said

“We will continue to maintain the framework and style of our team even if we play an experimental team versus Iran,” he said. “We are now building a team to make the right choices in the World Cup qualifiers.”

Bento said, “We will consider the technical and mental aspects of the players,” “We will stick with our style of play and bring in the players we need.”
Bento is looking forward to the success of his aces Son hung min and Hwang Joon-jo.

How much is too much for Son Heung-min?

Son Heung-min has played a lot of soccer over the last 12 months, with minutes on the field seemingly outranked only by air miles.

It has some South Koreans wondering how much is too much.

The recently completed season with Tottenham Hotspur was intense enough, with almost 50 appearances as the club placed fourth place in the Premier League and progressed to the Champions League final before losing 1-0 against Liverpool in Madrid.

Through it all, he maintained a taxing schedule with South Korea’s national team that included trips to the World Cup in Russia, the Asian Games in Indonesia and the Asian Cup in the United Arab Emirates. And international friendlies on top, too.

Despite all that, the 26-year-old Son was called once again by South Korea coach Paulo Bento to fly from Europe to play 90 minutes in a low-key friendly against Australia last Friday and prepare for another exhibition against Iran in Seoul on Tuesday. There have been calls for the player to be given a break but that is unlikely to happen.

Wilmots advocating an offensive strategy

Iran national football team head coach Marc Wilmots said Monday his side will play attacking football with high-pressing tactics to beat South Korea in their upcoming friendly match.

Iran and South Korea will go head-to-head at Seoul World Cup Stadium in Seoul on Tuesday. Wilmots, who took over Iran’s helm last month, said Team Melli will not sit back against the Taeguk Warriors, who have yet to suffer a defeat at home under their head coach Paulo Bento.

“The best defense is a good offense,” Wilmots said at a pre-match press conference. “We will try to create many chances with a high-intensity pressing game.”

Iran national football team head coach Marc Wilmots speaks at a press conference at Seoul World Cup Stadium in Seoul on June 10, 2019, one day ahead of his team's friendly football match against South Korea. (Yonhap)

“Since 2014, Son has grown a lot with experience from big tournaments like the UEFA Champions League,” he said of the Tottenham Hotspur star. “Son is showing his best performance these days using his technique and experience.”

Iran, ranked 21st in the latest FIFA rankings, have been one of the top nemeses to South Korea, currently No. 37 in the world. Iran have not suffered a defeat against South Korea since 2011. They collected four consecutive 1-0 wins before taking a scoreless draw in a World Cup qualifying match in August 2017.

Wilmots, 50, said he wants to maintain Iran’s undefeated streak against South Korea.

“Iran and South Korea are rivals that motivate each other,” he said. “But what I hate the most is losing. Many fans will root for South Korea tomorrow, but we’ll try our best.”

Wilmot’s Press conference

In his pre-match press conference, the newly appointed head coach of Team Melli said: “The two friendly games are good opportunities for me to asses my players.”

Marc Wilmots, said on Wednesday prior to the game against Syria “I wish to start by mentioning two things. First, I always had a lot of respect for national customs and respect for senior players. I like to convey my condolences to one of the valued former Team Melli players, Naeem Saadavi, who lost his wife. There are things in life that are more important than football. Like family especially in Iranian society. I also congratulate you all on the end of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr.”

“We have two friendly games in which I can test my players,” he said. “As for players’ fitness, I have to say some of the players have not played competitively since the end of the Persian Gulf League. Games against Syria and South Korea are great opportunities. Although our players are not in their ideal forms, I and the players like to play with full potential.”

Wilmots pointed out: “I am the coach who loves to have the possession of the ball, but at the same time I have always had a regular organized type of play where having the possession of the ball is to create scoring opportunities and mostly have that possession in the in the opponent’s area. I applied that style both in Belgium and Ivory Coast.”

He also explained about the mechanism of selecting players in his first Team Melli squad : “When you are new in the job and do not know a country, it’s best to refer to recent back records. So, that is how I did it until I familiarize myself and know the style of each squad member, and then I choose from them as deemed necessary. After these two games, I try to look for new players and invite potential talents to the squad. Youth should be added to Team Melli.”

Asked about the game plan and his style, Wilmots responded “It depends on the type of players we have. We do not have Saman Ghoddos and Sardar Azmoun in the team. I have to create a balanced style between defensive and offensive game plan. I do not have anything to do with what have been implemented before me and shall follow my own style. If in the last 8 years the team has concentrated on defensive style, he may want to continue to play that way, but I’m the coach who would like to play an offensive game and push the opponent’s team to the limit. We have 3 years to the next World Cup.”

 

Wilmots also said about the future plan for Iranian football during his tenure “It’s not important to for me to seek FIFA Ranking (…) but it’s important to qualify to the World Cup for the third consecutive time. We try to provide a balanced game style. Of course, that depends on the opponent as well. If you play against Brazil, you will not be able to have the possession of the ball as much. We will try to use Team Melli players in their same post that they play in their clubs. We cannot change players in three training sessions. I did this in the Belgian national team and it was successful. We will closely view and monitor Iran games.”

Team Melli will play its first game under Wilmots on Thursday 6th June In Azadi Stadium.

Welmots signs a 3 years contract in Brussels.

The embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Brussels has announced that Marc Welmots has signed a contract with Iran football federation FFIRI.

According to ISNA, Welmots officially signed a three-year contract to lead Team Melli after the meeting with the head of the federation’s Mehdi Taj in Brussels today. Welmots who previously traveled to Tehran to visit the federation’s facilities, will arrive in Tehran in the coming days to start the preparing Team Melli for the two friendly international matches against Syria and South Korea.

Sheikh Ali, adviser to the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Belgium, in an interview with the ISNA correspondent, confirmed the signing of the contract  “The talks were held at the embassy residence in Brussels, which resulted in the signing of the contract, but the embassy had no role whatsoever and has not participated in the negotiations. Sheikh Ali, also rejected any claims that the embassy has assured the Belgium coach of receiving his salary through the Iranian embassy account in Belgium or any other sort of payment to Welmots. He, said: “We have not had any talks on this matter which was purely between the FFIRI and the coach. This issue has nothing to do with the embassy. Consensual negotiations were conducted, and the embassy also did not give Mr. Welmots any guarantee of his salary. We, at the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, provided the logistical for the FFIRI and hosting the venue of negotiation.”

“Any issue regarding the details of the contract must be referred to Mr. Mehdi Taj.”

Earlier, Belgian media reported that the talks between Taj and Welmots have stalled and suspended because of a disagreement over the residing of the Belgian coach in Tehran. Those media news spoke of the possibility of abandoning of the contract.

According to ISNA, Mehdi Taj has left Brussels  heading to Tehran at 15:00 hours.

Mutual respect between coaches, but Queiroz is promising nothing!

Abu Dhabi

teammelli.com report

The pre-match press conference of Iran vs Yemen match was conducted in Mohammed Bin Zayed stadium earlier today.

Iran Conference.

Masoud Shojaei, who accompanied Carlos Queiroz started the press conference responding to teammelli.com question of “What is the level of the team performance in the match ahead that will satisfy him? Will the team be inspired and go forward with a narrow straight forward win , or a big score margin?”

 The Captain of Team Melli simply said “We want to be ourselves and play like we always play”

Questions then were asked of Queiroz, Answering about his statement that Yemen game is a final in itself; Queiroz said that there was a misunderstanding of what he has said.

“I didn’t say the game against Yemen was the most important game, I simply said that we will take each game as it comes and take it seriously. We are focusing on Yemen game, one game at the time.”

On his opinion on which team is the black horse of the championship.

 Queiroz said “As far as I am concerned , Japan and South Korea are the two top contenders as they have invested heavily in football, have expansive youth program, quality infrastructure and they have the resources.”

“Next comes  Australia  with and couple of dreamers!  20 or 21 other dreamers” as Queiroz put it.

Asked about his aspiration in the championship , Queiroz said that he does not consider his team as title contender. “All I can say is that we will try to be better and if we win we win deservedly. “

On the conditions of the players, The head coach of Team Melli said  “2 major players were not able to recover for the game on time, fortunately we have other options to replace them. It is not a major concern for us and I am happy with the situation, Injuries can happen to any team. UAE lost Omar Abdulrahman for the tournament and it already has a big impact on them”

Question ” Is there any lessons to be learned from the two games already played, UAE drew with Bahrain and title holder Australia lost to Jordan?

“It is always a warning for big teams. No team has a credit card that tells it that it is the favorite.  We have to display our abilities. Yemen has a good coach, I praise him for working under difficult conditions, and they have beautiful players.”

“We are looking to play a good match that entertains the fans and makes them happy; we do have the ability to display such standard.”

A question was asked by a reporter saying that Team Melli fans and indeed Iranian all across the world  followed you for many years now, what do you have to present to them in this championship?

“ We can’t control the outcome of the game!. We can control our commitment and attitude. I always challenge my players to play so that the fans are proud of them. Display positive attitude inside the pitch. Personally I feel proud if that is achieved”

Non-Committal.

Queiroz refrained from giving any promises apart from playing to entertain, as he put it. Short of entertainment, he has not declared or publicaly announced any championship aspiration as he puts Iran in the dreamers group with another 21 teams that plays second fiddle to Japan and Korea.

It is indeed a confusing and perhaps shattering statements for some fans who expect nothing less than lifting the trophy after 43 years of absence. It shows how Queiroz is detached from the public sentiments but if he really has such aspirations, then he is holding his cards close to his heart.

It needs no reminder that Queiroz is following his old and trusted style. By constantly reminding the world about the lack of resources in Iran and glorifying the opposition, even Yemen, he is limiting expectations. A win is a bonus but a loss is expected as he would easily respond by saying “I told you so”

Querioz has successfully navigated rough terrains of Iranian football by following such policy. Today he downplayed any championship expectation but it is not clear if the crowds like such lack of ambition.

Team Melli Training

The media was allowed to attend the first 15 minutes of the practice which was entirely dedicated to stretching exercise and light training with and without the ball. The goalkeepers then formed their own mini group and  headed to far side for shooting training.

Player formed several circles passing the ball between themselves.

While a group was passing the ball, Biranvand got whacked in the face. The players of the group surrounded him to console him. It looked painful, but he emerged out of it laughing.

Stretching exercises while the press was allowed to watch was carried out in a jolly spirit. Some players displayed exceptional control of the ball.

Jahanbakhsh individually trained with Montazerri. He looked quite sharp despite his chances of playing against Yemen is slim.

YEMEN Press Conference

Yemen’s Czech trainer expressed his views in the formal diplomatic style that coaches deploy nowadays. Calling Iran as one of the best Asian teams that has played very well in Russia’s World Cup, he said he has no delusions about that he expects and what he can be achieved. He has studied Iran and knows that his team has a difficult task ahead, however, he has asked his team to play to their best ability. On the troubles and war in Yemen, Jan Kocian said that most of the selection was carried out by his assistant and the Coaching team, though the training camp that was carried out in Saudi Arabia was quite valuable as they have played several games too.

Alaa Al Sasi , the star player of Yemen team  was asked if he has thought of any opposition player that the team need to control or limit his threats , he said that the coach has reviewed Iran thoroughly and we accept all their players are quite good but there is no plan to focus on any single player of Iran.

Kocian was asked what he thinks of Queiroz, the Czech coach said as a coach he has a lot respect for his colleagues, Carlos Queiroz is no exception but saying that he is a good coach who is well known outside of Iran. He knows that Queiroz has faced some pressures from the media and there were some uncertainties, but he remains an excellent coach.

Iran and Yemen will meet in the opener of Group D of AFC Asian Cup 2019 in Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on the 7th January.

Iran, the strongest contender for the title.

As the AFC Asian Cup is drawing closer, the pressure on Carlos Queiroz mounts to prove his worth with Team Melli by winning the 17th edition of the continents top prize.

The Portuguese head coach, whose resume included world class teams like Real Madrid, Manchester United, Portugal and South African national teams, has spent enough time in Iran and Asia to mount a serious challenge for the continent most coveted trophy which eluded Iran for 43 years.

For over 5 years, Team Melli has been ranked at the top of FIFA Ranking, rudely interrupted by Japan in one or two occasion. Under Queiroz’s leadership, Iran made it to two World Cups with ease it should be said, against tough opponents such as South Korea and Uzbekistan.

Iran stars such as Azmoun, Jahanbakhsh and Ansarifard have not performed anywhere near some of the other Asian footballers in Europe and none of them seem to be able to hold a place in their teams. South Korea’s Son Heung-min ,  is indispensable  member of the English Premiere league title contenders , Tottenham ,  Ki Sung-yueng is an important player for Newcastle, Australia’s brilliant goalkeeper  Mathew Ryan , has been Brighton’s saviour, Tom Rogic of Celtic  plays a major role for the Scottish champions, Japan’s Maya Yoshida (Southampton) ,  Shinji Kagawa (B. Dortmund),and Shinji Okazaki (Leicester City) all passed the grade for their  European Teams. It is interesting to note however, that Japan’s coach Hajime Moriyasu in true Japanese tradition opted for a team filled with young Europe-based talents, leaving stars like the latter two players off the squad. In brief, individually, the other Asian footballer have fared much better in Europe than Team Melli players.

 

Success at National team level in a competition such as the AFC Asian Cup cannot be judged on the individual star of a team. In the true meaning of the word, it is the team, in a collective sense that makes a difference at the end. The combination of Queiroz with his experience, knowledge and tactical acuteness with this group of talented and capable Iranian footballers, whom he has built and molded to his liking, is an excellent recipe for success. This is perhaps the best Iranian team since 1976 and many pundits know it and swear by it.

It is football, after all. One or two teams can spring a surprise. Australia, the defending champion minus a few of their stars from 2015 , Japan’s young yet tactically sound team, South Korea with a tradition ,  tactical discipline and winning mentality are as good as any to win the title.  There are also some outsiders, including Qatar, Iraq, Uzbekistan and Saudi Arabia who might have a say in the tournament too.

Considering all factors, Iran and Queiroz still hold the upper hand and they are the team to beat. Barring some of the reckless finishing that have marred their recent performances, the trio up front in Team Melli can beat the best of their opponents. A solid defense is vital for any team with aspiration of winning championships and Team Melli has it all. In fact, Queiroz has a problem of riches in defense with all the defenders in the squad on similar forms and standards.

Ezatollahi’s absence in the defensive midfield role is a real, perhaps the only blow to Queiroz, but there is enough quality in the team to ensure his absence is not felt.

Success and chances of lifting the trophy will be greatly enhanced when personal, and tactical discipline (Queiroz is most defiantly should lead by example from the touchline) is at its highest. Not allowing the outcome of the match to be dependent on vacillating referees’ such as Ben Williams calls is a key factor.

On a positive note, Team Melli will have the greatest support outside of Iran in the UAE. The great Iranian community will be ever present to cheer the boys. This support cannot be underestimated.

Now all that remains is for the likes of Azmoun, Taremi, Ansarifarfd and Jahanbakhsh to convert their chances on the pitch and leave lady luck in the dressing room.

Rank 30 for Team Melli

Iran climbed 3 places to number 30 in the world in the latest ranking figures that was published by FIFA on the 25th October 2018.

While still maintaining the top title in the AFC Zone , Team Melli managed to add 3 extra points to its grand total.  All other Asian teams maintained the same place in the AFC zone ranking.

 

FIFA Ranking Oct 2018

Rank Team Points Previous  Change
28 SVKSlovakia 1483 1491 -2
29 VENVenezuela 1479 1476 3
30 IRNIR Iran 1478 1474 3
31 PARParaguay 1477 1477 0
32 BIHBosnia and Herzegovina 1476 1468 2

 

 

AFC Zone

 

Asia

Rank

 World Rank Positions Total Points Previous Points +/-
1 30 IRNIR Iran 1478 1474 3
2 42 AUSAustralia 1432 1431 1
3 50 JPNJapan 1409 1398 4
4 53 KORKorea Republic 1401 1395 2
5 72 KSASaudi Arabia 1334 1337 -1