My personal experience with Masoud Shojaei

[Kiarash]

I too have met him a few times and he really is one of the friendliest players in the camp, no doubt about him but crisitizing a player is only fair. He has usually failed on the big stage for Iran and fans have every right to critisise him. At 31, this is gonna be his last chance to prove his doubters wrong so let's see if he manages to deliver or not.

Shojaei is not 31, he's 30. In my opinion, he still got a good 4 years in him if he goes back to Spain and keeps in shape for Team Melli.

[Tehranto]

Shojaie has proven to be more useful and better than the likes of Ansarifard. He was arguably Las Palmas' best player last year scoring many goals and handing out many assists - and he wasn't even their striker!

[Kavian]

I have been one of his critics at times. But I have to admit he does have sparks of brilliance as well. One example was in the game with Argentina. We came so close to scoring all due to his mastery. We can't ignore these things. But what just made me his die heart fan is the fact that refused to kiss the satanic anti human verses.

[rugs]

Does anyone have good video of that Dennis Bergkamp style goal Masoud scored when he was playing in Saipa?

I found it in this video but the quality is terrible

http://youtu.be/zyoM8vBUXaw?t=3m45s

[kiarashzk]

Hes Back to his Prime you will see in this AC Games... Muck my words...

[Siavash]

I remember the days everyone loved Massoud for doing so well for TM and then Ossasuna. We watched every game that he played for Ossasuna because we were proud of him. So no one must conclude by any stretch of imagination that we hate massoud or dislike him. But it is his performance in TM within the last few years that is disappointing. I am sure he is trying to do his best but falls quite short of what he once was. If we are disappointed at him it is because the sake of our TM is at stake here and we will criticize anyone who perform weak. It seems to me that after that very long injury Massoud never fully recovered. However it seems he is doing very well in Qatar right now and we hope that he will continue to do so in AFC too and bring the cup back to Iran to prove us all wrong. Good luck to Massoud and TM....Go Iran.

[webmaster]

I have met him as well. he is very classy and up to date. and girls just loveee him lol.. I wish him the best in the AC as it might be the last major one he attends for Iran.

[Tehranto]

Always liked Shojaei
- He was crucial to our 2010 WC campaign, was almost always involved in our goals
- Was AMAZING last year with Las Palmas
- Survive a few years in Osasuna/ La Liga, which as the lack of other Iranian exports shows, is very difficult
- Was very good vs. Argentina

He just needs to played without the nerves, then his true talent will shine through.

[Rumez]

I want to thank the OP "Shayan" for posting this constructive and informative post.
I do not enjoy Masoud's perfomance in the TM either.
I think he has the ability to do better, but his decisions and the mental aspect of his game are very poor in recent years.

But to support your point, I think our fellow TM supporters seem to forget that the TM players are "human"!
They can be us, our brothers or our cosins!
Would we treat our family in this manner and wish them injury and insult them? Of course not!

But are other human beings that far different from our cosins and brothers?
Does knowing or not knowing Masoud personally make Masoud a differnt person?
Or is it us, who will treat Masoud with more empathy and sympathy just because we met him and got to know him better??

[persian-eagle-13]

i have no doubt that he is a great guy in person, fan favorite, polite guy etc..... but i believe none of these translate into him being able to deliver on the pitch when it matters. being nice and polite does not mean you can be effect in a game too!! he is past his time and should accept that fact. it is very hard for famous and popular athletes to accept this fact and they enjoy the popularity and spot light so much that they do not want this to end. but we all know one day they all have to accept the fact and give way to a younger player and eventually retire.

[sirvan]

I've also met him at the airport and had a brief chat with him. Very nice guy indeed, polite, good mannered, basically the way all Iranians should be. Having said that, Shojaei simply is not a playmaker. The position where he can serve TM best is as second striker, but Azmoun and Ansarifard are better in this position imo. I wish Shojaei all the best, i hope he will achieve succes and make us proud!

[Rumez]

I think OP wishes all the critics to treat Masoud with the respect he deserves.
How well he plays football or contributes to TM is not a justification for vicious and mean-spirited personal attacks.

If you just have to insult someone (to save your life) over Masoud's performance in TM, then it should be Carlos Queiroz!

[Nariman]

Himbeing a nice guy doesn't mean we shouldn't criticise him for his horrible performances.

[Kiarash]

My personal experience with Masoud Shojaei

^ I agree with everything you said.

But in my opinion, he has not been bad for TM as some make him seem to be. You guys expect him to perform like his early Osasuna days during his prime..like PK jan mentioned he was heavily injured and could not reach his true potential. Instead he worked like a true lion and fought himself back in Spain and TM; a true patroit. Foreign commentators said Masoud was decent during the Argentina and Bosnia game, and nobody can deny that. If he would be a little bit more lucky with his shot on the crossbar vs Bosnia, god knew how the game would turn dramatically.

Shojaei should start at the Asian Cup. His style of play is good against Asian teams; they allow him space and he can be very creative when put as a playmaker.

[BacheLot]