Team Melli at a glance

Along with Korea and Japan, Iran has been one of the strongest football sides in Asia over the last few years.

For years Iran was considered the top side in Asia up until the onset of the Iran-Iraq war, which lasted eight years and interrupted everything in the two countries including football. The war ended in 1988, but it took Iran years to regain its place amongst the top nations in Asia.

Iran’s current squad is arguably the most talented in the country’s history. More than half of the starting eleven either play their football in top leagues in Europe or have previous experience playing there.

The expectations in Iran are high. Despite having been rated third in Group D behind Portugal and Mexico many Iranian fans believe that their team has the ability to move on to the round of 16.

The Team

Over the last three years Iran’s Croat coach Branko Ivankovic has used a limited number of players for competitive games, opting to not give fresh faces a chance to break into the squad.

Although this means that the squad have an intimate understanding of each others’ games, it could also hurt the team if injuries force players out of the lineup.

Midfielders Mehdi Mahdavikia (Hamburg SV), Freydoon Zandi (FC Kaiserslautern), Ali Karimi (FC Bayern), and striker Vahid Hashemian (Hannover 96) play in the German Bundesliga. This should prove to be an advantage this summer as they will be competing on familiar grounds.

Goalkeeper

In goal Ebrahim Mirzapour is the clear favorite. He is very good on the line and has quick reflexes; however, at times he looks very shaky as he comes out to collect high crosses.

Defense

Defenders Yahya Golmohammadi and Rahman Rezaei are very solid on their respective inside right and inside left positions of Iran’s four man defensive line although, thirty four year old Golmohammadi has, at times, shown signs of slowing down.

Thirty one year old Rezaei is arguably the best defender that Iran has ever produced. He is amazingly durable. Over the last two years he has played in over 90% of Messina’s games; nearly all of them from start to finish. His performance with the club has inspired the Messina fans to give him the nickname “Secretary of Defense”. He is very strong in the air, hence his other nickname in Italy, “The Flying Carpet”. Under pressure, he is calm and rarely makes mistakes.

On the right, 20 year old defender Hossein Kaebi is certain to start. He is a very fast and technically strong player, but he lacks size, which may be a liability against bigger strikers. Although midfielder Mehdi Mahdavikia has excelled in this position for Hamburg, coach Ivankovic seems reluctant to sacrifice the HSV star’s offensive expertise in return for additional defensive insurance.

Kaebi is very impressive in attack and links well with Mahdavikia and Karimi. His overlapping runs with Mahdavikia can open gaps in a defense that may have underestimated his pace.

The situation on the left side has been somewhat uncertain. Defenders Mohammad Nosrati and Sattar Zare have been sharing the responsibilities with mixed results. Neither one of these two players are natural left footers. In case of Zare this is painfully evident when he pushes up to join the attack.

Nosrati on the other hand plays an inside defensive role for his club Pas FC of Tehran. He has never been comfortable playing wide left for Team Melli. However, he is very effective with his runs up the field.

Midfield

This is Team Melli’s strongest line. Mahdavikia on the right, Ali Karimi and Javad Nekounam in the middle, and Freydoon Zandi on the left are a very versatile group that can defend and attack equally well.

On the bench, Ivankovic can call on defensive specialist Mohammad Alavi, or playmakers Mojtaba Jabbari, Anderanik Teymourian, and Moharam Navidkia.

The star of this cast is undoubtedly Bayern midfielder Ali Karimi. Unfortunately for Karimi and Team Melli, the midfielder suffered ligament damage on his right ankle and will be out of action until the end of April. It will be interesting to see if he can recover soon enough for the World Cup.

When healthy, Karimi can be a lot of fun to watch. The knock on him used to be his disinterest in his defensive duties and a tendency to disappear for long spells during matches. However, since joining Bayern last year, he has amazingly improved his defensive game, and proven to be more consistent while on the pitch.

Javad Nekounam started his international career as a defensive midfielder under former Iran coach Miroslav Blazevic. Over the years he has matured into a playmaker. The 26 year old is now one of the best midfielders in Iran. Although very skillful, in games against European sides where he is not given much time and space he looks uncomfortable. Last year he turned down an offer from German side FC Kaiserslautern, and instead moved to UAE. He may regret the choice later this year in Germany.

Mehdi Mahdavikia, now 29, is one of Iran’s most influential players. He started as a defender with Perspolis FC and then moved to the midfield for Iran where he is now an automatic pick.

He is fast, quick with the ball, and a deadly shot. His passing makes him an integral part of Iran’s attack where he forms an effective partnership with Karimi and Kaebi.

Freydoon Zandi who is of a German mother and Iranian father learned his football in Germany. He adds another long distant threat to the team’s arsenal, but his playmaking and defensive skills are also impressive.

Strikers

FIFA’s all time top international scorer Ali Daei is a lock for one of the two attacking positions. Although 37 and considerably slower, he is still a better finisher than most Iranian strikers. However, it is when he gets the ball in the open field that his lack of pace becomes painfully evident.

Pairing up with Daei is Vahid Hashemian. Even though he has not been scoring many goals for his club this year, he has proven very effective when playing for country. Now 29, the striker is enjoying top physical form and can cover a lot of ground. He is n exceptionally good passer and has a very keen eye for the open man when he has the ball. He is a better scoring threat when he is the go to striker, but with Daei on the squad Hashemian has to play wide left, and there he is not at is best.

Behind Daei and Hashemian, there is 23 year-old Arash Borhani. He is extremely fast, and has great acceleration with very good ball handling skills. However, he still lacks confidence in his finishing.

Free Kicks

Iran have a number of options in free kick situations. Midfielders Mahdavikia, Zandi, and Nekounam are all very good in dead ball situations. Captain Ali Daei is another option. The veteran striker can still very effectively curve the ball around a defensive line.

The Coach

Fifty two year old Branko Ivankovic has been in charge of Team Melli since October of 2003. He first came to Iran in 2001 as a member of Croat Miroslav Blazevic’s staff which failed to qualify Iran for the 2002 World Cup finals in Korea and Japan.

Ivankovic made a promising start by guiding Iran to first place at the 2002 Asian Games and impressed many by introducing young players, fostering a strong team spirit, and also persuading the influential Hashemian out of his self-imposed exile. However, in the last two years, especially since qualifying for Germany, he has alienated himself from the press and been amazingly reluctant to introduce new faces in order to strengthen the bench or give the reserves more playing time in friendly games.

Ivankovic favors a 4-2-3-1 formation, but the team also switches to a more traditional 4-4-2 at times.
His tactics, while fresh and effective in his first two years, are proving repetitive and predictable now. Many of Iran’s Asian opponents, especially Korea and Japan have shown a knack for effectively shutting down Iran’s offense in their most recent outings. This, many believe, is due to a lack of tactical imagination on Ivankovic’s part.