Peyman Yousefi’s euphoric celebrations after Qatar scored the equalizer against Iran yesterday was one the rare, yet pathetic moments of Iran’s dreadful football commentaries.
I am sure that the same reaction was shared among thousands if not millions of other Iranians who were watching from their homes.
Years ago, Iran and Bahrain faced each other in a crucial world cup qualifying match. While Iran’s qualification fate was totally in its own hands and could have sealed itself a place in the 2002 World Cup, they lost that very match with a weak and unmotivated performance and threw away the chance to directly qualify to the world cup. What can be said about that match is that Bahrain was the better side and they won fair and square.
Since then, Bahrain has turned into a grudge for Iranian football fans around the world. Many of us often re-live the bitter memory of that defeat and cruse the tiny Persian gulf island nation of Bahrain. Why? Because while they had no chance of qualification themselves, played fair and beat us square.
It seems that the millions of fans who despise Bahrain, claim they feel this way because Bahraini players waved Saudi’s flag around the stadium after that defeat. While this may be a valid point, we never ask ourselves even once, who and what was truly to blame for that loss?
Without a shadow of doubt, the blame lies with ourselves and our own team. It was us who ultimately raised the Saudi flag in the hands of the Bahraini players. We could have won and breezed to the world cup but we were not brave enough to decisively beat the small nation of Bahrain. What’s more, after that defeat, we went on to play Ireland and our fans chanted against Team Melli for 70 minutes during the return leg in Tehran.
Now, whenever we recall the 2002 Qualification Campaign, we ignore all our own shortcomings and only remember our baseless resentment of Bahrain and discharge our frustrations over Bahrain.
We claim Iran is a powerhouses of Asian football, yet we forget that we were not capable to grab a draw from a (back then) third class football team. We forget that in arguably one of the most crucial matches of our football history (the return leg against Ireland), instead of supporting our players, our fans chanted against the team for 70 minutes.
Bahrain did not block us from reaching the world cup. They only ran around with Saudi’s flag to satisfy their own ignorance. It was us who did not play well and did not support our team well.
Yet, this is all basic human nature: sinners can’t look in the mirror and blame their own selves. Self criticism is hard, but finding a scapegoat to swear at is easy.
Let’s ponder for a second. How long should our baseless grudge against this tiny nation of Bahrain with its second rate football going to continue? Doesn’t this childish behaviour belittle our own country and nation more than it does Bahrain?
Peyman Yousefi (and the likes of him) is so deeply entangled in this Bahrain-Grudge that he was overjoyed when Qatar scored and potentially stopped the second class team of Bahrain from qualifying to the second round.
If we think carefully, a person who is delighted from his own team conceding a goal, definitely has the potential to run around the pitch with another country’s flag!
Bahrainis ran around the pitch with Saudi’s flag. But did they jump with joy when we scored on them? No. After the match, they were over the moon because their famous victory, and in a moment of tribal-racial-political ignorance, a few individual waved Saudi Arabia’s flag on the Bahraini bench. Whatever they did, they did not scream with ecstasy: Yay! Bahrain conceded a goal!
There is little difference between those Bahrainis who waved Saudi’s flag in 2001, and Peyman Yousefi and the likes of him who were overjoyed with Qatar’s second goal last night. Both of these groups’ actions were immoral, unfair and unprofessional to say the least.
It is time to look at ourselves again and consider why our star studded team was unable to beat Qatar at home, rather than remember this day as a day when Bahrain and Saudi did not qualify.
*some parts of this were translated from:
http://khabarfarsi.com/ext/2171176
I am sure that the same reaction was shared among thousands if not millions of other Iranians who were watching from their homes.
Years ago, Iran and Bahrain faced each other in a crucial world cup qualifying match. While Iran’s qualification fate was totally in its own hands and could have sealed itself a place in the 2002 World Cup, they lost that very match with a weak and unmotivated performance and threw away the chance to directly qualify to the world cup. What can be said about that match is that Bahrain was the better side and they won fair and square.
Since then, Bahrain has turned into a grudge for Iranian football fans around the world. Many of us often re-live the bitter memory of that defeat and cruse the tiny Persian gulf island nation of Bahrain. Why? Because while they had no chance of qualification themselves, played fair and beat us square.
It seems that the millions of fans who despise Bahrain, claim they feel this way because Bahraini players waved Saudi’s flag around the stadium after that defeat. While this may be a valid point, we never ask ourselves even once, who and what was truly to blame for that loss?
Without a shadow of doubt, the blame lies with ourselves and our own team. It was us who ultimately raised the Saudi flag in the hands of the Bahraini players. We could have won and breezed to the world cup but we were not brave enough to decisively beat the small nation of Bahrain. What’s more, after that defeat, we went on to play Ireland and our fans chanted against Team Melli for 70 minutes during the return leg in Tehran.
Now, whenever we recall the 2002 Qualification Campaign, we ignore all our own shortcomings and only remember our baseless resentment of Bahrain and discharge our frustrations over Bahrain.
We claim Iran is a powerhouses of Asian football, yet we forget that we were not capable to grab a draw from a (back then) third class football team. We forget that in arguably one of the most crucial matches of our football history (the return leg against Ireland), instead of supporting our players, our fans chanted against the team for 70 minutes.
Bahrain did not block us from reaching the world cup. They only ran around with Saudi’s flag to satisfy their own ignorance. It was us who did not play well and did not support our team well.
Yet, this is all basic human nature: sinners can’t look in the mirror and blame their own selves. Self criticism is hard, but finding a scapegoat to swear at is easy.
Let’s ponder for a second. How long should our baseless grudge against this tiny nation of Bahrain with its second rate football going to continue? Doesn’t this childish behaviour belittle our own country and nation more than it does Bahrain?
Peyman Yousefi (and the likes of him) is so deeply entangled in this Bahrain-Grudge that he was overjoyed when Qatar scored and potentially stopped the second class team of Bahrain from qualifying to the second round.
If we think carefully, a person who is delighted from his own team conceding a goal, definitely has the potential to run around the pitch with another country’s flag!
Bahrainis ran around the pitch with Saudi’s flag. But did they jump with joy when we scored on them? No. After the match, they were over the moon because their famous victory, and in a moment of tribal-racial-political ignorance, a few individual waved Saudi Arabia’s flag on the Bahraini bench. Whatever they did, they did not scream with ecstasy: Yay! Bahrain conceded a goal!
There is little difference between those Bahrainis who waved Saudi’s flag in 2001, and Peyman Yousefi and the likes of him who were overjoyed with Qatar’s second goal last night. Both of these groups’ actions were immoral, unfair and unprofessional to say the least.
It is time to look at ourselves again and consider why our star studded team was unable to beat Qatar at home, rather than remember this day as a day when Bahrain and Saudi did not qualify.
*some parts of this were translated from:
http://khabarfarsi.com/ext/2171176
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