Team Melli draw Japan in exciting friendly [VIDEO]

Persianfootball.com – TEHRAN, In a hard fought match that looked anything but friendly at times, the Blue Samurai managed to hold Team Melli to a 1-1 draw in Azadi stadium.

Iran took the lead in first half injury time when Mehdi Torabi pounced on the rebound from Ashkan Dejagah’s poorly taken penalty kick to put the ball into the net. It was Torabi who had earned the penalty when he was brought down at the edge of the Japanese box by Maya Yoshida.

It did not take Japan too long to respond and the match was tied within 3 minutes of the restart when Alireza Haghighi punched a Keisuke Honda cross into the head of Yoshinori Muto with the ball bouncing into the Iranian net as the the fans watching in horror.

Japanese fans may feel short-changed that a Vahid Amiri tackle on Keisuke Honda in the box in the 58th minute was not deemed a penalty by the Omani referee, although the replay clearly showed that Amiri made contact with the ball first.

And in what is becoming somewhat of a frequent and shameful display in recent Team Melli matches, Sardar Azmoun was involved in a physical altercation with a Japanese player late in the game, after a very rough tackle for which he was lucky not to receive a red card.

Overall, it was an even match with Iran dominating most of the first half and some good chances early in the second, but Japan setting the tempo for the rest of the match. Both teams also shared equal possession and similar number of shots on target, although Iran came atop with better scoring chances.

It was the first time since 1989 and the tutelage of Parviz Dehdari that Iran have failed to defeat Japan in a match played anywhere in West Asia. On the other hand, Iran remain unbeaten by Asian sides (within 90/120 minutes) since the summer of 2013.

Team Melli’s next match is a must-win World Cup qualifier against Turkmenistan in Tehran on November 12th while the Blue Samurai will have an away match against Singapore on the same day and in the same competition.

In World Cup Group D qualifiers taking place today, Turkmenistan defeated Guam 1-0 in Ashgabat and climb to 3rd place with 7 points, while Oman defeated India 3-0 in Muscat and take the lead in the group with 11 points – Team Melli sits in second place for now with 8 points and one game in hand.

Iran Starting Line-up (4-2-3-1): Alireza Haghighi (GK), Vouria Ghafouri (D) [Mehdi Torabi (M)], Pejman Montazeri (D), Jalal Hosseini (D), Ehsan Hajsafi (D), Saeid Ezatolahi (M) [Morteza Pouraliganji (M)], Omid Ebrahimi (M), Ramian Rezaeian (M), Ashkan Dejagah (M), Vahid Amiri (M), Sardar Azmoun (F) [Mehdi Taremi (F)]. Head-Coach: Carlos Queiroz

Japan Starting Line-up (4-3-3): Shūsaku Nishikawa (GK), Masato Morishige (D), Koki Yonekura (D), Maya Yoshida (D), Gōtoku Sakai (D), Makoto Hasebe (M), Shinji Kagawa (M), Gaku Shibasaki (M), Keisuke Honda (F), Yoshinori Mutō (F), Takashi Usami (F). Head Coach: Vahid Halilhodžić

PFDC Player Ratings*

Mehdi Torabi: 7.6
Vahid Amiri: 7.6
Saeid Ezatolahi: 7.3
Omid Ebrahimi: 7.0
Ehsan Hajsafi: 6.8
Ramin Rezaeian: 6.7
Pejman Montazaeri: 6.6
Ashkan Dejagah: 6.4
Jalal Hosseini: 6.4
Vouria Ghafouri: 6.4
Sardar Azmoun: 5.4
Alireza Haghighi: 4.0

*Note: Average ratings for each player from the PFDC community (1-10).

Match Highlights with Persian commentary: