Approaching Syria game.....

[maij]

It has been many years since I had this feeling of apprehensiveness about an official match played by Team Melli. It is the first time since the early to Mid-eighties that I am not sure what Team Melli will be like , what plans , how good is the preparation and mainly if this team is going to play convincing football or chaotic unorganized one like the Hansa Rostock debacle !!

It is this empty horrible feeling that is not too far from going into a dark cave and expecting the unexpected.

Minimal preparation , loss of some key players and a coaching staff that is probably one of the most inexperienced for decades.

Frankly , I think we need to abandon the beautiful game against Syria and go for brute force , direct balls , and depend on individual skills to gain the required result. Anything less than a convincing win is unthinkable at this early stage.

I am nervous....

[Doctor DOOM]

majid jan, let me put your worries to rest. the least I can do for an old friend.

but first let me say:
1- dont worry, we WILL play an un-organized, erratic football.
2- Do NOT expect much in terms of teamwork and classy display.

BUT when we keep the game in perspective ( of 6 home and away games against at best B grade asian opponents ), even if we drop points ( I think at worst, we'll draw. maybe 15% possibility only ), we WILL fare better in the end and WILL qualify.

so throw your worry hat aside and relax.
put up your feet and just watch the team play . log it for records' sake. and after 5-6 months, use this game to compare how much we have progressed.

I'm sure you can get "a cold one" in bahrain, even if "yavashaki".
open one and just observe the players, not the team. individuals will carry the team this time, ... much like on many other occasions.
whatever we get out of any teamwork is to be taken as a BONUS, at the moment.

I know I'm not worried.
( even if we lose, which has only 2% possibility in my books )

[Adesor Vafaseya]

Maij jan,

I am worried too... simply because the time given to Clemente is soo short for a coach who is not familiar with Asian scene and Iranian Players.
We should have for gods sake hired him way earlier. I really hope with the help of Iranian advisors and scouts Clemente can make the best out of what has been given to him... Good Luck to him or I shall say GOOD LUCK TO US!

[zzgloo]

The TM is practicing fine, the players are in good shape during the league games, and the interem coach is not a bolony !,and must have some qualities to be chosen over others by IFF................., lets have faith in the class of our football, and less dependednt on either legioners or a forign coach.....
Our secound team without any legioners or top coaching, beat IRAQ in Jordan last year...same iraq team that won the asian games........
if the interem coach stablishes a minimal chamistry,we should be fine !and azadi estedium, and the fact they are comeing to us for a single point is also to our advantage.

[khabalood]

I am nervous....

So am I, but Hosseini in the heart of our defense gives me hope. I doubt they have a player that can get passed him.

[Doctor DOOM]

The TM is practicing fine, the players are in good shape during the league games, and the interem coach is not a bolony !,and must have some qualities to be chosen over others by IFF................., lets have faith in the class of our football, and less dependednt on either legioners or a forign coach.....
Our secound team without any legioners or top coaching, beat IRAQ in Jordan last year...same iraq team that won the asian games........
if the interem coach stablishes a minimal chamistry,we should be fine !and azadi estedium, and the fact they are comeing to us for a single point is also to our advantage.

absolutely.
neither do I see any reason to worry, or teeth-chattering as our friends are going through here

lets re-visit some FACTS here:

1- traditionally or at least in recent history, most of our games and performances were on the back of INDIVIDUAL displays of brilliance. This, I think everyone agrees on. at one time or another almost all of us have mentioned this.
hardly any game comes to mind that its success was due to highly coordinated and fluid teamwork! hardly.

2- as bahram jan said, it's not as if the players are under a carrot. Nikolic and others do have some sort of plan and today I read they were experimenting with 2 different formations in practice sessions : 4-2-3-1 & 4-4-2.

3- we still have quite a few players experienced enough to be handful to the syrians. not to mention some highly skilled ones.
it's not as if we have a team made up of 23 inexperienced, naive mediocre players.
Kia will be joining. ando, karimi, shojaei, madanchi, hosseini, aghili, bengar, kaabi, ... will be there too. in fact we have many players either highly experienced like kia, karimi, kaabi, ...
or some coming off the back of great tournaments like aghili, bengar, hosseini, ...
not to mention some who are in fiery form like madanchi, mobaali, shojaei, ...


when was the last time TM played with great TEAM-WORK ?
I dont see ANY reason for worrying.


===========

as for the latter games, the main one in 1st phase that worries me is the away game to UAE.
and to a lesser extent, the away game to syria.
both of which are quite far off and with inclusion of clemente and more practice for the team we shd do just fine.
even if clemente starts after syria game, we still have enough time to whip the team into shape for the more important 2nd phase.

[maij]

Doc , you are simply amazing.

Come to think of it , I , like you , can't remember when was the last time Team Melli played organized football that one can rave about.....

It is actually the first game that is worrying....I am not too concerned (yet!) about the next ones where the Team should be more organized under the new coach (...I don't like to name him until I see his face on TV on Team Melli bench.)


Remember Jordan a few years ago ...... And even this Syrian team that equalized in the last few minutes......????


One thing about football is that it is one hell of unpredictable ***** .....hopefully that unpredictability swings towards Team Melli comes February 6th!

[maij]

BTW: after a few nights thought about the Syria game...... My hunch says that it is Madanchi who will make the difference..... I know it is a silly thought because it means F* all at this stage...I believe that we require a performance in the class of Ali Karimi in Asian Cup 2004 where he single handedly destroyed the Koreans ....I doubt that Karimi will repeat such a feat, however a similar act of individual brilliance could be required to beat Syria ( even by a solitary goal) and that guy is Madanchi !!!!

Am I hallucinating ????

[Doctor DOOM]

ma che adadi hastim, amoo?
ma chakereh shoma hastim.


and to follow that line of thought:
yes, I remember the syrian game or the jordan game.
but here's the key: what happened ultimately? we settled into our usual rhythm and qualified. albeit the in-organized team display.
so, stop worrying.


and you could well be right.
madanchi may turn out a great performnace SINCE HE IS ON FORM. and a fiery one at that, might I add.

"form". something that OUGHT TO be the deciding factor on selection and arrangement of players for ANY game.
"form". the word that effectively speaks against choosing players like nosrati as starters, while we have ppl like aghili, bengar, ... .

[purple_haze]

Well after today's game vs Costa Rica, I'd say we'd better lower the expectations bar quite a bit. A solitary goal would be more than enough at this poist and with the current state our football is at, if they do manage to score that is. Otherwise we'd better keep it safe at the back because the latest year TM has clearly shown that they aren't exactly a scoring machine.
Our defensive mid part of the field is also lacking big time and we badly miss Nekounam. Such a shame that Teymoorian wasn't there to see if he can somewhat fill the gap a bit, because M.Zare, as much as I like the guy, just doesn't cut it and Shakouri as DM? Was that a joke? Wasn't there any other DM available they could have invited? Wahat happened to Kazemi or K.Rahmati? For god's sake at least they play the position and are surely better at it than Shakouri!!!

Our Right side right now, is quite dead. I don't know what form Kia will be at, but with Kaebi totally out of form and Kazemian just coming from injuri and no one to combine with, it doesn't even remotely look like the lethal right side we all know.

[Doctor DOOM]

1- I agree with PH on the fact that with kaabi's diminishing form, our right side has gone to sleep ! and this worries me. our right side was our strongest sode that was feared in asia.

2- secondly, the lack of scoring is of concern and shd be worked on diligently by the staff. hopefully it is just the NEW players trying to find their feet in the team that is hardly coordinated as it is. with more games and tests, even if it is against IPL imports or even clubs, they shd fare better.
I'd have liked to see more of khalili and meydavoodi in this game, though. we MUST focus on our forward line if we want a good team worthy of WC.

3- In this game what I really liked was how well hosseini reads the game. and that is a must for any defender or def-mid.


4- I also was surprised to see mobaali become such a good hustler. he hustled for the ball and came on top so many times that really surprised me , given his physique and how he used to GET hustled off the ball before. Kudos to Cerezo at al-shabab for instilling this in him.


5- karimi did adequately. but his lack of movement did hurt his ratings. he shd have been more active, which would create far more chances for us up front.

6- I'm happy Mohamadi got the full 90 minutes, though. even if he wasnt tested all that much. this display of trust will do him and us good later on.

7- why Niki even PLAYED?
absolutely horrible! considering we had Asadi, it's a mystery to me why niki started and almost finished the game playing the absolute worst football anywhere in the radius of 37 miles around Azadi ! a complete mystery.


8- someone ought to tell our "captain" that the arm band goes on the LEFT arm. not the right one !! this is the 3rd or 4th time I've seen him do that !!!

[purple_haze]

1- I agree with PH on the fact that with kaabi's diminishing form, our right side has gone to sleep ! and this worries me. our right side was our strongest sode that was feared in asia.

2- secondly, the lack of scoring is of concern and shd be worked on diligently by the staff. hopefully it is just the NEW players trying to find their feet in the team that is hardly coordinated as it is. with more games and tests, even if it is against IPL imports or even clubs, they shd fare better.
I'd have liked to see more of khalili and meydavoodi in this game, though. we MUST focus on our forward line if we want a good team worthy of WC.

3- In this game what I really liked was how well hosseini reads the game. and that is a must for any defender or def-mid.


4- I also was surprised to see mobaali become such a good hustler. he hustled for the ball and came on top so many times that really surprised me , given his physique and how he used to GET hustled off the ball before. Kudos to Cerezo at al-shabab for instilling this in him.


5- karimi did adequately. but his lack of movement did hurt his ratings. he shd have been more active, which would create far more chances for us up front.

6- I'm happy Mohamadi got the full 90 minutes, though. even if he wasnt tested all that much. this display of trust will do him and us good later on.

7- why Niki even PLAYED?
absolutely horrible! considering we had Asadi, it's a mystery to me why niki started and almost finished the game playing the absolute worst football anywhere in the radius of 37 miles around Azadi ! a complete mystery.


8- someone ought to tell our "captain" that the arm band goes on the LEFT arm. not the right one !! this is the 3rd or 4th time I've seen him do that !!!

DD jan I agree with you almost completely, but about Hosseini I must say (and I might be the only one going against the current) although he's a defender we've all come to love for his gheyrat and fighting spirit and all, that he, in my humble opinion is being a bit overhyped sometimes. He did great in second half, but go watch the first half carefully and you'll see him being misplaced on some occasions. It's like if he's trying too hard and wants to be everywhere in our own half. In one occasion a long ball was crossed over to our right side, near the mid line where Kaebi was standing and Kaebi would've got the ball easily, but suddenly Hosseini appeared, went up in the air, almost climbed over Kaebi, missed the ball which in turn caused Kaebi to miss it too and the costa rican forward had a highway infront of him to go forward (the ball was eventually cleared by Aghili for a corner).
The guy is a great fighter and all, but here's what he lacks:
- Speed. He's ok, but when facing fast accelerating forwards he ain't fast enough, belive me, I've observed and focused on him many times to see this.
- Ball distribution. Right now he doesn't have it. On 2 occasions in this last match for example, he started running with the ball too much, while at the same time running out of ideas and ended up sending it high upfield to no one. I used to critisize Aghili for this, but he has really improved in that area, compared to Hosseini.

[Ali Chicago]

DD jan I agree with you almost completely, but about Hosseini I must say (and I might be the only one going against the current) although he's a defender we've all come to love for his gheyrat and fighting spirit and all, that he, in my humble opinion is being a bit overhyped sometimes. He did great in second half, but go watch the first half carefully and you'll see him being misplaced on some occasions. It's like if he's trying too hard and wants to be everywhere in our own half. In one occasion a long ball was crossed over to our right side, near the mid line where Kaebi was standing and Kaebi would've got the ball easily, but suddenly Hosseini appeared, went up in the air, almost climbed over Kaebi, missed the ball which in turn caused Kaebi to miss it too and the costa rican forward had a highway infront of him to go forward (the ball was eventually cleared by Aghili for a corner).
The guy is a great fighter and all, but here's what he lacks:
- Speed. He's ok, but when facing fast accelerating forwards he ain't fast enough, belive me, I've observed and focused on him many times to see this.
- Ball distribution. Right now he doesn't have it. On 2 occasions in this last match for example, he started running with the ball too much, while at the same time running out of ideas and ended up sending it high upfield to no one. I used to critisize Aghili for this, but he has really improved in that area, compared to Hosseini.

I agree with you and you are not the only one. He is slow and he knows it, so he doesn't come forward and stay close to teh goal to cover his back. As a result that puts a lot of pressure on the mid field in turn.

[purple_haze]

I agree with you and you are not the only one. He is slow and he knows it, so he doesn't come forward and stay close to teh goal to cover his back. As a result that puts a lot of pressure on the mid field in turn.

Thanks Ali jan. With all the praise virtually raining all over the place for Hosseini, I was begining to doubt my own judgement and thought I'm being too hard on the poor guy

[zzgloo]

May be the most important position for TM, is to solidify the Mid-defense..!!
The transition of " rahman rezaei==Gholmohammadi ", to " Rezaie==hossaini ", and when Rezaei is gone...............