Tag: Persepolis

Team Melli Head Coach

Queiroz defends his selection

Portuguese head coach Queiroz left Persepolis captain Seyyed Jalal Hosseini and Esteghlal winger Vouria Ghaffouri out of his squad for next month’s FIFA World Cup, insisting before squad travel to Istanbul, that the decisions were purely based on tactical issues.

“We have to call only 23 players in our final list and we could not do anything else because of the rules and logistical issues,” Queiroz said in response to criticism and then talked about the important players who have no place in his squad.

Referring to Jalal Hosseini, Queiroz said: “I respect Jalal with all my heart, but this respect should be for the next generation of Iranian football as well. We need a younger Team Melli for the upcoming events and we have to move forward. I emphasize that Seyyed Jalal will remain on our waiting list and will join Team Melli if we need him.”

When asked about Vouria Ghaffouri, the coach answered: “I needed a solid right fullback in the national team, but at his club Esteghlal he was used as a right midfielder or winger, with the decision of head coach Winfried Schaefer. I have no idea why Mr. Schaefer was surprised by seeing Vouria is not in the squad. I don’t know why he’d say that. Mr. Schaefer does not believe in Vouria as a right back and has changed the player’s position.”

Queiroz’s reasoning has not convinced many experts with some accusing him of creating tension as result of his not-so-cordial relations  with the coaches of both clubs.

Team Melli travelled to Istanbul on Monday to hold a training camp in the European country. The Persians will face Turkey football team on May 29 in a friendly match as part of preparation for the 2018 World Cup.

Iran have been drawn in Group B of the 2018 World Cup along with Morocco, Spain and Portugal.

Ghafouri’s omission turns political.

Carlos Queiroz has never been too far from a controversy, conflict and downright confrontation with somebody or some organization.  He picks up verbal fights with anyone who dares to disagree with him and his lists of foe makes an interesting reading from his fellow trainers in Iran and outside to Head of charity organizations, journalists, TV presenters and his own staff.

This time, his adversary is not only a politician, a member of parliament, but also the issue is touching a sensitive political matter.

Following the release of Team Melli players list for the FIFA World Cup and the surprise omission of the names of Vouria Ghafouri (Esteghlal) and Seyyed Jalal Hosseini (Persepolis) from this list, a lot of criticisms of this move have been made by various sources. In the latest of such opposition to the move, the Kurdistan Provincial Sports and Youth General Director has reported the case to the parliament.

Hamid Joolayaei, in an interview with ISNA, said: ” Vouria Ghafouri’s omission has shocked the sports community, and for this reason, follow-up was needed with provincial authorities and parliamentarians.”

Referring to the fact that Ghafouri is still not entirely out of the squad (final list should be out by 4th June) , Ghafouri and several other players are on the waiting list for selection, and I hope he will return to the national team as results of the efforts we shall undertake.”

The director general of sports and youth of Kurdistan province continued to point out that the reason for Ghafouri’s exclusion is still unknown to anyone. He said “ Vouria Ghafouri has played well and was in form for Team Melli during this period and is currently is still in the AFC Champions League. It’s a surprise to be removed from the national team list without technical justification.”

Vouria Ghafouri

Vouria Ghafouri is from Kurdistan a minority community that had a long history of conflict and political struggle for independence. The government of Iran has always tried to ensure impartiality towards the minorities in the country and has attempted to eliminate any sense of injustice, prejudice or neglect in these provinces. The Kurds in particular has historically been one of Iran’s biggest worries. As such, this elimination of the only Kurdish Player, who happens to be an excellent player too, has raised more than a sporting question that could have other consequences. It certainly adds another dimension to what looks like a simple football selection decision.

Jalal Hosseini

Bijan Zulfagharnasab, one of the few Kurdish players to play for Team Melli, commented on the this subject. “Sometimes the coach is faced with a traffic jam in certain posts, a dilemma, and it is expected to give some of those players a break.”

Zulfagharnasab, pointing out that Vouria Ghafouri and Seyyed Jalal Hosseini are the two of the country’s leading players and experinced defenders , so their exclusion are quite surprising to say the least and raises questions”

Zulfagharnasab, did however note that  Vouria Ghafouri (30 years) and Seyyed Jalal Hosseini (36) are at an advanced age, said: “Given that the training and competition pressures are very high on the threshold of the World Cup, perhaps the national team coach, is giving the two players a rest for the game against Turkey so that they will be ready to take part in the World Cup.”

He recalled, “If Ghafouri and Hosseini have no disciplinary issues, they are more likely to be invited back to the national team.”

It is not clear whether the Iranian parliament will debate Carlos Queiroz’s decision on Ghafouri.

Biranvand’s poor form, a worry for Team Melli!

One would be excused to notice that the two goalkeepers that have performed so admirably in the AFC Asian Champions League matches yesterday are nowhere near being Team Melli’s first choice .  

The fact is that one Alireza Biranvand, a lackluster keeper with a questionable attitude and prone to errors, has been the number one choice for Carlos Queiroz and that is worrying.

Biranvand , the guardian of Persepolis has been quite poor this season. Single handedly he cost his team a precious win in Abu Dhabi last night conceding 3 goals, all of which could have been saved with some agility and better effort.  Young Goalkeepers like Biranvand at such age normally develop and reach their peak at a much later stage of their careers unlike other outfield players. Biranvand has played for Team Melli youth teams and forced himself to the senior team on sheer merits at the time that Iran had a dearth of goalkeeping talents.

However, Biranvand , seem to have stopped developing, but even worst , he is losing his touch too. There is a long list of shortcoming that has marred his performance particularly this season, from failure to judge the flight of crosses to poor reaction, to poor timings of coming out for a ball. Biranvand has cost his club many goals and lots of points, the type of which he had not experienced before at Persepolis.

Mehdi Rahmati

Admittedly, the problems he had with his club, had affected him. Contractual and financial issues, the lure of better contract at other clubs resulted in him requesting a transfer while he was tied by a contract. The club turned down his request, which resulted in Birnavand’s rebellion, absence from training and refusing to attend team meetings. He was the target of the boo-boys amongst the passionate Persepolis fans in Azadi. Branko Ivankovic was ready to kick him out of the team for his petulant attitude and discord he created in the team while they were fighting on two fronts, to win the league title and the AFC Champions league. Eventually, Biranvand came to his senses and returned, but traces of that episode are evident in his poor performances following that period.

On the other hand,  Zob Ahan goalkeeper and number 3 choice in Team Melli , Rashid Mazaheri was majestic in his performance against Esteghlal in the same stage of the AFC champions league match. Estaghlal lost to late penalty  for Zob Ahan to take a slender lead to Azadi. Despite that eye catching performance in goal for Zob Ahan, It would be very difficult to name Mazaheri as the best goalkeeper in Iran, because right in the opposite end of the field was none other than Seyed Mehdi Rahmati whose saves and reflexes was world class. An outcast in Team Melli, his skills and experience has saved Esteghlal time after time in that match. It was a sterling performance from the veteran keeper and Rahmati was at his best.

Two great performances from two Iranian keepers in the same match, was the highlight of this round of AFC Champions league. Two exceptional performances that has brought back some of the confidence lost in Iranian keepers and their qualities. Queiroz has no more than 3 games to check on his choice of goalkeeper for the World Cup. Birnavand has served him well and the Portuguese head coach is known to be loyal to his troops. But he has also shown that he can be demanding and would not hesitate to make drastic changes or drop star players if their performances and forms are not up to his standard.

Every player makes mistakes, and with goalkeepers by their nature being the last line of defence, theirs will be the costliest. Queiroz has one serious problem on his hand at that end.

Mehdi Taremi on his way to Al Gharafa

Persepolis & Team Melli Central Forward is on his way to joining Al Ghrafa Club in Qatar Star League QSL.

 

Mehdi Taremi who is currently suspended by FIFA for breaking his contract with a Turkish club, is currently in Doha, Qatar going through his medicals.  Upon successful completion of the medical tests, Al Gharafa will sign a two year contract with the forward who has been in Top form last season for club and country.

Taremi had been locked in a contract dispute with Turkish club Caykur Rizespor dating back to June 2016, when the player reached an agreement to join the club and later returned to Persepolis.

Persepolis have also been banned from signing players for the next two transfer windows.

Moreover, Caykur Rizespor are seeking 789,500 euros (944,300 U.S. dollars) in compensation from Persepolis for breach of transfer rules.

 

Yes Minister !!

Masoud Soltanifar was spot on when he issued instructions to Mehdi Taj and ordered FFIRI to investigate the management calamity that has led to a heavy fine and sanctions by FIFA imposed on Persepolis club that might approach the 800,000 Euro including legal cost.

The Minister of youth and sports was even more judicious and decisive when he demanded, in no uncertain terms, that the football administrators get their act together and start learning the skills of the trade by attending courses or workshop in order to improve their knowledge in international law and football management.

On the surface of things, the reaction of the minister is praiseworthy. Mr. Soltanifar, is more than concerned about the repeated failures of Iranian football management and poor decision making leading to wastage of public funds. Virtually all clubs, but most significantly the two top popular ones, Esteghlal and Persepolis, are run by the government in some form or another. As such this control has cost the public coffers tens of millions of dollars in expenditure and wastage. There is another motive for issuing the order by Mr. Soltanifar. He is, no doubt bracing himself for questioning in the Majlis (the Parliament) by members who will question his authority and criticize his role in this humiliation.

Indeed, humiliation is the right phrase used by no other than Carlos Queiroz to describe this whole affair.

However, on close scrutiny of this event and the subsequent reaction by the Minister, it seems that this is a clear case of self-incrimination.

The individuals who are running Persepolis are appointees of the Ministry in the first place. The Youth & Sports Minister approves the Chief Executive, board member and major posts in the club, and hence he is directly accountable for the actions by the club. It is him that has failed to appoint a competent team of administrators and it is appropriate that he is questioned and held accountable for this fiasco.

Those who run football in Iran, particularly Esteghlal and Persepolis clubs, from directors to key administration personnel, are mostly political appointees. Rather than competency or merit based appointments, the candidates for the posts are either ex revolutionary guards’ commanders, military,  police or government employees who have served the regime and in returned are rewarded for their loyalties. This might work if those people are competent and experienced in this field. There is no place for entrepreneurs, businessmen or professionally trained and experienced executives in the boards of Persepolis and Esteghlal.  It is more important to be a pious man who does not miss his prayer rather than being a capable manager with knowledge in marketing, financing, legal affairs and public relations talents. There is a distinct lack of personnel who can run clubs as corporate entities.

It is not surprising that fiascos such as this can be committed by the likes of Mehdi Taj, Ali Kaffashian and Ali Akbar Taheri. A person such as Mohammad Rouyanian, led Persepolis to the verge of bankruptcy while at the helm of the club a few years back. The affairs in the other popular club , Esteghlal, is not much better.  The Minster and the government must shoulder the responsibility especially since the concern is wastage of public funds that can be used in much needed areas of football development (such as having a decent training ground for Team Melli)

The lack of accountability is quite rife in Iran’s football. It is indeed rare for a coach, Chairman or an accountable manager to accept responsibility for a failure and resign his post.  All those aforementioned have one undeniable skill and that is bargaining! The word Chaneh, meaning bargaining or lack of a better term, maneuvering, dodging and evading an issue by the use of justification, excuses and pleas. This is instilled in the Iranian culture and accepted in the bazzar when buying a commodity but it is also widely used in business and administration process. It is a trait that takes those who excel in it to great heights in the hierarchy. With maneuvering and use of words and terms, these people get away with murder. Fortunately, in international law, there is no place for such maneuvering and that is where Iran football gets caught. The suspension of Iran by FIFA post Word Cup 2006 is still fresh in the memory.

It is not that Iran lacks managerial and administration skills to run a successful football club or football federation.

When the country has the likes of Mohammad Javad Zarif and his team of negotiators on the nuclear deal who have done the nation pride by their skills, professionalism, knowledge and proficiency that has gained the respect of the whole world, it is pity that such skills are nowhere to be seen in football administration which is now a global multibillion dollar business and not just purely a sport.

The government has no business running football in Iran, not in any other country for that matter. By owning and running sports clubs, there is a great responsibility that has to be accomplished in a successful manner. The reality is that the government has a vivid lack of vision, tools and competency in doing so. Their priorities are focused on security and fear of expression of discontent leading to mass revolt. It might be a legitimate right for the regime to protect itself, but by controlling football clubs and federation, it is exposing itself too . The government should have much more important functions and priorities other than running Esteghlal and Persepolis. 

Yes Minister. You are correct in your demands for answers. But it is a step too late. In corporate terms, this is a reactive measure rather than proactive. Even if there is partial success in reducing the penalties, it only serves as a cover for the real perennial problem in Iran’s football…incompetent management.

Ansarifard Joins Olympiacos

Team Melli striker Karim Ansarifard has joined the Greek giants Olympiacos from Panionios on a three-and-a-half year contract and a reported fee of €400,000 on Friday.

The 26-year-old who made a name for himself in Greek Super league with Panionios after scoring 11 goals in 36 appearances in all competitions last season, had offers from AEK, PAOK FC, Feyenoord and Olympique de Marseille. This current season, Karim has scored 5 goals and provided 3 assists in 14 matches.


Olympiacos is currently leading the table in the Greek Super League with 37 points from 14 games under tutelage of Portuguese coach Paolo Bento who was appointed in August 2016.

Olympiacos has qualified for the round of 32 in UEFA Europa League and they will take Turkish side Osmanlispor in a two-leg clash.
Although it was initially reported that Ansarifard would remain at Panionios until the end of the 2016-17 season, the contract he eventually signed is effective from the January 2017 transfer window.


Karim started his professional career in 2007 with Saipa before moving to Iranian league giant Persepolis in 2012. After 2014 World Cup Ansarifard moved to Spanish Segunda division Osasuna where he was mostly used as a bench-warmer.
A move to Panionios in the summer of 2015 saved his career as his good performance caught the eye of big teams and finally Olympiacos signed him.

Football Management of Iran !

Much has been said about the weaknesses of management in Iran’s football circles. The endless tales of failures by management of the football federation and clubs in Iran, is becoming so intolerable to the extent that the state-controlled and highly conformist Iranian media is becoming increasingly critical of the poor showing and embarrassingly appalling performance and decisions of the men in charge of football in the country.

Lack of proper selection and appointment mechanism of directors and personnel in Iranian clubs, dearth of experienced and skilled managers in football, poor international influences and relations building strategy, non-existent public relations , lack of vision , deficiency in  commercial activities and marketing skills , and absence of long term strategies are just a few of a long list of shortcomings that mars the working of football management in Iran.

It is quite safe to say, that without the government financial backing, none of the major clubs would be in existence and would have been bankrupt. That includes the major big clubs such as Esteghlal and Persepolis the two giants of Tehran, Zob Ahan and Sepahan of Esfahan and all the way to clubs in the South and North of Iran. Simply said these clubs could not run successfully and independently because there are very few capable, experienced and qualified football management running these clubs. The fact that government handouts is readily available, makes the situation even worse because these managers do not need to work hard to generate revenue to sustain the clubs activities.

 It is believed that Sepahan is one of the best run and most successful clubs in Iran. That is all relative, of course, as other clubs believe that the generous contribution by the state owned steel industry has been the main factor behind Sepahan’s success by pouring money into it.

However, it is prudent to review Sepahan and Sardar Azmoun episode

The prolific Team Melli young striker comes from the Turkmen region and was born in Gonbad-e Kāvus ,  of Golestan province on the New Year’s eve in 1995. He played football in various small provincial clubs before the scouts of Sepahan club spotted him in 2010 and invited him to join the youth Academy for development of talented player. It was definitely a fine move by the Esfahani club.

In the 3 years that Azmoun was registered under Sepahan, he was selected to represent Iran at several age Teams. He was always excellent and full of potential. However, Sepahan failed to see his real potential and opted to put on the sideline until a club from far away land of Chechnya decided that there is an enormous potential in this young Iranian lad that is worth investing in.

Sardar Azmoun, arguably, the best Iranian talent in the past two decades, left to Rubin Kazan without playing a single match for Sepahan senior team, not in the league nor in the cup.

Furthermore,  Sepahan Management never thought of protecting their investment by binding the player to a contract or writing a clause in it for future, like most other professional clubs do. Clauses to claim part of future transfers as their share of development of the player. So, after 3 years of work by Sepahan coaches at all levels, the boy left to Russia without Sepahan getting anything of significance.

Today, Azmoun’s current market value is close to £11.05 million, which FC Rostov will be getting from his sale to any club interested in the 22 year old striker; Those clubs include Première league Liverpool and Arsenal.

What about Sepahan? They will get zilch, no development right fees and no percentage of transfer fee, simply because amateurs’ are running the commercial departments of the clubs. People short of vision and devoid of ideas and strategy.

One can only imagine how bad & chaotic the business is conducted in clubs like Esteghlal and Persepolis, who are getting the lion-share of the public funds and government handouts without producing single Iranian young talented players in the last two decades.

 

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Azadi stadium is becoming a full seater.

The Minister of Youth and Sport inspected the ongoing work in Azadi stadium to convert the jewel of Iranian crown into a full seater venue.

FIFA has put a partial ban on the stadium due to the fact that the higher level section was consisting of concrete slab and spectators had to suffer being seated on such a rough surface. That ban reduced the capacity of Azadi stadium to less than half.

The Sport Ministry managed to fork out a budget to upgrade the stadium especially since Iran is involved in the FIFA World Cup 2018 qualifiers starting next September. 

Mr. Mahmoud Goudarzi spoke to the media after concluding his inspection tour and assured the public that the seats will be ready before the match against Qatar on September 1st. “We have been promised the delivery of the stadium 10 days before the match. I am confident that we will have all the seats ready by then”. “The stadium capacity will be reduced to 78,116 all seated.” the minister declared.

Asked about the request by Carlos Queiroz to move the Team Melli practise sessions to Azadi Stadium , the Minister declined such request and said that “Azadi is a venue for matches and not a practise ground. The football federation must find a suitable place for Team Melli to practise”. Responding to another question from a reporter on whether this Stadium will be handed over to Esteghlal and Persepolis, Mr. Goudarzi rediculed such claims “This is meaningless. This stadium belongs to the people of Iran, it makes no sense at all to hand it over  such a grand venue to two clubs only”

 Goudarzi said that by the instruction of the President, a technical team has been inspecting the stadium to check the safety level and problems of water seepage and accumulation. This team has already carried out the inspection and are in the process of finalizing its recommendations and report.

 

Who runs Iran’s football?

It is certainly not run by entrepreneurs or private companies in the style of European clubs. Most fans will probably think that Iran’s football is greatly influenced by the two most popular clubs in the land Persepolis and Esteghlal, which according to unofficial figures make up a total of over 93% of the fans in Iran. The fact that Iran is very much a bipolar football nation is quite obvious and a no brainer, but both  clubs have been through some turmoil, constant change of management and a center of power struggle.

epa000398134 Iranian football fans cheer for their team in the Azadi stadium in Teheran during the Asia Group B World Cup qualification football game between Iran and Japan on Friday, 25 March 2005. EPA/ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH
 Iranian football fans cheer for their team in the Azadi stadium in Teheran during the Asia Group B World Cup qualification football game between Iran and Japan 

Both are owned and run by the Islamic regime, and as such, their management appointees are from them men closely connected to the clergy and those who have certain political leanings. There is no such thing as election in these clubs. The appointees are not necessarily the most suited to develop or progress the clubs to success, their objectives is slightly different. Historically, it has been a goldmine for some. Persepolis have been poorly managed and taken advantage of. Gone are the days these two clubs produced the best players in Iran through their youth development systems, instead they rob other smaller clubs players and depend on their scouting system to lure young and potential players.

In Iran’s football, everything revolves around the Red and Blue.  These two clubs get the lion share of media coverage, including the most important of them all, the TV. The printed media is also monopolized by the events of these two teams; the Iranian sport social media is incredibly just about these two as if no other club exists. So, it is not uncommon for some dubious characters attempting to get a foothold in these two clubs as the rewards are certainly tempting and the influence obtained by being associated with these two are certainly fulfilling.  Those dubious and inept appointees, however , turned Persepolis and Esteghlal into a poorly run chaotic entities suffering from a plethora of problems and specifically lack of money , resources and corruption. 

Esteghlal fans in Azadi stadium

Poor management resulted in poor results on the field and because of this, it prompted the government to act to preserve the honor of the two clubs which at times are even more important to the fans than Team Melli!

The plans to change the way that football is owned and managed in Iran started from the time when ex-President Ahmadinejad was in power. In fact he was the one who was driving the case to improve and clean up football. The case for change became stronger following a series of poor results by Iranian teams across the board at club and national team levels.  Despite the genuine government attempts to privatize football beginning with Persepolis and Esteghlal, and the great enthusiasm shown by the football loving Ahmadinejad, in his two terms of presidency he failed to change anything.  President Rouhani, followed on the footstep of his predecessor and took up the case but this time with the support of the Majlis (Parliament), so far, Rouhani also failed to achieve anything of significance.   

None of the two presidents and their governments’ ministers delivered on the promise of privatization as a mean of development of football. That raises the obvious question, Who is more powerful than the Presidents in Iran to over-rule their attempts to change the way football clubs are run? Whose authority supersedes those of the President, the head of government and the parliament?

The supreme leader and his institutions, of course.

Football is very much under the influence and control of the revolutionary guards (IRGC) after years of infiltration by people associated with them. Their careful plans , empire building and using that power tool of religion that cannot be overridden made them virtually untouchable by the government ministries or agencies.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), these days, control many if not most clubs either directly or indirectly. In recent years, IRGC commanders have become executives with some of the major football clubs while they hold senior positions in Iran’s extensive security apparatus.

Examples:

Akbar Ghamkhar, the former chief of logistics at the IRGC naval wing’s Nouh Base, and Mohammad Rouyanian, an IRGC officer and later a police chief, have served respectively as President and Chief Executives of Persepolis Football Club, since 2002. Both were considered to be highly influential in football circles but with superficial knowledge of how to run the top club in Iran.

Both have failed, miserably while Rouyanian ended up in jail after being accused of corruption. He was released at a later date but details of his incarceration and the offences committed were never made public.

Colonel Zohrab Qanbari Mahardou is executive director of Fajr Sepasi FC of Shiraz, which is officially owned and run by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards. The club enjoyed some period of success in the last decade but then nose dived and eventually relegated to the lower division. It was rumored that Fajr Sepasi was the most hated club in Iran!

Lotfallah Forouzandeh Dehkordi, the IRGC chief of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, is a Persepolis FC board member. Commander Mostafa Ajorlou, a former IRGC Physical Training chief, is a board member of the Tractorsazi Tabriz club after a long career with several other teams including one successful stint with once famous Pas club.

Brigadier-General Gholam-Asgar Karimian serves as chairman of the board of the same club, which is owned by Mehr ‘e Eqtesad-e Iranian Investment Company, one of the IRGC’s financial arms.

The presence and the control of the semi-military in the form of the IRGC in Iran’s football affair is not a coincidence and far from the notion that these commanders love the beautiful game. Such control is a strategical and calculated move by the hierarchy to control the masses and ensure the crowd control is well within their grasp. Many Iranians suspect it was to extend control of the clubs’ vast following of fans, which are seen as a potential power in the streets that, in certain circumstances, could turn on a clerical regime that tolerates little criticism.

In the last decade or so, football in Iran suffered some major setbacks. Doping , Game-fixing, Corruption , contemptible management, players’ power, nepotism, disastrous results & Performances, astronomical players and coaches wages , favoritism , cheating, lack of accountability and many other setbacks and scandals made the headlines. As such, all these and more provoked unusual public scrutiny into the commanders who run the sport. IRGC officers are busy trying to convince the country there is nothing awkward in their involvement and rumors about clubs being poorly run nothing but the enemy’s plot. Results in the field of football says otherwise.

Aziz-Mohammadi

Commander Aziz-Mohammadi, a veteran of the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war and a former member of the Islamic Republic Football Federation IRIFF, says the IRGC presence in soccer was not “systematically planned”.

Questioned by the sports publication Tamashagaran Emrooz (Today’s Spectators), Aziz-Mohammadi explained that most IRGC officers played football before the 1980-88 war with Iraq and simply “pursued their pre-war interests after the war ended.”

“If they make it to the top management of the soccer clubs it’s because of their qualifications and not connections” he argued.  It is hard to digest such argument as there is little if any natural connection between football and the military or to be precise the Militia. Commander Aziz-Mohammadi was a candidate for the recently run elections to head the football federation. He came last in the 3 man race for the top job in IRIFF.

Mohammad Dadkan- Former head of IRIFF

However, the Guards may have another motive. Mohammad Dadkan, the former president of Iran Football Federation, defiantly hit out at the IRGC’s growing control of the sport in an interview with Khabar Online on August 21st, 2015.

“There’s no corruption in football itself … but the managers in the football world are corrupt. Unfortunately people who know nothing about football are involved in this sport – managers from the Guards and the Law Enforcement Forces,” he said.

With the immense potential that the Iranians possess in football and most sports in general, the National team has failed to win the Asian Cup since the former Shah’s days. Iranian teams failed to win even a single AFC Champions League title, while the U23 team failed to reach the Olympic games for over 40 years. Clearly, there is a systematic fault in how football is managed and run.

Control of the teams and the fan clubs also allows the regime to permit the soccer-going public to vent their anger and frustrations under controlled circumstances. The IRGC skillfully harnesses the unruly fans and sees to it that any shouldering sense of anger or frustration is directed against the opposing team rather than the Tehran regime. Interestingly enough, the hardliners who control football and security at the same time, have never allowed the Tehran derby, with regular attendances of 100,000 fans to be played at night. Crowd control is much easier at day time.

The regime has good reason to fear political fallout from football. In November 1997, as Iran advanced to the 1998 World Cup, soccer fans, including many women, took to the streets celebrating the national team (Team Melli) with songs and dances, which the regime frowned upon as un-Islamic. Religion is unquestionably above everything else including patriotism and football in Iran.

It was the same when Iran beat the United States 2-1 at the FIFA World Cup in France in 1998. But things were different in October 2001 when the national team was beaten 3-1 at home to Bahrain in a World Cup qualifying match.

As rumors spread that the match had been politically fixed, fans went on the rampage, setting fire to government offices, attacking banks and government properties and clashing with police.

The crossover of IRGC into the sporting world may not be altogether for the love of the game.

Mehdi Taremi back in Persepolis !

The central forward and Team Melli player Mehdi Taremi , did a quick U turn returning to his previous club Persepolis after announcement that he has signed for Turkish Club 

 Mehdi Taremi along with Ramin Rezaeian have signed with Turkish Super League club Çaykur Rizespor, but the former changed his mind and came back with giving any solid reasons. Both players left under a cloud of controversy and criticism for leaving unceremoniously. It seems that Persepolis is seeking legal advise on Rezaeian.