AFC Futsal Championship 2018: Iran coach Nazemasharieh a happy man

AFC – TAIPEI, Head coach Mohammad Nazemasharieh was a picture of joy after Islamic Republic of Iran claimed their 12th AFC Futsal Championship title on Sunday.

Iran took the lead in the first half with skipper and Most Valuable Player Ali Asghar Hassanzadeh finding the back of the net in the 19th minute, and continued to dominate the second half with goals from Farkhad Tavakoli, Hussein Tayebi and Hassanzadeh again to seal a comprehensive win over Japan.

“I’m the most happiest man in the stadium,” said the former Giti Pasand coach.

“I want to say thanks to all who have helped us, from the organisers of this tournament to our own management staff.

“I am proud of my players, proud of these boys who are obeying my game plan like soldiers. Our team is a great team but it doesn’t mean the other Asian teams, especially Japan, are low level teams, they are also good.

“It was clear that we’ve shown a fantastic performance and proved to everybody that we’re the best team in Asia. In fact, there were good reasons behind (our triumph) as you’ve seen. We had the top goal scorer, MVP and the team with the least goals conceded. That shows that our team is a little far ahead in Asia.”

Nazemarsharieh also attributed the victory to the aid provided by the team’s technical group, saying: “I am also proud of my colleagues in the technical group who have helped us, supporting each other like brothers. Whenever we have any problems, they would advise us.”

The 48-year-old head coach revealed that Iran has begun to focus on the future generation of players with their eyes on the 2020 FIFA Futsal World Cup.

“Our plan began two years ago, which told us to pay attention to our youth, keeping them busy with development and grow them as potential national team players, even though we were ahead.

“Now, we have already trained a really good youth team, and they will be our main players in 2020. So you’ll be sure to watch a revamped team then.”

Photos: AFC