Would you play for Iran?

[shayan_esteghlali]

Obviously I would only play for Iran, i think if you look at every player that came Zandi, Ashkan etc. none of them in the end regret coming to Iran, even if their club career got harmed from coming to Iran, the love you get from 80,000,000 Iranians is worth more than any fame you can get anywhere else... The money you make isn't too different, right now ashkan makes more than cazorla, but it would be a honour and a dream to make 80,000,000 Iranians happy. Just look at how happy we get here wen iran wins, how happy we were with our boys performance against Argentina, making Iranians happy is worth all the sacrifices one has to make.

So when anyone says i don't want to play for islamic republic etc. thats all BS, representing Team melli gives Iranians all around the world joy, its doesn't give any akhoond any kind of benefits, its actually a headache for them

[Gijscoman]

Of course it's a bit strange for me to talk about this topic, as I am not in your situation and probably will never be able to fully understand your situation.

Regarding the question if playing for Iran is supporting the regime: of course it isn't, but it can still feel that way. And if it feels that way, like with Zamboor, then I can understand, that you might not want to do it. One shouldn't do, what doesn't feel right. This doesn't mean, that Zamboor thinks that you are all supporting the regime. It just means that you have different feelings, different perspectives, and so forth. You would almost say that all of you are unique individuals with their own thoughts. Therefore I can respect both sides and I hope all of you do.

There was also the argument that playing for your country of residence could mean that you will have more success. One shouldn't forget, though, that there are more possibilities to write history with Iran. If, for instance, both Germany and Iran want you to play for them. In Germany you would be one of the many great players, but in Iran you could be the best player and maybe even become a legend. (At least, if you can play for the current German national team, I guess you would be one of the best players of Iran, which isn't meant in a disrespectful way) That should also be taken in consideration, when using the more selfish argument (which I don't criticize).

There have been some examples of unofficial national teams. There has been, for instance, Suriprofs and Kleurrijk Elftal (both teams of Dutch players from Suriname descent). And there is the Kosovo National Team, which isn't officially recognised. If you could choose between playing for an unofficial Iran, which had the original flag and didn't have any ties with the regime, or the official Iran, which is in some ways tied to the IR and has the current flag. What would you choose?

[PSGman#19]

Yes, with pleasure IR or not. And Specially if I am a superstar player (in PSG of course, couldn't play anywhere else!), I will be so motivated to shvt up some western arrogants that mock Iran and TM.
The only cons, is to put foot on sh1tty place (india, arab countries etc..) to play a game. On the contrary I would be pleased to play Japan, S.Korea or Australia, as these games are part of our history and means more to me than any other game except PSG games.

[littlepersia17]

After seeing that video Tadeu made, f*ck any other country.

What I would give to score the goal that would take IRAN to the second round of the WC![emoji1]

[OFFSIDE_1]

ofcourse Iran.

also remember, IR hates to see Iranian football succeed. So if you hate IR, it's a win-win situation

[Amin_]

These kind of comments bug me a little.
I have no issue with ppl choosing to play for TM or their birth country, etc.....
But I really dislike it when people live in a country and don't really show any respect for it. If you have no bond to the country, why don't you go somewhere else, or go back to Iran?
It's not a bad idea to show some gratitude to a country and its people who took you in with open arms when your own countrymen didn't.

It's not about respect or not showing grattitude! Of course I am thankful that Holland has given me the opportunities I have now (although I had to work double as hard as Dutch people to get where I am now), but I just don't bond really well with them, nor do I feel much connections culturally with them!

But to keep it football related, well in terms of football, I have lost my support for them after many altercations and discussions with Dutch people. Let's just say that usually they were really disrespectful and ignorant. Like making jokes as "Do they even have football fields in Iran?!", "Have they even discovered a ball there or do they play with stones?", "What's the best club over there, FC Camel?" and I can go on and on...

Of course there are also the brighter and smarter people like our members Gijscoman and NEC is ok, but the idiots I have encountered over the years made me somehow turn against them and their arrogant views. I'm now talking specifically about football; in most other sports I usually support Dutch sides.

[mahestan]

Well, it's cheaper to have nothing on the back than having I.R. IRAN so that arguments doesn't hold up. And for the names; I wouldn't consider Sadeghi or Pooladi for example as long surnames... Even Jahanbakhsh is just as long as Ibrahimovic, but they rather have Amirhossein and Alireza up there.

Try Ghoochannejhad.

[Hormozgan]

Try Ghoochannejhad.

As you might have noticed, I didn't use him as an example cuz there's always exceptions. I'm sayin', generallt speaking,

But since you wanna get cute with it... If Vennegoor of Hesselink fits on a jersey, I'm sure Ghoochannejhad will too.

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/...82_306x423.jpg

[mahestan]

As you might have noticed, I didn't use him as an example cuz there's always exceptions. I'm sayin', generallt speaking,

But since you wanna get cute with it... If Vennegoor of Hesselink fits on a jersey, I'm sure Ghoochannejhad will too.

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/...82_306x423.jpg

I was being sarcastic, but since it appears your sarcasm-meter is broken, i'll get into it. You can fit any length name on the back of a jersey, just shrink or modify the font used, but the norm in manufacturing is that anything custom will cost you more. On top of that, the kit now belongs to that one specific player and the jersey/number can't be assigned to anyone else unless additional jerseys are ordered. Anywho, I'm still thinking it was more of a $$$ saving decision than other reasons.

[Hormozgan]

I was being sarcastic, but since it appears your sarcasm-meter is broken, i'll get into it. You can fit any length name on the back of a jersey, just shrink or modify the font used, but the norm in manufacturing is that anything custom will cost you more. On top of that, the kit now belongs to that one specific player and the jersey/number can't be assigned to anyone else unless additional jerseys are ordered. Anywho, I'm still thinking it was more of a $$$ saving decision than other reasons.

Haha, sarcasm doesn't work without being communicative bro..

Anyways, we're talking about championships. You don't necessarily need names in qualifications etc. Yeah, customization costs more, but some leagues such as PL have rules that makes every font and font size be the same, that's why you get this: http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m4...smvqo1_500.jpg
So either you have it, or you go with your first name like Ibrahimovic did at his start in Ajax, because his name didn't fit in the red.

The costs is of course more and yes we have had problems with sanctions and etc, but we're still a top tier team in a whole continent and we still print I.R. IRAN on the back sometimes. If it only was about costs then don't print nothing at all. It's something more than costs and customization. The costs of looking like a professional team should be unreasonable when you actually are a professional team. Fuckin' Sunday League have more professional kits than us, bro.

[mahestan]

Haha, sarcasm doesn't work without being communicative bro..

Anyways, we're talking about championships. You don't necessarily need names in qualifications etc. Yeah, customization costs more, but some leagues such as PL have rules that makes every font and font size be the same, that's why you get this: http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m4...smvqo1_500.jpg
So either you have it, or you go with your first name like Ibrahimovic did at his start in Ajax, because his name didn't fit in the red.

The costs is of course more and yes we have had problems with sanctions and etc, but we're still a top tier team in a whole continent and we still print I.R. IRAN on the back sometimes. If it only was about costs then don't print nothing at all. It's something more than costs and customization. The costs of looking like a professional team should be unreasonable when you actually are a professional team. Fuckin' Sunday League have more professional kits than us, bro.

I know what you mean, as the #1 team in Asia I expect more professional look for the team also, but sadly it appears that the people running the show don't see things the same way you and I do.

[Team Melli Fan]

I want to go back in time and play against Japan.

[PersianLegion]

i will only play for iran, would be a honour and privilege which many younger player take lightly

That's right!

[Z Joon]

That's right!

[littlepersia17]

Would you play for Iran?

I'm actually not certain if I would play for Iran if I was some world class youngster (say like Mbappe).

The decisions is because of the non-footballing reasons associated with playing for Iran.

Say I wanted to use my position of power, and smash a new 10/10 stunner every other weekend. This will of course be all over the my instagram for everyone to see .

But there would be a massive uproar in Iran if a TM player did that.