Safaei Farahani Says it all

[smanhoobi]

[smanhoobi]

[smanhoobi]

God bless him. He and irna saved me a lot of writings.

[Hajagha]

frA-Afkani.

he says some thing never solved, let's say next 50 years to be safe.

[Ali Chicago]

Good to see you guys posted it too

I posted the link to his interview in Iran Varzeshi yesterday in another thread. Good to see I am not the lone ranger.

[zzgloo]

Maghamat irani, ta deletan bekhahad , zer zadan baladan.......
......................Amal....zero................ .............................

[Ali Chicago]

ZZ I share your frustration but ....

In this time of gloom and doom and everyone (truly yours included) very dissappointed and dishearted with the weak peroformance of Team Melli) in WC2006, I would like to share with you my memories of Iranian soccer. Where it was, what happened to it after reveloution and its reawakening. Things look dark and bad right now, It seems like end of the world, but beleive me sun will rise tomorrow. Don't get dishearted. This article by no means is an attempt to try to get Dadkan or IFF or Branko away from the radar screen, however we just can't get submerged in self defeat and loose hope.

Soccer is deeply rooted in Iranian society and as long as those little kids play gol koochek in every corner of Iran, soccer will progress in Iran (maybe not with optimum speed but neverthese it will).

Point is to see the big picture and don't get discouraged and dishearted with barriers and bumps and defeats along the way.
I think there will be a backlash against Iranian soccer among fans exactly or even worst than the one after not making the WC2002. More serious fans have to try to help to overocme this. I truly wish Esteghlal does well in Asian Cup ( to rekindle the flames of Iranian soccer fans which doesn't seem very possible with the current situation in Esteghlal's club).

Things are progressing in Iran, Akhoonds and Islamist still hinder progress with their backwarded and reactionary vision and direction they want to take the Iranian society. Granted not with the pace that they should be, and not continuosly. But then again progress is not ever a linear process. It has zig zags, two step forwards, one step back or at times even one step forward two steps back.
We even have a women soccer team now. At the begining of reveloution Hezbollahis tried to ban girls from Daneshkadeh Fanee in Mohandesse. Today they even don't dare to say anythign like that and even they have to accept the fact that girls want to play soccer (granted with Islamic dress code).
Main point is let's don't loose the big pictures. one has to be able to see the forest and the trees. I am not trying to defend IFF or anything like that, I as an Iranian who chased balls since I was a little boy in Tehran to today, am somewhat familiar with soccer in Iran and merely trying to share with you my experience.
I remember when Iran was winning right and left Asian Championship at both youth and adult level. Jaam Valeeahd in Ahwaz when Frank Stapelton was a 18 years old and came with Biritish team and they got eliminated. Then came the reveloution. There was shooting and blood and soccer took a back seat. After the reveloution soccer disappeard, league closed, clubs closed.
I remember after the reveloution (2 years later maybe) the first camp of team Melli for Asian games or something like that, was established in Kazeroon or some really remote place. Parvin I think was involved then, cause he is a religious guy (not Hezbollahi but religious nevertheles). Even then I think the camp was cancelled because there was the image (then) that soccer is Taghooti and keeps youth from reveloutinonary ideals.
There were no league until I left Iran. Parvin, Panjali, Changeez, Farbia, Reza Ahadi, Shahrookh and Shaheen Bayani (these were top players then), were coming to a dirt field (in western part of Tehran near Mehrabad airport) called Eram and playing in different neighborhood (Mahallat) teams . I was playing in one of the neighborhood teams then. There were people probably coupel of thousands all around the field and on the roofs to watch.
Poor Changheez was very fast and keep falling on the dirt field and bleednig profusely.
This was the situation of soccer in Iran probably around 1981. Taj club was destroyed all the affiliated clubs, Deyheem, Afsar, etc. were confiscated as well. Persepolice was considered Taghooti as well, cause Abdeh (perspolice owner) was supposedly a supporter of Pahlavi family.
From that we have come to today. There are programs for at the national level from 10 years and up, all the way to u23 and national team. We have national team and national B team. There is an IPL with all the shortcomings, etc.
Point is not to defend IFF or IR, it is to see the despite all these short comings soccer is progressing in Iran, We have Ooladi, Kazemian, Shojaii, Mazyar Zarre, Behshad Yavarzadeh , Sepehr Heydari, Kaabi in only 20 I think. They are future of Iranian soccer. This is result of work of tons and tons of people who still work in that sh****ty situation. People like Majeed Sabzee (God bless his soul) despite some problems of his own (and who doesn't have them), Reza Ahadi, even AhamadZadeh lot of them are working.
On top of them we have the amazing interest of Iranian people in soccer. Hundereds of thousands of boy and even girls who play soccer in Iran. I can go on and on, but back to my point.
Despite all these shortcomings, don't get discouraged. This doesn't mean that we should not be criticizing, suggesting solutions and etc. But despite the lackluster performance of Iran's team in the world cup, I think future is Bright. I think future will prove my point. Even with the Hezbollahis they realized if they want to rule the goddamn place they need to be realistic. Don't want to get it to politics but I remember Abdulkareem Sooroush was the idealouge of Cultural reveloution "Enghelabe Farhangi" and now he is the biggest critics of Velayat Fagheh.
Things are progressing cause that is the dialectic of history, despite many barriers and bumps on the road. Hezbollahis and fundementalisem I would like to look at them as bumps and barriers on the road.
Anyways, in these times of gloom and doom, I thought it is good to reveiw the big picture and status of soccer in Iran for younger folks that may not remember, where we were in early 80s and where we are now.
Now this doen't mean to settle for status quo and settling for mediorocrity, but still one can't forget relaities and has to be realistic.
Today, I can set a goal for myself to play pro soccer at the age of 44 and after three knee surgeries (a torn ACL, MCL and couple of minuscus clean up), but it wont' be a relistic goal.
Hope you see the analogy, Iranian socccer needs to go ahead and progress but we need to be realistic and don't expect Iranian soccer in WC2010 will come and kick ass and we beat and dominate every asian and second class soccer powers.
Happy reading.

[zzgloo]

Dear Ali Chicago................
thanks for your heart felt post....and I agree that this show will go on ,no matter what......yes,we shall come back !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[BehzadB]

what Safahi farahani is talking about here, are more or less,the same comments made by many other people like Laroodi, MK, Jalali, hajrezaie, ..etc. ever since we were eleminated.

I don't undrestand why when Safai Farahani says these things he is right and great but when Jalali, MK, Laroodi or almost anyone else mentions them, they are bad and evil.

[smanhoobi]

what Safahi farahani is talking about here, are more or less,the same comments made by many other people like Laroodi, MK, Jalali, hajrezaie, ..etc. ever since we were eleminated.
I don't undrestand why when Safai Farahani says these things he is right and great but when Jalali, MK, Laroodi or almost anyone else mentions them, they are bad and evil.

Simple in my opinion.

Its because, he is a good manager. I believe he is genuine when he says that. I dont think he looks at this with personal gain.

In the case of others you mentioned, there are lot of agendas and what they say would not be delivered as such.

Genuinity "be del meesheeneh".

Thats another of our issues. "Quoting" anyone is wrong. "Quoting" the right ones should be done.

[Roozbeh-G2006]

The trouble with us Iranians is this: we know what we should do but somehow find a way to depart from it. We are lazy and don't like to work hard. We are minimalists and always cut corner. We don't like too many details. When you tell an Iranian about something, his reply is: yeah yeah I know, when he really hasn't a clue. We are our own worst enemy. We are not good at application. When something has to be done, preparation becomes essential, without which the task should be abandoned. But we still go ahead without the necessary preparations, because we believe we might just about scrape through. Our attitude to everything is wrong and our knowledge on just about everything is insufficient. This is cultural, because our rulers have always kept us from the truth and we are not used to proper critical analyses.