The Band-Aid Doctrine

When it comes to Iran and Saudi National teams, both teams have a lot in common with Iran competing with Saudi Arabia’s long tradition of changing National team coaches as often as possible; With Iran changing 14 coaches in the last 12 years and since World Cup 1998 qualifications, Saudi is only slightly ahead with 16 coaching changes in the last 3 World Cup rounds. Compare that with South Korea and Japan’s National team’s 2 and 5 management changes only in the same period. Comparatively, despite the extreme volatility in Iran and Saudi’s football management, Iran squad players and management came short of basics of football, tactics, and stamina compare to Saudi team on March 28th,2009 at Azadi. Saudi players may not be the most technically-gifted players in Asia, but due to their strong league proven in Asian Champions league several times in recent times, and organized preparation plan for World Cup 2010, contrary to Iranian team’s situation, they are in for 3rd direct qualification to World Cup Finals in the past 12 years.

The reality is, with several Asian teams improving year by year thanks to their improved league and youth development, Iran is slowly walking down the ranking in Asia’s Top teams’ arena. And that should not be a surprise to anyone observing Iran football’s mismanagement in the past decade. Ever since Aliabadi’s appointment as Iran Sport chief in 2005, and Kafashian’s controversial election as Iran Football Federation supremo in 2008, Iran football management’s decision makings have been severely influenced by political agendas: From controversial direct appointments and changes of Esteghlal and Perspolis’ incompetent Chairmen, to poor league management and months of controversies over electing Iran Football Federation chief upon FIFA’s Iran suspension, to political appointments of Iran National team coach based on the “Whom you know, not what you know” criteria.

So while it is very easy to blame Ali Daei, Ghalenoie and Branko for their failures while at helm of Iran football team, but the real blame should be directed towards Iran Sport officials who made such unsound appointments to begin with, insist on appointing an Iranian coach at this point, whom neither one have hardly achieved anything at Asian level and frankly once chosen they are only scapegoats of Iran football officials’ management failures that is being reflected in all National team levels.

Sadly the “Band-Aid Doctrine” of the past decade has been only making face-lift changes at National team coaching team, keeping the print media and millions of Iranian fans busy with several candidates, selecting the most politically-correct candidate without considering his qualifications, and sacking him at spot as soon as their failing management is at sake. That is how it worked when Iran recorded the worst Olympic performance in Iran’s history just last year, leading to Iran Olympic Chief’s immediate dismissal without observing the grass roots of the problem. And the same scenario is executed over and over again in Iran football.

The fact is, Iran did not lose the crucial qualifier game because of Ali Daei, absence of Ali Karimi and Karim Bagheri or an in-form target man to score for Iranian team. Iran lost because most of Iran National team squad players train, play and learn in their club teams in Iran league, in which its modern football standard is practically non-existent. The truth is, our National team players, with the exception of our European-based players, repeat the same basic footballing mistakes week in week out in our league, because they are not taught the basics of teamwork and tactics at high level in their clubs in Iran league. And the clear proof of Iran’s weakening league standard was featured recently by the top 4 league teams’ performances and results in Asian Club Champions league.

The fact is, all these years Iran got occasional favorable results due to purely individual technique, high spirit and opponent team’s flaws. It was never due to teamwork and tactical domination as neither of our coaches in the past decade had enough time to build the foundation from scratch.

The fact of the matter is, as long as we do not have competent league teams with modern coaching, facilities and youth developments to build the foundation right from the ground up and fix the current flaws, more and more team failures are to flourish for Iran National team and more and more Asian teams will close the gap with once a powerhouse team in Asia.

And all these above ask for a modern foreign coach for National team and several other foreign coaches for Iran league clubs, to be given enough time, more than a year frankly, not to magically, at this time, take us to World Cup Finals but to build the foundation right with the help of a rejuvenating Iran league. After all, it all depends on taking the right approach with patience to make long-term investment in the wrecking state of our football we all cherish.

Because otherwise if over and over again we fall for Iran Sport officials’ “Band-Aid fix” of our already shattered house, rest assured that more severe shock-waves and decays will rock the falling house of Iranian football teams both in National and league level in Asia. And as harsh as it sounds, if the same trend continues, consider the recent despair as just the beginning; Beginning of the end that is. End of Iran football under the sand of good old memories.