4/19/2006
Kaveh Mahjoob, goal.com

The Iranian national team is in crisis. That is not new.

The Iranian Football Federation (IFF) and the national team head coach, Branko Ivankovich, are in denial.

That is not even news!

Key starters are injured though hopeful of recovering in time to play in the World Cup.

Of course we have seen that.

Check the 1998 World Cup and the injured star goalkeeper, Abedzadeh! Starters are emotionally drained and need to be re-psyched and rejuvenated.

Let us think for a moment. Oh yes, the 2004 Asian Cup subsequent to the Iran – Oman match comes to mind.

A key starter has self-made off the field problems so serious that solving them seem improbable.

In the mean time, the head coach continues to live in his “world of denial” with a smile on his face, refusing to provide any logical reasons why he is not inviting some of the worthiest Iranian players to the national team.

Where is the national team of Iran heading and will their Phoenix rise from the ashes of turmoil? Or, will it crash and burn like the Saudi Arabian team did in the 2002 world cup?

“Crisis R US”

To begin with, Iran is used to turmoil before a major tournament.

In 1998, just days before the world cup began; Iran fired her chief, the great Ivich, and entered the biggest world tournament with a new head coach. At that time, following a long training camp and an embarrassing defeat at the hands of an Italian club, the coach was asked to leave and another one walked in.

To make the situation even more complicated, Iran’s star goalkeeper, Abedzadeh, was injured and could not play in the opening match of the World Cup. Somehow, against Yugoslavia, despite losing, Iran managed to play one of her best matches ever. Next Iran went on to defeat the United States in a memorable match.

Crisis breeds new leaders and during the 1998 world cup, a new generation of young Iranian footballers came to shine.

In 2002, just prior to the Asian Games, the current coach, Branko Ivankovich, was facing heavy criticism for his handling of the U-23 team but his young lads went on to defeat Asia’s best, Japan and Korea, on the way to the championship.

To prove them wrong, prove yourselves on the field.

And they did, and Branko led. In 2004’s Asian Cup, Iran once again was in turmoil. This time, during a match against Oman, the teamwork unraveled, Iran fell behind by two goals, yet amazingly a goal in extra time tied the match. Iran went on to have a good tournament, defeating South Korea 4-3 and eventually took third place.

When all odds are against you, bet against the odds.

The 2006 world cup qualifying campaign did not start well. To advance to the second round of qualifying, on the road, Iran had to defeat Jordan by two goals and also defeat Qatar away from home. Somehow, a 91st minute goal by Daei in Jordan and a 90th minute goal by Hashemian in Qatar took Iran to the next round.

True that you shouldn’t have been in that deep of a hole to begin with but once in the hole, you managed to pull yourself out of it.

To say that Iran’s preparation for the 2006 World Cup has gone poorly is being gentle to the coaching staff and the football federation. Since qualifying for the 2006 world cup over ten months ago, Iran has played four official friendly matches against Libya, South Korea, Togo and Costa Rica. This lack of sufficient friendly matches against quality teams have been discussed at length among fans and media. Yet, this subject seems not to bother Iran’s Croatian head coach.

While Iran’s starting lineup was more or less set 20 months ago (please ask why), the starters have experienced a new rash of injuries and emotional problems.

Iran’s starting goalkeeper, Mirzapoor, is fighting for his position in his own club and has not performed well of late. His main issue seems to be that he is“emotionally drained.”

Central Defender Golmohammadi has not played well for a while at club level. Some believe his age is catching up with him. Many think it is another case of “a player needing emotional boost!”

In the left back position, there is no obvious starter and Branko has tried several players in that spot without getting any positive results. The only defensive source of confidence is Rahman Rezai who plays his club games for Messina in Italy’s Series A.

In midfield, Ali Karimi’s (Bayern Munich) injury is the most serious issue. In attack, Vahid Hashemian (Hannover 96) is also injured. The question remains that even if these two stars return to the lineup in time for the world cup, will they be as effective as they were prior to their injuries?

The rock of Iran’s national team, Mehdi Mahdavikia (Hamburg), is now facing the most bizarre set of off-field problems that will most certainly have emotional impacts on him and the team.

Another star midfielder, Javad Nekunam, has not been as effective as he used to be following a strange transfer from Tehran’s Pas club to one south of the border.

Interestingly, Ali Daei (IPL Saba Battery), the most talked about and criticized forward of Iran, has managed to revamp his career by scoring in almost every match over the last two months. At 37, he may be too old for a starting striker and not a ninety minute player yet but his spirit, dedication and great desire to prove all wrong may in fact be the blessing the national team needs. He is proving me wrong!

Branko has had numerous opportunities to allow others who have performed well at the club level to try out their luck in the national team. Logic suggests that a national coach looks for backups for key players when playing friendly matches. Yet, with a stubbornness that has become a staple of his coaching career in Iran since 2004, Branko has refused to even acknowledge that such players as Kazemian and Talebloo should be seriously considered as starters. Furthermore, many worthy players who could compete for the starting position have not been even invited to the team. They include Bagheri (defense), Moabali (midfield) and Enayati (offence).

The media and fans don’t understand Branko’s logic. Many of us seem to think that Branko lost his common sense somewhere on the flight between China and Iran following the 2004 Asian Cup tournament.

But then again, he is the head coach and most of us will likely watch the World Cup on TV. Fans Still Believe!

Amazingly, many of us in the media and fans are still believers. Iran’s national team rose through the ashes of turmoil in 1998, 2002 and 2004.

Many believe that with experienced, professional and hopefully healthy players like Rezai, Karimi, Kia, Hashemian and Daei, in one hand, and a great fountain of young talents like Kaebi, Kazemian, Talebloo, Jabari and Nekounam in the other, Iran still has a decent chance against Angola and Mexico.

This Phoenix could rise from the ashes and Mexico and Portugal should not take the Iranian side lightly. They should just ask the Scotland team of 1978 and the USA team of 1998!