MPs call on Ahmadinejad to fire Branko, football officials

[Persian Prince]

Finally a positive development to emerge from the debacle that was Iran's World cup campaign. You see people, everyone is surprised by how badly Team Melli has done at the World cup. So much so that the Majlis wants a formal enquiry into the matter. I just hope that they follow through with this initial notification and carry out a comprehensive investigation into Iranian football as a whole, from the IPL to Team Melli.

If this happens, and real, positive changes are made to IFF personnel and structuring then maybe our failure at the world cup can be seen as a necessary embarassment in order to bring about the changes we all want in Iranian football. Iranian football is a joke on the international scene and its time to find out exactly why.

Here's the source, its from IRNA so its reliable:

http://www.irna.ir/en/news/view/menu...8434150813.htm

Just in case the link doesn't work for whatever reason here's the article in full:

MPs call on Ahmadinejad to fire Branko, football officials Tehran, June 18, IRNA

The weak performance of the Iranian national Football team at the 2006 World Cup in Germany prompted a number of Iranian MPs to give a written notification to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on dismissal of football officials.

Hopes for Iran's reaching the second round of the World Cup competitions dashed following the 2-0 defeat of the national team against Portugal in Frankfurt on Saturday. In its opener in Group D of the World Cup Iran lost to Mexico 3-1.

Five Majlis deputies issued a notification demanding the president to probe into the reasons behind the team's weak performance in World Cup 2006.

Majlis Speaker Gholam-Ali Haddad Adel who read the MPs' notification at the open session of the Majlis Sunday, said they have urged president Ahmadinejad to issue a formal order on probe into the case.

The deputies also called for immediate dismissal of Iran's head coach Branko Ivankovic and officials of the football federation for their mismanagement, incapability, indifference toward the public opinion and damaging national pride.

They also backed up their demand by mentioning cases including insistence on wrong policies and ignoring the viewpoints of pundits.

In Saturday match, Iranian players created several spectacular chances for goal, but, failed to convert them. Portugal's two goals were scored by Deco in the 63rd minute and Ronaldo in the 80th minute off a penalty.

Last Sunday, Iran fought back brilliantly in the first half to peg Mexico to 1-1 at the interval in the opening Group D clash.

Iran were the livelier team at the start and came close to scoring in the 12th minute. But in the second half Iran created blunders giving more advantage to the Mexicans.

Mexico capitalized on a big defending blunder in the second half to overcome a struggling Iran 3-1.

[MrBrightside]

This is stupid !!!

This will only make us getting a new top class manager even more difficult than it is now.

[Under Lahaf]

IF the MPs and his excellency truly care about football they should do two things;

-Make sure competent people are in charge of IFF
- stay out of TM's business.

by these type of "enquiries" they will just hurt the TM, since when is it the parliament's responsibility to look into these stuff? then what is the sports minisrty and IFF for?


if thye got extra time on their hands and want to investigate something, they should investigate the beating of Iranian women and the mass-arrests of the peaceful demonstration for women rights...

[gol_kuchik]

Rather than trying to fire a coach whose contract will end in a couple of
months anyways, MP's should find out how the FIFA money given to Iran
was spent? MP's may not have noticed that Iran has the highest rate of
road fatalities in the world! But since they are so interested in Football,
they can find out why a football player from tractorsazi died while travelling
to get to a football match in Khuzestan?

There are many questions for "MP's", but Branko's contract is not one of them.

[Martin-Reza]

What the hell have MPs got to do with that? This amateurish approach is very embarassing.

[Ali Chicago]

Folks I think you are just missing the point

I think what the MPs are experssing is simply the anger and disappointment of ordinary folks in Iran. In a country like Iran that soccer is very intertwined with people's life it is very ordinary to see this. For example Lula Brazil's president has written a letter to Praira (Brazil's coach) and experssed his concern about Ronaldo's weight problem.

I have no illusion that most these MPs are idiots and they do this to gather some popularity and political capital. Having said that, I think this is simplya symptom of anger, disappointment that majority of Iranians feel with Team-e-melli's performance.

No one expected Iran to be world champion or kill Mexico and Portugal all we expected was a decent performance (not to bunch up in our 18 yards and play bezan Zeeresh). Iran was eliminated in WC98. Iran played good against Yougouslavia, Good against US and kind of ok against Germany. There were no roars for head coaches head and Iranian realized that was the level we were in.
This WC people beleive team underperformed and hence the turmoil. I request you guys try to see the other side of this equation. We are not living in the world of pure logic here. There are national emotions, pride, etc. This sub par performance rightly or wrongly is on Branko's.
It is time for him to face the reality.


Even whoever the next guy will be has to realize that Iran won't settle for bread crumbs, we (Iranian) don't expect world championship or top 8 position in the WC, but we expect Iran's national team be able to string 10 passes together. hold the ball under sustained pressure from the opponent, and be able to put two or three decent attack on a stronger team. Is this too much to expect?

[Doctor DOOM]

this may be the only positive thing that this majlis does !

I hope it goes through BEFORE our angola game.

I hope firing of both dadkan and branko is made public and they are disgraced in front of the whole world as incapable and incompetent.

after the game , it'll be just useless and wont have much impact.

[Dr.shark]

this may be the only positive thing that this majlis does !

I hope it goes through BEFORE our angola game.

I hope firing of both dadkan and branko is made public and they are disgraced in front of the whole world as incapable and incompetent.

after the game , it'll be just useless and wont have much impact.

if any thing happens it will be after the game when we come home and then it will take time and some loser like dadkan will come in power and it will start all over again I can only say I hope GOD gives power to Ahmade nejjad to put some one in charge of i.f.f. that still has 2 working brain cells left in his brain because dadkan has no more brain cells left.