Did we play for a draw?

[MrAmir]

I know it sounds crazy but does anyone else feel like you watch a Team that was more interested in not losing than winning.
i.e. satisifed with a draw?

How many times did we have VH isolated up front, or opportunities for give-and-gos, where the first man would pass it but not then make a follow-up run to recieve the ball back.
the only time we did in the first half, karimi gave it back to Kia who crossed for VH's volley.
Other than that it seemed we more worried about not throwing too many men up front.

Oh and the pace.
How slowwwww were our counter-attacks?

Am I losing my mind or did anyone else see it that way?

[Kasra.]

Na dadash, you said it completely correct. Especially in the 2nd half, we weren't playing for a win. We went for a draw

[shayan20]

Ghotbi is just another fearful Iranian coach. He doesnt have the courage to bench players like karimi, kia.
also he insists on bringing PP players in for personal reason, eg. Khalili who has done nothing for PP this season comes on to replace Hash.
Why the heck play with 1 striker when you actually need to score?
so obviously he was more concerned about not losing than winning and taking us to WC.

[Doctor DOOM]

the brave die once, while the cowards, the f*cking spineless yellow dogs they are, die a 1000 deaths

[BehzadB]

How slowwwww were our counter-attacks?
Am I losing my mind or did anyone else see it that way?

No you are not losing your mind, it's just that we never had any counter opportunities..

North Korea has given up 1 goal in all their home games and that was to South Korea and that was a gamed played in China..

today, as usual, the North Koreans were defending with 7 or sometimes 8 players.. and they played in front of their own crowd..

What counters??
Just because our team gets the ball on our side of the field, doesn't mean we have a counter opportunity..

People who think that 2 or 3 forwards would have made it better for us, are simply out of touch with the realities of the game and are talking out of emotions..

6 forwards wouldn't have done anything.. just because you have bodies up front don't mean you win games.. if that was the case teams around the world would have played with 5 forwards..

You either get all 10 players to go up and down the field together (only top teams in the world can do that) or you have to score on set plays or random half chances (i.e Shojaie hitting the post, or VH's close range shot that went just wide)..

South Korea tried for like 88 minutes in Seoul and couldn't score on this team, until a service ball off of a set play went into the goal without anyone touching it.. A silly mistake by the keeper..

[Doctor DOOM]

no need to exaggerate the number of forwards. I think we can leave such exaggerations to other members who like to use it to escape simple querries about the "results and efficacy of the formation".

it is one thing to say play 2 guys up front so not only they can feed off each other and support one another, but also relieve some pressure off the single forward routine.
and another thing to say 3 or 6 forwards are good.

nobody is as senseless as that and you know it.

you guys dont agree , well that's ur opinion.
some say the single forward formation doesnt work and that's theirs.

but tell me truly, you see the reason for our strikers not scoring goals is ONLY and solely restricted to lack of supply from midfield ans NOTHING ELSE?

REALLY ?

so in ur eyes VH and other single forwards used have always come on top of their markers and have been only UNLUCKY not to score or havent been fed enough balls?


like I said, everyone can have their own opinion and have their own reasoning to defend it too.
much like those who thought sun revolves around the earth. I'm sure they too, had their own reasoning for thinking so.

but what a kick in the rear for everyone is THE FREAKING FACT that our strikers havent scored even quarter of the normal rate and it cannot be ONLY due to lack of supply.
of course we all dont want to be proven wrong so we refute everything ... which starts the circle of going back n forth .... etc etc etc !!!

FACTS are facts and no matter how much we play with words and dodge queries and arguments, these facts remain , for everyone to see.

[Martin-Reza]

I don't think they aimed a draw, but it is football and trying not to concede a goal should almost always be a part of it.

Look at Osasuna, if they had conceded a goal by Sevilla, in the 0-0 before the final 2 games, by risking everything at that point, they'd be relegated now.

We must not lose our nerves. The strong Koreans attacked us heavily in second half and the point might be valuable in the end. I am sure Ghotbi wanted the win, but the draw in the end is better than a loss, so there is no sense in sending everyone forward in such a situation, just to prove guts.

Now UAE is a different story. This is a must-win, more than the last one. So I suppose there will be more risk.

[Martin-Reza]

Let me add, that we indeed never were able to launch decent counter attacks in the past as well. I don't know why.

[Mr.Good]

Let me add, that we indeed never were able to launch decent counter attacks in the past as well. I don't know why.

Because our players are slow in the head

[BehzadB]

Let me add, that we indeed never were able to launch decent counter attacks in the past as well. I don't know why.

You know why. you just didn't feel like typing..

Counter starts with a "good" outlet pass that is usually initiated from the back field..

[persianallstars]

the brain (Nekounam) was missing

[Doctor DOOM]

I think he was MORE satisfied with the draw than he let on publicly.

from his selection of 23, to the final elimination of a striker, to his line up and arrangement, to his subs and the timing of his subs to whom he retained on the pitch to ... all that point to one direction only: a draw was sought and not a win.

today he comes up and says :

افشين قطبي بعد از اين تساوي اظهار داشت: اين مسابقه اهميت زيادي براي دو تيم داشت. به همين دليل ايران و كره شمالي با استرس زيادي بازي كردند.
وي ادامه داد: در نيمه اول ايران به لحاظ سازماندهي بسيار عالي بود و ما جريان بازي را در اختيار گرفته بوديم و هيچ فرصتي را به حريف نداديم. علاوه بر اين در اين نيمه 3 يا 4 موقعيت گلزني را در اختيار داشتيم و مي توانستيم با چند گل حريف را در نيمه اول شكست دهيم. به نظر من در يك بازي بين المللي بايد چنين فرصت هايي را به گل تبديل كنيد تا برنده ميدان شويد.

this only shows he naivete and lack of insight into :
a- our football and its dynamics
b- the campaign's circumstances and needs
c- the opponent's style and game plan

he boasts about the first half ( I see a lot of members talk about our supposed "dominance" in the first half ... having totally missed the NKorean's plan for the game which was clearly to soak up pressure in the 1st half with a closed game and start attacking from the second ) this was the most apparent thing in yesterday's game and he either missed it or doesnt have the courage to admit to it and wants to continue with his lies & hollow claims to iranian public !

secondly, when he says he expected us to convert on those 3-4 chances clearly shows he, since he claims to be an experienced "coach", has failed to grasp the dynamics of our football , specifically the potency of our strikers and their abysmal conversion rate.

we already spoke about it BEFORE the game as we all are aware our strikers need far more chances to score a goal than most others.

that's why I said leaving our forward thrust to get the goal late int the game is utterly foolish, coz we wont be able to provide that many opportunities for our strikers and players to score a goal. ( while some wanted late surge only!!! high time we learned our lessons )

which brings me to his deficient and foolish overall game plan. and if we add his single forward line up, and then those periods where we just didnt have a single striker in the line up , to the late late subbing of khalatbari ( looked more like "time wasting tactic" than wanting to score ) it clearly shows the guy was as spineless and gutless as the rest of our vatani coaches.


and if someone accuses him of being a charlatan now ( my apologies to mansoor jan for I have learned my lesson now ) for deceiving our public with "great & flowery words" but those words never converting to action, I dont think I would rise up vehemently to defend this fellow.


======================

is it me or has anyone noticed how ghotbi thinks beating SOUTH korea is easier than the north?
why is that?
based on what does he claim that?
is it just another empty claim and "big talk" with no basis behind it ? it sure seems like that to me, even when I looked at him favorably.
today? he is waaaay down the list of my favorite ppl. and I beleive he keeps making such claims solely based on the fact that he was koreans' video analyst and worked there.
how on earth that transforms into ability to defeat them is beyond me!

[zereshk-ali]

The pace of the passes was the most frustratingly slow aspect. Not just on counterattacking opportunities, but in general. And even when they were not under any pressure from the N Koreans.

Sadly, I think our players (with perhaps a couple of exceptions) are not technically good enough to exchange quick passes accurately whilst retaining possession.

[persianallstars]

is it me or has anyone noticed how ghotbi thinks beating SOUTH korea is easier than the north?
why is that?
based on what does he claim that?
is it just another empty claim and "big talk" with no basis behind it ? it sure seems like that to me, even when I looked at him favorably.
today? he is waaaay down the list of my favorite ppl. and I beleive he keeps making such claims solely based on the fact that he was koreans' video analyst and worked there.
how on earth that transforms into ability to defeat them is beyond me!

jap, i've noticed the same. Ghotbi was clearly after a draw against NK, I would have shared his thoughts anyway. South Korea is definitely more easier than North Korea!

South Korea is a clear attacking team, they are not good at defending or in other words, they don't hide themselves in their own half of the pitch. North Korea just focused on counterattack! They don't have the quality to attack for 90 minutes.

[yashar_fasihnia]

i dont think ghotbi wanted a draw. he wanted to win.
i think he just didnt see us winning without karimi, shojaei and kia and continued to use them inspite of all of them just walking on the field in the entire second half.