Tag: Portugal

21/05/2015

Vahid Shamsaei appointed as coach of Iran’s Futsal Team.

In an unforeseen move, the FFIRI has appointed Vahid Shamsaei as the acting head coach of Iran’s futsal team.

Shamsaei, a legendary futsal player in his own right is currently the head coach of league champion side, Tasisat Daryaei FSC. In a statement carried by the official FFIRI website, the head of the futsal committee Seyed Reza Efitkhari announced “We have thoroughly discussed the current situation in the aftermath of Jesus Candelas resignation from his post. To minimize the impact and for the sake of continuity, we have decided that the best option is to appoint Vahid Shamsaei as caretaker head coach until such time when a final appointment can be reached.”

The move seems to be a hasty one brought by the circumstances and shortage of time as Iran futsal team has a busy schedule ahead and involved in several competitions which require prompt action to resolve the coaching responsibilities and appointments.

What seems to be quite odd, however, is the decision by the FFIRI Futsal committee to nominate Shamsaei’s team as the representative of Iran! This move was most probably demanded by Shamsaei himself as a pre-condition for accepting the job on temporary basis. Shamsaei is free to choose other players from other teams to supplement his own. Tasisat team which will be labeled as Iran’s Team Melli futsal team. Shamsei’s first assignment is to take the team to Portugal on a tour where two games are arranged against the Portuguese national side.

Vahid Shamsaei (39 years) is officially the world’s top futsal goal scorer with 82 goals. He started his coaching career while still playing with Dabir Tabriz. In 2014 he transferred to Tasisat Daryaei and won them the title on his first attempt. The 8 times Asian Cup winner had a difficult relation with FFIRI in past few years. Futsal in general is still going through some rough times, with variety of problems. Managerial disputes, league disruption, crowds’ disturbances, claims of corruption and administration problems have marred the progress of futsal in Iran.

Iran is hosting the AFC Futsal Club Championship in summer 2015 (30July-07^th August)

Iran has won the Asian title a record 10 times but lost the last AFC Asian Championship to Japan on Penalty kicks last year). The other nations that won the tire is Japan on 3 occasions.

08/11/2014

Iran lose to Portugal in the 3rd place playoff.

Portugal scored another victory over Iran in the Samsung Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup 2014. The match between the two losing semi-finalists ended 3-0 for the Portuguese.

The 3-0 win for Portugal over Iran had the same result, though different score, different day, and different style than they had earlier in the week but the win was still just as gratifying, if not more. The game was cerebral for the first two periods, neither offense scored and the defenses, even after Portugal began scoring, were magnificent. Portugal did not score until the last period but did so three times to pull away late against championship caliber Iran. The win gives Portugal 3rd place and Iran took 4th place out the 8 best teams across the continents.

Portugal defeated Iran earlier in the tournament and while that could have been expected, it was also a bit of an upset as Iran is the defending Samsung Beach Soccer Intercontinental Cup champion, so the outcome could have realistically gone either way, but neither side seemed disappointed to be playing in the 3rd place match after semi-final losses. The two squads fought hard in the opening frame and going into the middle of the period, neither side had scored. The second period started with some great opportunities for Portugal but the chances went unanswered and the goalless thriller continued into the middle of the frame. The momentum slowly began to shift as the Princes of Persia were asking all the questions but Portugal still had their world class keeper, Petrony, at their disposal, and the score remained tied at 0. The excitement increased as the saves piled up and the score was 0-0 going into the final break.

The pressure mounted for the two squads and that was evident in the 3rd period because both sides did not want to make the tiny mistake that gave their opponent the lead. The hope of an onslaught of goals was initiated by Jordan of the Selection of the Quinas when he blasted a mid-range shot past P. Hossieni to put the score at 1-0. Portugal found their confidence and added another goal, from Be Martins, that gave them a seemingly safe 2-0 lead. Be Martins got his second goal and was ecstatic to give his side an even bigger lead, at 3-0, and the Portuguese held onto that energy for the rest of the match, as they had earned third place in this gem of a tournament, when all was said and done. The final score was 3-0.

Goals: 0-1: Jordan, min. 9 (3); 0-2: Be Martins, min. 6 (3); 0-3: Be Martines, min. 2 (3)

Brazil took home crown after besting Russia in o.t.

14/10/2014

Team Melli wins against Benfica

Lisbon: Team Melli , currently on a training camp in Portugal , defeated Benfica reserve team 1-0 in the Portuguese capital Lisbon.

The match , played in mid morning , was the second and the last match in the camp . Sardar Azmoun scored Iran’s only goal from a header after a cross from Andranik Teymourian.

The match was conducted in an unusual format. The Games went on for 60 minutes in the first half followed by a break then another 30 minutes . Both sides rotated their complete squad in the match.

First half line up was : Alireza Haghighi (30′ Mohsen Frouzan) , Vourya Ghafouri, PejmanMontazeri, Mehrdad Pooladi , Amir Hossein Sadeghi,Omid Ebrahimi, Sourosh Rafei , Andranik Teymourian ,AliReza Jahanbakhsh , , Masoud Shojaei, SardarAzmoun

In the second half , the team was completely changed as the line-up were the following. Alireza Biranvand , Jalal Hosseini, Khosro Heydari, Hashim Beigzadeh, Ehsan Haj Safi, Vahid Amiri, Ahmad Abdullah Zadeh, , Morteza Pouraliganji , Ashkan Dejagah, Karim Ansarifard , Reza Ghoochannejhad

Captain , Javad Nekounam was the only player who did not play due to flu.

The team will return back to Tehran from tonight in two groups.

08/10/201408/10/2014

Team Melli will play Benfica Reserves !

Iran’s Team Melli will be playing a friendly match against the reserve team of Benfica in preparation for the AFC Asian Cup! The match will be played at 10:30 in the morning next Tuesday 14th October 2014.

Team Melli squad is currently in Carlos Queiroz homeland and so far has managed to arrange two matches only, one of which would have been a real test for Team Melli which has lost valuable preparation time for the upcoming premiere Asian Competition. Due to procrastinating of Queiroz and Kaffashian on signing a contract extension, Team Melli had no coach or a program until a few weeks ago.

The match against full strength Benfica, would have been a strong duel to test Queiroz’s much favored defensive system. However, since the famous Portuguese club and three times European Cup holder is involved in the Champions League and the National Team of Portugal is busy with the European Cup qualifiers, Benfica coach Jorge Jesus has preferred to field the reserve team giving his main players enough rest for the tough schedule ahead.
Benfica will be meeting Sporting Covilhã in the Portuguese cup on 18th October.

On the other hand, Iran opponents in the group have been having a busy schedule from the summer as UAE has played strong oppositions like Paraguay , Lithuania, Norway, Georgia & Armenia while Qatar played the likes of Uzbekistan, Peru, Morocco, Indonesia and Macedonia.

It is rumored that a friendly match against Palestine is on the cards next for Team Melli, but it has yet to be finalized.

04/10/2014

24 players short-listed for Team Melli

The shortlist of 24 players making it to Portugal has been announced by FFIRI after the last round of the Persian Gulf League matches have been completed. The team will be flying to Lisbon tonight (Saturday 4^th Oct) where two tests matches are arranged against Portuguese clubs Estoril and Benfica. Team Melli will be utilizing the FIFA days for this camp.

The selection of the players, as always, raised a few questions on who selected the team? Mehdi Rahmati inclusion in the list did not last long as expected, while there is no place for one of the stars of the league, Mohammadreza Khalatbary. While khalatbaruy was showing his worth in the match against Persepolis on Friday with a splendid assist to Mehdi Sharifi to score a last minute winner, neither of the two made the 24 players list of Queiroz.

Vahid Ameeri - Naft Tehran — Vahid Ameeri – Naft Tehran

However, by some divine rights, Mehrdad Pooladi who has not kicked a ball in official competitions since the last match in the FIFA World Cup and currently has no club after he failed to sign with a Qatari team, is included in this squad!

There is also a question mark on the selection of Karim Ansarifard , a player who has not featured in many of Osasuna matches this season and sometimes he is not even included in the bench , yet he is selected for Team Melli ahead of many capable active playing forwards.

On a positive note, the list includes several rookies mostly from Naft Tehran and Foolad Khuzestan clubs. Ahmadzadeh , Rafei . Ameeri, Pouraliganji and Ghafoori are players that have been instrumental in their teams this season and have been duly selected for the squad. The old guards who have failed to impress with Team Melli in the FIFA World Cup are still there with the exception of Baithashour and Davari who are not able to join due to club or other commitments.

The biggest surprise must be the absence of any players from one of the two most popular teams in Iran, Persepolis. The club has been suffering a dreadful form and sacked coach Daei lately. That is the first time such non-inclusion of a Persepolis players has occurred. On the other hand no players from the league leaders Tractorsazi have been included. This raises many questions about the selections and if they are based on current form and performance or is it player’s reputation or other factors..

Goalkeepers

Alireza HAGHIGHI (Penafiel), Alireza BIRANVAND (Naft Tehran), Mohsen FROUZAN (Esteghlal)

Defender

Mehrdad POOLADI (No Club), Hashim BEIGZADEH (Esteghlal), ,Jalal HOSSEINI (Al Ahli QAT) , Pejman MONTAZERI (Umm Salal SC QAT), Morteza POURALIGANJI (Naft Tehran), AmirHossein SADEGHI (Esteghlal) , Vourya GHAFFORI (Sepahan)

MIDFIELD

Andranik TEYMOURIAN (Esteghlal), Javad NEKOUNAM (Osasuna ESP), Ahmad ABDULLAZADEH (Foolad Khuzestan), Omid EBRAHIMI (Esteghlal),, Ehsan HAJSAFY(Sepahan), Ashkan DEJAGAH (Al Arabi QAT), Soroush RAFEI (Foolad Khuzestan), Masoud SHOJAEI (Al Shahaniya QAT), Khosrow HEYDARI (Esteghlal).

FORWARDS

Reza GHOOCHANNEJAD (Al Kuwat SC KWI), Sardar AZMOUN (Rubin Kazan RUS), Karim ANSARIFARD (Osasuna ESP), Vahid AMEERI (Naft Tehran) , AliReza JAHANBAKHSH (NEC Nijmegen NED)

29/04/201429/04/2014

Nekounam has abundance of responsibility for Iran

(Reuters) – Playmaker, captain, penalty taker and free-kick specialist, Iran midfielder Javad Nekounam has an abundance of responsibility as Team Melli prepare for their fourth World Cup appearance.

The 33-year-old, though, has a wealth of experience to draw on having made more than 130 appearances for the three-times Asian champions since making his debut 14 years ago.

His abilities have not faltered with age as his six goals in the Asian qualifiers proved, with Iran topping their groups in both the third and fourth rounds to reach Brazil.

Composed on the ball with a strong passing game, Nekounam is the fulcrum of the Iranian team in his number six shirt and anchors the midfield from where he instigates swift counter-attacks.

He played in Iran’s opening two World Cup matches in Germany 2006 and although the team left without a win – following group defeats by Mexico and Portugal and a draw with Angola – he impressed enough to earn a contract with La Liga side Osasuna.

His transfer made him the first Iranian to play in Spain’s top flight where he spent six years scoring over 20 goals in close to 150 appearances.

His spell in Spain ended in 2012 and he returned home to Iran with Esteghlal, helping them to the Pro League title and the semi-finals of the Asian (AFC) Champions League.

His performances resulted in him being shortlisted for the AFC Player of the Year award but he missed out to China’s Zheng Zhi for the title.

He moved away from Esteghlal at the start of the year to join Kuwait SC where he has continued to add to his goal tally, albeit it at a weaker level.

With Iran drawn against Argentina, one of the tournament favorites in Group F, Nekounam will need to be at his best anchoring the defensive effort alongside Andranik Teymourian against a likely barrage of attacks.

He should get more of a chance to show his attacking threat in the opening match of their Brazilian campaign against Nigeria in Curitiba on June 16.

They then face Argentina, before facing Bosnia in their Group F finale with any hope of the team adding to their sole victory in the finals against old political foes the United States in 1998 resting on a strong showing from their skipper.

18/04/2014

60 days to go with the wrong headlines.

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60 days to go to the start of Iran’s pursuit of glory in the World Cup, yet Team Melli is making the headlines for the wrong reasons.

While the team and the squad needs much stability , comradeship , peace of mind and hard work in training , instead, a disruptions to the plans has resulted in some unwelcome events which has already over shadowed the preparation to the camp of Team Melli.

The episode revolved around one point. The release of 4 Clubs’ player for national team duty conducting a training camp in South Africa, while these clubs were still involved in AFC Champions league competition.

Much has been said in this matter while heated argument ensued between the two sides, the clubs and the football association each accusing the other side of non-cooperation and ignoring the national interest.

If it is about taking side, then we all need to take the side of Team Melli. But, if it is about the law, respect for the regulation and if it is about justice, then there is only one verdict, and that is for the side of the clubs. FIFA regulation regarding release of the players for the 2014 FIFA World Cup is quite clear. The mandatory rest period for the players is from 19^th to 25^th May 2014. After which the players should be released for national team duty.

Why Carlos Queiroz who incidentally has reminded us , that he knows more about FIFA Rules than anybody in Iran , has failed to understand and abide by this particular FIFA regulation , is beyond our understanding.

If for argument sake , Queiroz was a coach of Portugal or England , would he dare demand that the football league competition has to stop by mid-April , 30 of the best league players from their team pulled out for a camp while denying them playing in the most prestigious and lucrative club competition of the continent , the Champions league ? The answer is simply, no way. He would have been laughed at for even suggestion that. But , he got away with it in Iran, he managed to convince the hierarchy that the league should finish early and the players be at the disposal of Team Melli for about 70 days before the World Cup duty.

How did he achieve that? Perhaps because for one, the Iranians are quite an accommodating lot especially towards foreigners and guests. It is a cultural issue to respect the foreigners and that extends to football coaches like Queiroz. Unlike their Arab neighbors, the Iranians rarely sack foreign football coaches like the Arabs do with ease and monotonous regularity, while paying them millions of dollars in compensation in the process. Cash strapped FFIRI simply cannot afford such payments and that is one good reason not to sack the coaches early.

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Queiroz justification in taking 28 domestic players for three weeks training camp, might sound logical to some. His concern about the players’ physical conditioning is one such justification. Local Iranian players, being the products of the Iranian domestic league are not in ideal physical condition. They run much less in a game than the Europeans players do and are physically weaker compared to the stronger opponents whom they will compete against in the World Cup. That is fine and quite understandable, however, what seems amiss here is the question of timing , why set up camp while clubs are involved in competitions and have already declared that they, the clubs, will not release their players for Team Melli?

What is becoming more complex in this equation is the character of the Portuguese head coach. Queiroz demeanor, an antagonist, aggressive, stubborn and begrudging person are some of the darker side of the this highly acclaimed coach.

A look at Queiroz history and you will see a list of misdemeanors as along as your arm,

Queiroz has a history of getting into trouble with others. From the time he was sacked as the coach of UAE in 1999 due to poor results on the surface when he lost to lowly Palestine , but in reality it was because Queiroz ignored his peers advise on the selection of some players, an act that did not please the shaikh. To the time that he resigned from the South Africa job despite qualifying them for the World Cup 2002 because of squabble with Jomo Sono over who has ultimate control of Bafana Bafana. Then in 2010 came the sacking from his own country’s top coaching job because of combination of poor results and insulting of Doping team staff for which he was suspended then pardoned by CAS.

Conceivably Queiroz was not always the guilty party in all of those cases, yet he continued his style in Iran. He always seems to have differences and arguments with the League coaches over various issues, continuously involved in confrontation with the media, he abruptly leaves press conference, he is expelled from a crucial match against South Korea for being too graphic in protesting a referee’s decision. Then comes that famous headline making confrontation with the petulant South Korean coach. Queiroz was lucky to escape sanctions by FIFA for provocations and insults at the end of that famous game in Ulsan.

What it seems like is that Querioz has communication issues mixed with some hot temper. Has very little time and capacity for accepting criticism and can only see it one way, and that is his way. Anything else is seems to be a sign of animosity.

No one can question the Portuguese lack of passion and sense of achievement and pride. He is a fighter alright and does not accept defeat easily. Some of his misdemeanors might be justified, but in the real world of very competitive football with lots at stake, being an accommodating and a compromising character, can go a long way towards the success or failure of a coach.

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