Iran vs. Qatar - [Match Thread] | Asian Cup 2023 | Wednesday, February 7th |

[IRAN_TILL_I_DIE]

What if he passed…

[The]

What if he passed…

the Qatari players would close down on Kanaani.

[IRAN_TILL_I_DIE]

the Qatari players would close down on Kanaani.

I think it’s asadi, not kanaani.

if he played it across, first time shot, BOOM it’s 3-3

[momad2468]

I have not been able to comment until now as this loss impacted me just as much as 2004, and 2015 (2019 was fine as I think Japan were far better). A few points:

* I have been saying for a very long time that Shoja is a horrible defender. I remember a coach of mine saying that Centre Backs who make a lot of last second tackles to prevent dangerous situations are actually weaker players with poor positioning. They occasionally look good because of their last ditch interventions, but in reality it is their poor positioning and play which has led to them having to do something desperate. Of course, there are exceptions, but this is exactly what I think of Shoja. Even in the Japan game, he lost their striker who should have scored with an easy header (then blamed Mohammadi!). It’s time we moved on from such a weak defender. The UAE game in the last WCQ, where he was sent off but saved by VAR, showed you everything. He is a total liability.
* The tactics for this game were so, so wrong. We needed a ground game with technical players. GN bringing on Moghanlou and Asadi made me physically ill, it reminded me of the Enayati and Khatibi days. GN does this to justify his own career, as he keeps trying to show the PGPL as a strong league to bring credit to his coaching. Two technically weak players who need multiple chances for a single goal. Just horrible.
* I have no faith in GN bringing youth to this team, and encouraging that youth to go to Europe. We are going to be stuck with a bunch of average PGPL players in their late 20s, who score scrappy goals against Khoone be Khoone. This team will struggle to make WC 2026.

[perspolis#1]

I have not been able to comment until now as this loss impacted me just as much as 2004, and 2015 (2019 was fine as I think Japan were far better). A few points:

* I have been saying for a very long time that Shoja is a horrible defender. I remember a coach of mine saying that Centre Backs who make a lot of last second tackles to prevent dangerous situations are actually weaker players with poor positioning. They occasionally look good because of their last ditch interventions, but in reality it is their poor positioning and play which has led to them having to do something desperate. Of course, there are exceptions, but this is exactly what I think of Shoja. Even in the Japan game, he lost their striker who should have scored with an easy header (then blamed Mohammadi!). It’s time we moved on from such a weak defender. The UAE game in the last WCQ, where he was sent off but saved by VAR, showed you everything. He is a total liability.
* The tactics for this game were so, so wrong. We needed a ground game with technical players. GN bringing on Moghanlou and Asadi made me physically ill, it reminded me of the Enayati and Khatibi days. GN does this to justify his own career, as he keeps trying to show the PGPL as a strong league to bring credit to his coaching. Two technically weak players who need multiple chances for a single goal. Just horrible.
* I have no faith in GN bringing youth to this team, and encouraging that youth to go to Europe. We are going to be stuck with a bunch of average PGPL players in their late 20s, who score scrappy goals against Khoone be Khoone. This team will struggle to make WC 2026.

Excellent points. Defender positioning is more important than slide tackles. It is not as glamorous but speaks to how good a defender is. Jalal Hosseini was our best defender in Iran for a decade because of this. Otherwise you need to be a physical beast ( Zouma, Rudiger, Ramos etc) to set it right.

What's missing in TM forever are actual play patterns to repetitively make chances.

Even the most creative teams in the world like Man City or 2011 Barcelona do/did a lot of the same passing patterns. I usually can predict what the next pass is in European football but cant half the time when I watch Iranian teams play.

We will struggle but ultimately the expanded competition and league style format suits us in World cup qualifying.

No faith in a team turnover.