Tag: Uzbekistan

Tough draw for Iran in AFC U23 Championship Thailand 2020

Bangkok: Iran’s Omid Team has been drawn in what must be the toughest group of the AFC U23 Championship Thailand 2020.
Joining Iran are the defending champions Uzbekistan, Korea Republic and China in Group C. The Thailand 2020 Finals draw was held in Bangkok on Thursday. Iran had no representation in the draw ceremony.
Uzbekistan will open their defence of the AFC U23 Championship title in Group C with a match against Iran’s Omid Team. It promises to be an exciting group as all three of Uzbekistan’s challengers will be aiming to win the title for the first time.

The fourth edition of the Championship will be played across three cities – Bangkok, Buriram and Songkhla – with the tournament kicking off on January 8, and the final to be played on January 26. Besides Continental glory, 15 of the 16 teams will also be competing for places in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where the top three sides will join hosts Japan as Asia’s representatives next July.

Hosts Thailand was drawn in Group A and they will have 2013 champions Iraq, Australia and debutants Bahrain to contend with.
Qatar, third in 2018, 2016 champions Japan, Saudi Arabia – runners-up in 2013, and Syria are in an exciting looking Group B.

Vietnam, runners-up in 2018, have DPR Korea, Jordan – third in 2013 – and United Arab Emirates for the company in Group D.
Should Japan make the last four stage, the other three semi-finalists will be assured of their places in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Under newbie coach Farhad Majidi, Iran’s U23 had a disappointing showing in the preparation matches two of which were against the same Uzbekistan team which they will meet on 9th January 2020. With the powerful South Koreans, who are a title contenders in their own right, waiting next for Iran, it is going a steep mountain to climb for Iran. Realistically, Iran chances look dim for qualification but would be more than happy to be in the top two teams. China, the other team of the group have been performing well qualifying to the finals with ease after beating Laos 5-0 and Philipines 8-0 while drawing with host Malaysia 2-2. The Chinese have two friendly matches arranged in South America in Late November with Colombia in Bucaramanga and then against Peru in Lima.

The star-studded Korean team who are the Gold Medal holders of the Asian Games 2018 may include Tottenham Hotspurs star Son Heung-min who is 27 now. However upfront they have Hamburger SV forward Hwang Hee-chan and Italian Club Verona Lee Seung-woo in the squad. It is not clear if these players will be released for this championship.

 

 

Group C match fixtures

DATE VENUE TEAM TEAM
9 January 2020 Tinsulanon Stadium, Songkhla   Uzbekistan Iran
9 January 2020 Tinsulanon Stadium, Songkhla South Korea China PR
12 January 2020 Tinsulanon Stadium, Songkhla Iran South Korea
12 January 2020 Tinsulanon Stadium, Songkhla China PR Uzbekistan
15 January 2020 Thammasat Stadium, Pathum Thani Uzbekistan South Korea
15 January 2020 Tinsulanon Stadium, Songkhla China PR Iran

Concerns are high for Omid Team prospects.

Apart from the Football Federation and in particular, its president Mehdi Taj, everyone that has insight and knowledge of Iranian football believes that the appointment of a rookie as the coach of Omid Team (U23) is a big mistake.

Farhad Majidi has been put into an unenviable position and given the task of qualifying for the Men’s football Olympic tournament after more than 40 years of absence. Coaches much more experienced and qualified than Majidi have failed to take Iran to what looks like an unattainable dream and some kind of a spell.

 While many prominent and experienced domestic coaches turned down the job, Majidi took upon himself to promise success in qualification but without much thought or results in the field.

Omid Team, which is considered the backbone and the near future of Team Melli, under head coach Farhad Majidi has been performing dismally and the result of the recent friendly games (1-0 and 4-1 defeats against Uzbekistan) raises an alarm bell that many have expected and forecasted the minute Majidi was appointed.

Mansour Rashidi, the famous Team Melli goalkeeper is yet another ex-player who raised doubts on the Omid team recently. Rashidi told Mehr sports reporter: “I am not familiar with the Omid Team players except for one or two and admittedly I am not close to the team to know them inside out. I didn’t watch any of the recent friendly games with Uzbekistan either, but the results of those two preparations matches were not serving Iranian football’s reputation. ” The former coach of Iran’s Omid team continued “This team is the backbone of Team Melli and much more efforts are needs to be taken into Temporary Email consideration to develop it.  It seems the level of attention, priority and care for Omid team is low.”

He added: “Farhad Majidi is one of the Iran football upcoming prospects and I am confident that he will have a bright future in coaching. But coaching Omid Team at this stage of his career was far too early for him. This team needs much more experienced and qualified coaches.  The last time Iran qualified to the Olympics was  Montreal Olympics 1976 and I was honoured to be a member of that Olympic team ” our former national footballer said.

“We never imagined at the time that qualifying to the Olympics would be an unattainable dream for Iranian football”. Rashidi said: “Although the results of the preparatory games are a blow and a disappointment for Iranian football, I really hope the team can break the spell of half a century of not qualifying for the Olympics and take Iranian football out of this misery and pity.”

In order to qualify for the Tokyo Olympic games, Iran must achieve one of the top three ranks in the upcoming Asian U23 Championship in Thailand. Iran did not even qualify directly as the achieved qualification as one of the best second teams.

Heavy defeat for Omid team under Majidi.

Iran’s Omid Football Team, which is preparing to compete in the qualifying rounds of the Tokyo Olympic Games 2020, suffered a heavy defeat in the friendly match played against Uzbekistan U-23 team in Tashkent on Monday. The match ended 4 -1 for the host.

Omid team has already lost the first game 1-0 but this heavy defeat exposed a lot of tactical and technical shortfalls by the youngsters who are fightening what looks like an impossible battle to qualify for the Olympic after a 40 years absence.

Much has been said about the appointment of the rookie coach Farhad Majidi who has already maintained that he will be leading his team to Tokyo, but reality says otherwise. To mitigate the lack of experience and skills in Omid Team, FFIRI has employed Omid Namazi who has only joined the squad after the first Uzbekistan match. The expectations are all on the ex Zob Ahan coach and former assistance to Carlos Queiroz to strengthen the team tactically and introduce some game plans that actually can win matches.

Commenting on the poor result, Omid Namazi said at a post-match news conference  “It was not a good day for us, we commited lots of mistakes and gave the opponent a lot of space. Uzbekistan was a very strong opponent who played well and made the best use of the space. Of course, we had some opportunities, but we could have still come back in the second half after scoring when the score was 2-1. Unfortunately, while trying to add to our tally, our opponent succeeded in a counterattack and scored the next goal.”

Namazi said at the end: “We have to think about the weaknesses in different lines. Start organizing from the defensive line and step by step to keep the ball in place and strengthen our other lines. We must learn from our mistakes in friendly matches.”

Saeid Ezatolahi finally expected to arrive at Reading

From Rostov to Reading, via Belgium, Uzbekistan and France.

The deal to bring Saeid Ezatolahi to Reading has been far from straightforward, but the Iranian international is set to finally arrive in England this weekend.

The 21-year-old completed his season-long loan move from Russian outfit FC Rostov on August 31, the final day of the summer transfer window.

But he is yet to arrive at Hogwood with all previous stages of the deal completed elsewhere across the globe.

“He hasn’t reported yet,” explained Reading FC boss Paul Clement.

“As we speak (on Thursday afternoon), he is in Paris.

“He was on international duty with Iran and they played Uzbekistan. He played a good, significant amount of the game and he set up the goal, so that’s good.

“He is in Paris to get his visa. Everything is in place now, the visa has been approved and we’re just waiting for it to be collected. Ezatolahi has spent a few days in Paris
“So he’s got to go back to the office to collect it, that’ll probably be on Friday and then he’s free to travel to the UK.”

“We expect him to arrive here either Friday or Saturday. He’ll do some light training on Saturday, on Sunday the players are off and he’ll start fully with everybody on Monday.”

Clement added: “After the World Cup he had some rest time. He did go back to Russia, Rostov for a couple of weeks where he was training and then there has been a period where he hasn’t been there and he’s been back in Iran.

“He lost a little bit of time but fortunately during this period where he was with the national team, clearly he’s been training and he’s already played a game.

“So he might need a bit of time, but I don’t think he’ll need that much. I’ll assess it as soon as I see him.”

Paul Clement insists there are no problems behind the scenes at Reading

The announcement of Ezatolahi’s arrival came as a surprise to many, with the deal accelerated during the final week of the transfer window.

Reading had been chasing Swansea City midfielder Jay Fulton on a permanent deal, but when that fell through they moved to snap up Ezatolahi on loan.

But Clement hopes that could turn into a longer term deal.

“I hope he has a long future here,” said the Reading manager.

“The situation with the deal at the moment is he’s on a loan for the season because when we signed him, it was obviously outside the period where we could do a permanent, so it’s on an initial loan.

Paul Clement is hoping Ezatolahi will be here for longer than one season
“Hopefully he does really well and it’s a long-term thing.

“It was brought to my attention late in the window. We had a week. During that week it was about gathering as much intelligence as possible, speaking to people he had worked with.

“A really complicated deal.”       – Paul Clement

“Fortunately I was able to have a good conversation with Carlos Queiroz (Iran’s national team boss), who spoke really highly of him.

“Then I spoke to the player and got a really good feel about him and we’re really pleased to get it over the line.

“It was a little bit complicated. You’re dealing with Russia, you’ve got the situation where he’s Iranian so you’ve got the visa issues, international clearance and those type of things.

“He had his medical in Belgium at Roeselare because it was difficult to get him here to do the medical because of the visa, but in the end we got it over the line.

“A really complicated deal.”

“We’re looking forward to working with him. I think he’s going to be a good addition to us.”

Ali Karimi out of Team Melli squad for the World Cup

Ali Karimi , Team Melli player is the first casualty of Team Melli for the FIFA World Cup 2018 Russia

The Sepahan Esfahan midfield player suffered a back injury during training and was declared as unable to continue training for some time and is definite to miss the squad to Russia.

Karimi was in the first group of 35 players announced by Queiroz and had a fairly good chance to make the final 23 players list but he has fallen a victim of the injury a day before the team meets Uzbekistan for a friendly match in Azadi Stadium in preparation for the World Cup.

Prolific Iran maintain futsal hegemony

  • IR Iran build on FIFA Futsal World Cup bronze with another Asian crown
  • Sixteen-nation event held in Chinese Taipei for first time
  • Iranian Ali Asghar Hassanzadeh named tournament’s best player

Competition for Asian supremacy in eleven-a-side football is finely balanced as evidenced by the finale to last year’s FIFA World Cup qualifying in the world’s most populous continent. The same cannot be said on the futsal court, however, as IR Iran once again underlined their supremacy in emphatic fashion.

The Iranians stormed to a 12th continental victory in Chinese Taipei on Sunday, retaining the title they reclaimed two years ago. Only Japan have broken Iran’s stranglehold, winning on three occasions, but the east Asians had no answer in the tournament decider this time. Iran proved their breakthrough third-place finish at the FIFA Futsal World Cup Colombia 2016 was no fluke, with an unusually heavy 4-0 scoreline in the decider.

Broad reach throughout Asia
A total of 30 teams from all corners of Asia competed in the qualifying competition, demonstrating the growing appeal of the game across much of the continent. Chinese Taipei hosted the event for the first time, though they previously welcomed the globe’s best for the Futsal World Cup in 2004.

That 30-strong crowd was cut to 16 teams for the ten-day event in New Taipei City. Much focus was, of course, on the home side but locals were to be left frustrated with Chinese Taipei edged out of qualification by Bahrain, despite a win over Malaysia. Vietnam topped the group, but there was to be disappointment for the south-east Asians as the 2016 semi-finalists were eliminated by Uzbekistan.

There was no surprises as Japan and Iran shaded Uzbekistan and Iraq as all four progressed from their respective groups. Lebanon, meanwhile, were arguably the surprise packages. Despite having never reached a continental semi-final, Lebanon defeated 2015 semi-finalists Thailand 5-2 to top their group. The Cedars’ luck, however, ran out in the knockout stage with a heartbreaking 9-8 penalty shoot-out defeat against Iraq.

Iran’s accolades

  • Most individual goals: Hossein Tayebi (14)
  • Most team goals: 46
  • Tournament’s best player: Ali Asghar Hassanzadeh

Japan eased past Iraq with a 3-0 scoreline in the first semi-final, while Iran crushed Uzbekistan 7-1. Despite the lop-sided scoreline in the final, it was Japan who had the better of early exchanges only for some profligacy in front of goal to prove costly.

The tournament’s best player Ali Hassanzadeh scored with just a minute remaining remaining of the half, before the Iranians finished in style by scoring a further three to wrap up their title defence.

“Yes, it was a little bit difficult at first in the game, but I was 100 per cent confident that we would pull through and score the goals we needed to win,” said IR Iran’s Alireza Rafieipor. “This victory is just the starting point for us. From now we are focused on 2020 [World Cup]. We are number three in the world and everyone is expecting us to get even better.”

Iran the benchmark for AFC futsal championship 2018 hopefuls

the-afc.com

Tabriz: The Islamic Republic of Iran is the setting as the countdown starts for the AFC Futsal Championship 2018 with the South and Central Zone Qualifiers which kicks off on Sunday.

The South and Central zones have been merged into one qualification zone as Nepal are the only representatives from the South, bringing the total to seven teams competing for four spots in the Finals in Chinese Taipei next year.

Uzbekistan, runners-up in the previous edition, are one of the favourites to qualify.

The White Wolves had an impressive run at the 2016 tournament, topping Group A to progress into the quarter-finals where they beat Iraq 3-0, before a 3-1 penalty shootout win in the semi-finals against Thailand secured them a place in the final against Iran.

In the recent 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, history repeated itself with Iran beating Uzbekistan to claim the title.

Uzbekistan will face Kyrgyz Republic, Turkmenistan and Nepal in Group A of the qualifiers.


Uzbekistan faced Kyrgyz Republic in the AFC Futsal Championship 2016.

Kyrgyz Republic finished sixth in the AFC Futsal Championship 2016, and an early elimination from the 2017 Asian Indoor Games leaves the Snow Leopards with much ground to cover.

However, they have not missed a single Finals since the tournament’s inception in 1999, and can be expected to provide stiff opposition.

After two failed attempts to qualify for the Finals, Turkmenistan are ready to make a difference.

Despite losing out to Afghanistan on penalties in the quarter-finals in 2016, hosting the 2017 Asian Indoor Games has helped the team improve significantly.

Having played more competitive matches, the Turkeminstan side will be aiming to outdo their previous performances.

The South zone’s sole representative Nepal will make their AFC Futsal Championship debut against Asia’s best, but in a top flight tournament, surprises cannot be ruled out.

In the three-team Group B, Iran are the ones to beat and the odds are surely against Tajikistan and Afghanistan.

The futsal powerhouse hold the record of 11 championship titles, and the team have enjoyed much success in recent years.

After winning the 2016 AFC Futsal Championship, the Iranians finished third in the FIFA Futsal World Cup Colombia 2016, before claiming their fifth Asian Indoor Games gold medal.

Dangerman Ali Asghar Hassanzadeh (pictured below), who was named the Most Valuable Player after assisting Iran beat Uzbekistan in the final, will definitely play a huge role in this qualifier.

Tajikistan’s closest attempt at the title was their 2007 campaign where they reached the quarter-finals but were halted by Uzbekistan.

They have struggled to make the cut into the knockout phase ever since, despite consecutive qualifications.

Afghanistan turned heads in the 2017 Asian Indoor Games when they defeated Uzbekistan 4-2 to claim top spot in their group to progress to the quarter-finals, but losses to eventual champions Iran in the semis and Japan in the third place play-off secured them fourth place.

A result worth highlighting, as the Lions of Khorasan have yet to make an appearance in the AFC Futsal Championship Finals stage.

Matches

October 15

Group A
Uzbekistan v Nepal
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1400

Kyrgyz Republic v Turkmenistan
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1630

Group B
Afghanistan v Iran
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1900

October 16

Group A
Nepal v Kyrgyz Republic
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1400

Turkmenistan v Uzbekistan
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1630

Group B
Tajikistan v Afghanistan
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1900

October 17

Group A
Uzbekistan v Kyrgyz Republic
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1400

Turkmenistan v Nepal
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1630

Group B
Iran v Tajikistan
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1900

Team Melli to play Russia

 Team-Melli , the second team to qualify for the World Cup is schedule to play in a friendly match against 2018 FIFA World Cup host, Russia on October 10th, 2017.

Carlos Queiroz announced the news during Iran-Uzbekistan post-match conference. The two teams last met in Abu Dhabi in 2011 just before Queiroz took the job as Head coach.

Team-Melli secured their qualifications to Russia 2018 with a 2-0 victory over Uzbekistan. Iran remains on top of Group A in Asian qualifiers with 20 points, following by South Korea and Uzbekistan. Team Melli has also been dominating FIFA Ranking for Asia for the last 4 years.

Second consecutive FIFA World Cup for Team Melli

  • Iran reach second consecutive FIFA World Cup™
  • Team Melli defeat Uzbekistan to join Brazil and Russia at the finals
  • Carlos Queiroz’s side have yet to concede in Group B, after eight games

The scenes in Tehran were jubilant. Coaching staff and players streamed onto the pitch and celebrated in unison. Giant flags were waved, prayers were undertaken and bear hugs handed out by team-mates. Iran had done it: they had reached the promised land of the 2018 FIFA World Cup™. Team Melli’s 2-0 victory over Uzbekistan was enough for Carlos Queiroz’s side to secure their seat on the plane to Russia next year.

“I want to thank all the fans for their support during the qualification campaign,” talismanic midfielder Alireza Jahanbakhsh said, speaking to the AFC after the game. “The results we have achieved are for you and I hope we can now win the last two games. We all have happiness in our hearts.”

The second goal in the match that sealed qualification was scored by Mehdi Taremi, who bagged his eighth World Cup qualifying strike on the road to Russia.  

“I am very happy that we have qualified for the World Cup for the second time in a row and that we have brought happiness to the Iranian people,” Mehdi Taremi, said speaking to the AFC after the victory. “I feel so happy that I was able to score a goal and that my goal was able to help us win the match. We are very happy and it shows the great progress we are making in Asia. I hope we continue to perform like this in the future and qualify for the World Cup every four years.”

Despite some question marks over whether the Portuguese would remain in the role after Brazil 2014, Carlos Queiroz has masterminded a majestic march back to the global finals, with the side going almost 1000 minutes without conceding – their defence unbreached in the third round so far.

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“Carlos Queiroz and his colleagues have done so much for Team Melli,” Iran’s striking legend Ali Daei said. “One of the most important things he’s done is bringing in so many young players and changed the major players of the team. We are now one of the best sides in Asia, along with Australia, because we haven’t lost against any Asian teams in recent years.”

Fans will be hoping that it is fifth time lucky for the Iranians, who will be looking to progress beyond the first round at the World Cup for the first time in Russia.

Iran qualifies for 2018 World Cup, in sharp contrast to ‘embarrassing’ Israel

Monday’s win over Uzbekistan is celebrated in the streets of Tehran; Israel’s team was booed from the stadium in Haifa after losing to Albania on Sunday

BY TIMES OF ISRAEL STAFF AND AFP June 13, 2017, 2:02 pm

Monday’s win was Iran’s sixth from eight matches in Group A and took the table-toppers to 20 points, with South Korea in second on 13 ahead of its game against Qatar on Tuesday.

Iran is unbeaten in the group stage and remarkably has not conceded a single goal during the campaign, underlining its credentials as one of Asia’s football giants.

On Monday, it recorded its second win over Uzbekistan on the road to the 2018 tournament in Russia, with Rostov forward Sarder Azmoun first finding the net in the 23rd minute with a right-footed shot from the left of the box following a through ball from Alireza Jahanbaksh.

Iranian players celebrate after winning the 2018 World Cup qualifying football match between Iran and Uzbekistan at the Azadi Stadium in Tehran on June 12, 2017. The victory means Iran has secured a place in the 2018 World Cup finals in Russia. (AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE)

Iranian players celebrate after winning the 2018 World Cup qualifying football match between Iran and Uzbekistan at the Azadi Stadium in Tehran on June 12, 2017. (AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE)

The Uzbeks struggled for momentum and failed to break down the famed Iranian defense, eventually conceding their second goal of the match in the 88th minute with Mehdi Taremi finishing from Azmoun’s pass.

Iran, which has seen its ranking rise from 108th in the world in 1995 to its current 30th, has played in the World Cup finals four times in the past – in 1978, 1998, 2006 and 2014.

Iranians celebrate on the streets of Tehran early on June 13, 2017, after their national football team won the 2018 World Cup qualifying football match between Iran and Uzbekistan. Iran become the third team assured of a berth in the 2018 World Cup finals along with hosts Russia and Brazil (AFP PHOTO)

Iranians celebrate on the streets of Tehran early on June 13, 2017, after their national football team won the 2018 World Cup qualifying football match between Iran and Uzbekistan. (AFP PHOTO)

So successful has Iran proved in the qualifying games that it has become only the second team to secure its place in the finals, after five-time World Cup champions Brazil. Russia, as host of the tournament from June 14 to July 15, 2018, is given an automatic spot.

Supporters of the Iranian national football team cheer during the 2018 World Cup qualifying football match between Iran and Uzbekistan at the Azadi Stadium in Tehran on June 12, 2017. (AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE)

Supporters of the Iranian national football team cheer during the 2018 World Cup qualifying football match between Iran and Uzbekistan at the Azadi Stadium in Tehran on June 12, 2017. (AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE)

Iran’s remarkable progress to the 2018 finals contrasts sharply with Israel’s form.

Sunday’s defeat in Haifa by Albania leaves Israel in joint third place in Group G, with no prospect of making it to Russia, and a battle now merely to finish in third place and thus secure a more favorable qualifying path for the 2022 tournament.

Portuguese coach Carlos Queiroz of the Iranian national football team celebrates with players after winning the 2018 World Cup qualifying football match between Iran and Uzbekistan at the Azadi Stadium in Tehran on June 12, 2017. (AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE)

Portuguese coach Carlos Queiroz of the Iranian national football team celebrates with players after winning the 2018 World Cup qualifying football match between Iran and Uzbekistan at the Azadi Stadium in Tehran on June 12, 2017. (AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE)

Ranked 55th in the world, Israel has qualified for the World Cup finals only once, in 1970.

The Israeli team came into Sunday’s game having beaten Albania 3-0 in their last encounter. It was the hot favorite to win the home game, but fell to a heavy defeat in its poorest performance of the qualifying campaign to date.

While Iran’s victory prompted celebrations in the streets of Tehran, the Israeli team was booed off the field by its own fans, and newspaper headlines on Monday morning called its performance a “Disgrace,” an “embarrassment,” and “one of the biggest humiliations” in national soccer history.

Albanian forward Armando Sadiku (C) celebrates after scoring during the FIFA World Cup 2018 qualification football match between Israel and Albania in Haifa on June 11, 2017. (AFP PHOTO / THOMAS COEX)

Albanian forward Armando Sadiku (C) celebrates after scoring during the FIFA World Cup 2018 qualification football match between Israel and Albania in Haifa on June 11, 2017. (AFP PHOTO / THOMAS COEX)

Israel had the first shot on goal, with Bibras Nacho’s shot tipped over the bar by Albanian goalkeeper Thoma Strakosha. But Armando Sadiku managed to put the ball past Israeli goalie David Goresh in the 22nd minute. Sadiku scored again a minute from half time with a shot from 25 yards out.