iran greatest generation not to make the world cup

[Rooyintan]

I would not say Australia was better. The reason they won the first leg 3-0 was the coaching staff's fault. A few days before the match they took the team to play a useless friendly against New Zealand which only resulted in some of our key players like Parvin getting injured and missing the first leg.

Still we should have been able to settle the score back in Tehran but as I already mentioned, luck was not on our side that day.

You could be right that Aussies were not stronger than our team back then. However credit to the aussies for winning in Sydney, our bench players should have been better than the aussies but that was not the case and hence 3-0 loss

[Rooyintan]

EXCATLY!
I second that.

Soltani, Panjali, Mallaghouchian, Sharokh and Shahin Bayani, Changiz, Pius, (Nasser) Mohammadkhani, Mayeli Kohan (yes as a player, fighting horse), Namjoo Motlagh, Hassanzadeh, Ghayeghran, Moharrami*.....
man,... that was a strong TM!

If there was no revolution and Iraq war, this team would have made it to either 86 or 90 (or possibly both) world cups with surprising results.


* edited - thanks KC for reminding me.

Maraghechian is the correct spelling. Abedzadeh, Zarinche, Bavi and Derakhshan were also very good

[Adesor Vafaseya]

Maraghechian is the correct spelling. Abedzadeh, Zarinche, Bavi and Derakhshan were also very good

yes... I also forgot Derakhshan...

[KC McElroy]

YES! You are right! How could I?
my bad.

edited the original post and added him. thanks.


I like Breheme Nickname...

The Persepolis fans always used to chant that during Persepolis games: Mojtabaye Berehme...

Maraghechian is the correct spelling. Abedzadeh, Zarinche, Bavi and Derakhshan were also very good

I was lucky enough to play pick up games against Maraghechian and a few other former TM players such as Mehrab Shahrokhi in the early 90s. It would be a young team vs. the veterans although strangely they placed me on the veteran team even though I was only 20. It all came to an end though when one of the young players did something (I didn't see it but I believe he tried an intentional foul to stop Shahrokhi) and he became upset and left the field bringing the game to a halt. The pickup games never resumed (or at least they didn't tell me when and where).

[persianfire]

I don't know why we were grouped with Saudi Arabia in the 2002 WCQ. The opposite group had no powerhouses. China, UAE, Uzbekistan, Qatar and Oman. LOL.

[teammelli91]

It would be 1994 and 2002 for me.

[KC McElroy]

I don't know why we were grouped with Saudi Arabia in the 2002 WCQ. The opposite group had no powerhouses. China, UAE, Uzbekistan, Qatar and Oman. LOL.

That's why.

[_Navid_]

I don't know why we were grouped with Saudi Arabia in the 2002 WCQ. The opposite group had no powerhouses. China, UAE, Uzbekistan, Qatar and Oman. LOL.

Because we screwed up and didn't finish top 4 in Asian cup 2000. China did.

[Damavand]

I don't know why we were grouped with Saudi Arabia in the 2002 WCQ. The opposite group had no powerhouses. China, UAE, Uzbekistan, Qatar and Oman. LOL.

FIFA and AFC both wanted China to qualify for 2002 since the games were in Korea-Japan which meant a lot of increased ticket sales. So they arranged it for 3 of the strongest teams at the time (Iran-KSA-Iraq) to be placed in one group, and China be grouped with the easiest teams. At the time, all the teams in China's group were weak including Uzbekistan.

But Karma bit all of them in the A$$ as China lost all its games easily without being able to score a single goal at the WC.

Come to think of it, Karma also bit KSA in the A$$ for cheating when they also lost all their games including the embarrassing 8-0 hammering against Germany.

[pajamNL]

FIFA and AFC both wanted China to qualify for 2002 since the games were in Korea-Japan which meant a lot of increased ticket sales. So they arranged it for 3 of the strongest teams at the time (Iran-KSA-Iraq) to be placed in one group, and China be grouped with the easiest teams. At the time, all the teams in China's group were weak including Uzbekistan.

But Karma bit all of them in the A$$ when China lost all its games easily without being able to score a single goal at the WC.

Come to think of it, Karma also bit KSA in the A$$ for cheating when they also lost all their games including the embarrassing 8-0 hammering against Germany.

sweet revenge

[Damavand]

Because we screwed up and didn't finish top 4 in Asian cup 2000. China did.

Wasn't it ironic that FIFA/AFC used the result of the AC to determine the seeding for WC 2002, and the FIFA ranking for all other WCs.

[_Navid_]

Wasn't it ironic that FIFA/AFC used the result of the AC to determine the seeding for WC 2002, and the FIFA ranking for all other WCs.

It sure was. One can not expect more from the corrupt AFC.

[ehsan singapore]

it was so annoying, that china was seeded first in 2002 world cup qualifiers

[Rooyintan]

The Persepolis fans always used to chant that during Persepolis games: Mojtabaye Berehme...



I was lucky enough to play pick up games against Maraghechian and a few other former TM players such as Mehrab Shahrokhi in the early 90s. It would be a young team vs. the veterans although strangely they placed me on the veteran team even though I was only 20. It all came to an end though when one of the young players did something (I didn't see it but I believe he tried an intentional foul to stop Shahrokhi) and he became upset and left the field bringing the game to a halt. The pickup games never resumed (or at least they didn't tell me when and where).

Cool stuff. Once in my teens, two Payam Mashhad footballers were visiting one of my neighbours, so in the yard they saw me, my brother and friends playing with soccer ball and basketball, so they joined us and just mocked around with football and basketball.

Another time I went with my friend and his dad to Takhti Stadium and we saw some of Payam Mashhad team training. That was my only visit to Stadium until 1997 when I saw Iran and Australia at MCG