June 13, 2006  05:39:06

Afshin

Nice article Ali Jaan but I agree with Dani, I like how you looked at the wider picture and explained the root of the problem in Iranian Football but it is unfair to blame our failure against Mexico entirely on Branko or Daei, they certainly were at fault; Branko for bad decisions made in the second half and Daei for his poor performace but still others made mistakes or didn't play well, the root of our problems remains the system in IRIFF but our critics continue to miss that point and blame everything on one man, Regards, Afshin

 June 12, 2006  19:57:46

Dani

First thank you for this article. 2nd you correctly point out our failure in different areas and not necessarily in football. 3rd. If I may, I think in one of your points you deviate from objective judgment and the lesson that you offer and that puts your whole article in critical jeopardy. When you speculate that we could have easily won this match, I see the same wish-full thinking that you question in the Iranian nation whom you rightly critique. This thought inevitably carries you into the common logic where you want someone to blame. Hence like the many couches, critics and media that are shouting their exasperation at the team for the past 24 hours, you focus on Branko and Daei as scapegoats along others. I want to say replace them and we could have lost again. We should stop looking for someone to blame. As a realistic serious soccer fan, I do not think we played all that bad and do not believe we should expect to beat Mexico (what should USA and Japan say?). If it had happened it would have been great and a surprise but we can in no way expect a group of tired, injured, beaten, pressured players to beat Mexico. We can even less blame Branko to whom I believe we should even be thankful. Bring any coach to Iran and see if you can keep him there for one single month. How many times has Ari Han flown back and forth to Europe during his short stay? Did the muslim Denizli stay around for you more than a year? First make it possible for coaches to live with their families in Iran without their wives having to wear hejab and then expect your coach to coach you to the next round. I am not saying hejab is the problem. There are many things which are not at their right places in Iran and you can go up and up. I still believe Branko is a better coach than our country deserves. The problem is elsewhere, exactly in those areas that you touched upon in your article. It lies in the totality of our system of life, in its selfish opportunistic officials, its ticket-selling spectators, in money-craving travel agents, in non-illiterate (in foreign languages) journalists, in non-expert football experts, in no-good league coaches who are always loud as critics etc. Finally all the inefficiency of this system is symbolised in the behaviour of a complexed and presumably humiliated nation which apparently invests its passion in the game. I say apparently because when its fan sleeps in the Franken-Stadion while Iran is losing, a nation becomes target for the joke of the Canadian commentator. Your article fairly reminds us that everyone of us should look inside and stop looking about in search of persons to blame.

 June 12, 2006  19:39:07

payam

ali jan salam . matlabet ra az aval ta akhar khoonda . vaghean ghashang bood . kheyli khoob sharayet ra vasf karde bodi . ama doost dashtam chand mored ra eshare konam 1- dalile inke tamashagarane irani ham kam boodand ham parakande in bood ke moteasefane aghayane masool bilit haye iran ra be soorate bazar siah forookhtand ( albate be mexikiha !) ali jan fekr mikonam to ke oonja hasti bayad in ra behtar az man bedooni !! 2- hamishe bavar dashtam ke to yeki az baz tarin va fahmide tarin nevisandehaye varzeshie keshvaremoon hasti ... inke dar morede tarse aghaye morabi ya hozoore mani dare daee va tavize karimi ya mirzapour faghat dar 4 khat eshareyi koochik va gozara dashti ra faghat be hesabe khastegit izaram ! 3- ali jan ... man va shoma ba ham tarof nadarim ! kheyli chizha hast ke moteasefane ma midoonim va kheyli ha nemidoonan !! ali jan fekresh ra bokon ke daee shanbe bazi nakone va mirzapoor ya golmhamadi bekhan behesh sabet konan ke hanooz vafadaran ! midooni chi mishe? 4- ali jan ! in ye aberoo rizie ... shoma alman hastin va man be shoma migam ke tooye iran va bad az in shekast chand nafar sekte kardan .... mardom tooye khoramshahr vasate khiaboon neshastan va daran doa mikonan ke daee be iran barnagarde ! man vasam ajibe ke ta in lahze hata yek khabarnegare ezami ba tim meli natooneste ba aghaye morabi va kapitane mohtaram dar morede shekast mosahebe kone ! ali jan ... to az kasani hasti ke tooye site fedrsaion ham dast dari mage na ? yadet miad aghaye shahrame vaziri ke dige hala hamechizesho be dadkan forookhte ( hata aberoo va etebaresho ) bad az inke oon raeese vahshie fedraion be pire matbooate ma (parviz zahedi) hamle kard che joori tooye site be esteghbale in dastan raft? yadete ali jan ? 5- ali jan ma bayad bebazim ... footbali ke ye tarafesh ba dalalie sarmorabie tim meli micharkhe va tarafe digash ba ghadare keshi va nare keshie dadkan bayad ham shekast khorde bashe .... ali jan shoma nemidooni vali bezar hala ke alman hasti behet begam ke aghaye IVANKOVICH tooye kampe tim meli be 2 bazikonesh gofte mitoone oonha ra be time dinamozagreb bebare ! are ali jan .... ma ye dalal ra gozashtim rooye nimkat va migim bebar !! eshtebah az mast ! 6- ali jan midooni nemishod in mozakhrafati ke barat neveshtam ra hargz chap kard ... kheyli doostet daram azizam ! movafagh bashi va man ra babate in hame fak zani bebakhash . KHSOH BASHI DOOSTE MAN PAYAM YOUNESIPOUR