Iran vs Iraq Post Match Ratings

[St_Mark]

some defenders are like that. Get better with age. He cut out his asshole attitude on+off the pitch. Now he contains what used to be stupid anger by just laughing at opponent which I think is pretty funny/effective way of coping.
Im really impressed with his passing game too, very calm and like a modern CB on the ball.

+ playing abroad may have helped him in that regard.

[Karimi 8]

Shoja's attitude and temper when be was younger cost him a career in Europe. This guy get better by age. Full package D. He is not that tall but jump higher than anyone lol
Sar e avvalo hamishe mizane..
Fast, smart, good positioning, good on set pieces. Full package...

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Him and Ghoddos are also our most mentally strong players. They literally remain calm and don't get involved with any on-field drama. If only our other players were less emotional as well (flashbacks to the Japan game & Perspolis in the Champions League final )

[inarsenewetrust]

+ playing abroad may have helped him in that regard.

I actually think the turning point for him was yahya more than anybody. He really calmed him down and in last couple PP season his control was already much improved as shown in ACL matches vs tough opponents.

[Bi-honar]

I was initially sceptical about Skočić but what a phenomenal and record-breaking run we've had in the past year with him at the helm:

1 - Longest winning streak on record!!! This record is tied with the 9 back-to-back wins of our Golden Generation between May and October of 1996 but all of those matches were either friendlies or AFC qualifiers so our strongest opponent was Kuwait.

2 - Most goals scored against Hong Kong ever! This record is tied with the 3 goals we scored against them way back in 1977.

3 - First EVER victory against Bahrain in Bahrain!

4 - First home win against Syria in World Cup Qualifying since 1977!

5 - Biggest win against Iraq ever! This record is tied with the 3-0 win against them in the 1972 Asian Cup in Bangkok, Thailand.

BTW, if I'm not mistaken, we have never opened the final round of WCQ with 2 straight wins (not even in the 70's) so it's really nice to start on top of the table with 6 points.

Congratulations everyone and I'm really looking forward to some more record-breaking performances.

[KeonKish]

Beiro: 7: Solid and played with focus and confidence.

Sadegh 6.5 Good but a little out of form, hope he can stay fit.

Shoja: 7 Great all around game, calm, smart, effective defending.

Kanani 7 He's had two great games, been good at coming forward with the ball and interceptions, wins almost every header.

Nourafkan 8: What a surprise! Great pace, overlapping runs, quick on the ball and tidy in possession and transition.

Amiri 7: Guys does the work of two players in offense and defense, brings such great energy to the team and hes great on counters.

JB 7.5: So much better than the game against syria, really one of his better games for team meli. Runs his butt off and scored a great goal.

Nour 6: Ran his ass off and did the job, but still a little sloppy with his passes and slapping balls right into players. I really liked his pressing and effort.

Saeid 7: Such a calming presence for our team, so tidy in possesion, freekicks, and distribution. Great defensive work and pressing as well.

Ghoddos: 7.5 The man is quality and needs to start

Sardar 7: Great game despite not scoring, really worked hard to get in good positions and could have scored a few with some luck.

Taremi, 8.5 MOTM for me, so involved in our goals and just such a hardworking guy, we are blessed to have him. Beautiful control and goal today.

Karim 7: Great run and pass for gholi

Gholi 6.5: good touch and goal, hope he finds his good form again.

[vatanparast]

Beiro: 7: Solid and played with focus and confidence.
Sadegh 6.5 Good but a little out of form, hope he can stay fit.
Shoja: 7 Great all around game, calm, smart, effective defending.
Kanani 7 He's had two great games, been good at coming forward with the ball and interceptions, wins almost every header.
Nourafkan 8: What a surprise! Great pace, overlapping runs, quick on the ball and tidy in possession and transition.
Amiri 7: Guys does the work of two players in offense and defense, brings such great energy to the team and hes great on counters.
JB 7.5: So much better than the game against syria, really one of his better games for team meli. Runs his butt off and scored a great goal.
Nour 6: Ran his ass off and did the job, but still a little sloppy with his passes and slapping balls right into players. I really liked his pressing and effort.
Saeid 7: Such a calming presence for our team, so tidy in possesion, freekicks, and distribution. Great defensive work and pressing as well.
Ghoddos: 7.5 The man is quality and needs to start
Sardar 7: Great game despite not scoring, really worked hard to get in good positions and could have scored a few with some luck.
Taremi, 8.5 MOTM for me, so involved in our goals and just such a hardworking guy, we are blessed to have him. Beautiful control and goal today.
Karim 7: Great run and pass for gholi
Gholi 6.5: good touch and goal, hope he finds his good form again.

You guys myst have watched a different game
Motm for me was sardar. He made every right decision until the last few minutes
Sardar 9
Saeed 8.5 great game from him hope he gets a good nosejob
Saman 8.5 only player other than sardar thats world class
Kanani 8.5 great game
Shoja 8.5
Taremi 8 have to give him credit for his goal and assist. But his touch was off. He lost so many balls and his passing was off except his assist on the first goal
Arj 7.5 nice goal and flashes of brilliance but many poor decisions and a wasted free kick that sardar got us right outside the 18 yd box
7 amiri this guy is all hustle but had a few reckless plays. Lucky not to get carded
7 sadegh not 100% coming from an injury but good enough
7 noorafkan good performance especially with little experience
7 beiro not tested
7 karim nice assist but not in the game that long
7 gholizadeh nice goal but not in the game long enough
6 noorollahi worst player today. Kept losing possession and his passes were inaccurate. Did have monents like the combo leading to azmouns shot which was saved by iraq keeper
Ghaedi n/a not in long enough to rate

Great game overall i just wish he wouldn’t start ahmad.

[kianstarwars]

how would our yellow cards affect our formations in the future games?

[Karimi 8]

Beiranvand: 7 (Not tested too much, but seemed confident and calm)

Noorafkan: 8 (played well overall, really kept the left flank secure)

Shoja: 8 (won so many headers, trolled Iraqis constantly, good tackles, good passes)

Kanaani: 7.5 (pretty solid, confident moving forward and with long balls)

Moharrami: 5.5 (very rusty)

Ezatolahi: 7.5 (pretty good overall, needs to do more offensively though, and omg is he slow)

Nourollahi: 7 (some good passes, some horrible passes, but lots of hustle)

Amiri: 7 (ran a lot, did a lot off the ball, but wasn't very involved in the plays)

ARJ: 8.5 (great goal, amazing leadership, and a lot of hustle)

Azmoun: 8 (so much work off the ball today, really impressed to see this part of his game, he is usually very lazy in that department)

Taremi: 9 (beautiful assist with his left foot, unbelievable control and finish, MOTM)

SUBS:

Ghoddos: 7.5 (commanding in midfield, really bullies the opposition. Wish I could see him play further up the field tho)

Karim: 7, (nice assist)

Gholizadeh: 7.5 (great cheeky goal to rub salt in the wounds of the Iraqis)

Ghaedi: N/A

[BacheLot]

Beiranvand - 6.5. Great aerial exits, he has improved on those so much since moving to europe, that alone made the move worth it imo. His passing is also way better, very comfortable playing out of pressure, especially one as disjointed as what Iraqis were doing. Not rated higher simply bc he didnt have anything to do. Hope in the coming months he takes over #1 spot in boavista.

Moharrami - 6. Solid on defense but clear he is lacking full match sharpness, you could see that in his touch/passing on offense. Its usually one of the sharpest on our team. I assume he will build that up as he gets more games coming off this injury layoff to start the season

Kanani - 7. Solid game, only really recall one error that didnt lead to anything. Establishing himself as a starter for WC.

Shoja - 7.5. Huge game by shoja. Didnt put a foot wrong on defense, super composed in his passing, won all his aerials. Playing for many years with Kanani means they have a super solid understanding.

Noorafkan - 8. Wow! Skocic with an interesting choice that certainly paid off. Best game by an iranian left back for quite some time. Smart in possession, solid on defense, one great tackle in the box, impressive on aerials. His ball started play for first goal, dont think milad or ehsan play that one. He is 24, improved a lot since experience in europe, found his best position, and has great mentality/leadership qualities that are evident whenever you hear him speak. More of him at LB from now on please.

Ezatolahi - 8. Until the broke his nose he was my MOTM. His range of pass, positioning on defense, tackling technique, and physicality in both ground duels and aerials are the best we have. I hope he gets in top shape in coming months in denmark, he is by far the best CDM we have and regardless of him not fulfilling his potential until now (he should be on Azmoun, Taremi level club wise) he is the way forward. Thankfully he is still young and can easily make the most of his great potential if he adopts a stronger, more persistent attitude during long EU seasons.

Nourollahi - 6. Great energy as always, but man his technique, choice of pass is downright awful. Even the way he tries to make these long passes is not right. Compare to how ezatolahi strikes the ball. He gave so many turnovers tonight, and naturally he runs the most to get those back. No way he should be in xi over ghoddos, dont care if he runs and extra 15 miles, the amount of times he loses possession is just too much, especially in WC situatio where we will already not have a lot of the ball.

Amiri - 7. Always good energy, better passing choices than nourollahi. Covered Noorafkan well on his first big game. I prefer him to start in the B2B role with Saeid and Ghoddos alongside him.

ARJ-7.5. He would have been motm but the last 20 mins were a disaster and that brought him down a full rating. No idea why skocic subbed him. So many careless turnovers, one almost leading to great chance for iraq, horrible plays when we had overloads on the break, and then taking that freekick off saman just to stick into the wall. He clearly hit a wall physically and just started messing up. Prior to that he was brilliant, ran his ass off, great header for his goal, combined nicely with moharrami and the mids in first half.

Azmoun - 7.5. Strong display all around. The way he moves with the ball, controls aerials, makes runs is simply a different class. His awareness to find taremi for his goal was brilliant, constantly harassed iraqi defenders opening space for Mehdi and ARJ. Physically he is a handful for most CBs to deal with, definitely improved this a lot at zenit.

Taremi - 8.5- MOTM A truly high quality assist and goal. His touch was a bit off especially after taking a knock, but man he has such a high footballing IQ and works his balls off too. A joy to watch combine with Sardar, ARJ, Ghoddos.

Subs :

Ghoddos - 7.5. He must start. We will keep saying it bc it needs to happen. As soon as he came on he started dictating the tempo, making great passing choices, some lovely bits of skill, etc. Going to be a key player for us.

Ansarifard- 7. Great run and pass for gholi.

Gholizadeh - 7. Nice control and finish. I hope he picks it back up for charleroi.

Ghayedi - N/A.

Skocic - 8 Good xi minus ghoddos snub. Noorafkan choice paid dividends. We started with a 433 that shifted sometimes to 442. More or less same as CQ regime but taremi given less defensive responsibility and more license to roam. He is getting much better games out of ARJ (I think that is mainly aided by ARJ finally going somewhere that he plays football!) and also has ghoddos playing his best football for TM. Similarly got huge games out of Saeid,the CBs. Only negative was his subs. We would have scored 2 more instead of 1 had he subbbed ARJ earlier. Poor guy was visibly gassed and had a couple knocks, should have been subbed 20 mins earlier. Taremi and Azmoun were tiring too.

Overall tabrik to all. We need to keep it up, we are better than this level. In coming months we need the following guys to really step up for their club sides and come into TM in much better shape :

1. Ezatolahi, cut the excess weight bc we really need him to be in optimal condition. His presence changes our entire team on both sides of the ball.
2. Moharrami needs to stay fit. He is by far our best RB and has a chance to be fix for dinamo in europa league and really see his career in europe take off. But he can only do it if he plays the entire year, no questions asked.
3. Gholizadeh. He was brilliant last year, needs to find that form again bc he is an important player for TM. Dissapointing he didn't transfer but needs to get over it and kick on.

spot on individual players analysis...!!
double this up for me as well..!!

[pajamNL]

What a good game we've played; 0 shots on goal for Arogh in first half and 1 half shot on goal in the second half!

Just a while back i already posted "onpopular opinion ; Noorafkan has qualities we can use in Team Melli" , i'm glad he played so well!
centre backs are getting better with each game, you would almost forget we have top quality missing their with PAG and Hosseini ; - )
Moharrami hasn't impress me lately, Hadani played even better IMHO. But i have trust in MOharrami and hopefully he will be ready to shine against the Koreans.

In the midfield we're OK with Ezza, Amiri and Nourolahi, but would like to see Ghoddos their and Amiri moving to LB for as long as MiMo hasn't find his mojo.

Our attack is just mind blowing good! With ARJ - Azmoun - Taremi, backed by a bench with Ghaedi, Ansarifard, Gholizadeh (and then we have MeMi, Allahyar, Zahedi, Torabi, Alipour, Kaveh to spare!!), we MUST get 1 or 2 goals against any Asian side.

Then last but not least ; our technical staff. All the respect for Skocic and his team. How they turned the tables after thief Wiltits must be replaced. just awesome!!

lets enjoy this weeks and prepare well for the coming october games. 2 wins in october and we're pretty much set for 3rd WC in a row!!

Zendeh bad Iran, bacheha mochakerim!!!!

[ehsan singapore]

is it just me that thing noorafkhan is not good. he cants attack, cant join attack. he is like a robot only pass backwards. when they attack he is not good at defending. i rather milad play then him.

[Iran_19]

is it just me.

Yes it is just you

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[Futbaldoost]

is it just me that thing noorafkhan is not good. he cants attack, cant join attack. he is like a robot only pass backwards. when they attack he is not good at defending. i rather milad play then him.

Yes bro, I think its just you I suggest you watch a replay of the match. The first goal started with him and he consistently helped the team go forward. He won almost all individual challenges and at one point he was like Amiri, following an Iraqi player to the other side of the pitch to finally stop the attack. All ratings from people here and web sites like sofascore rated him highly. I also posted a video interview with him when the TM PGL mini camp started on the TM News thread and I was very impressed by his professional and authentic attitude and dedication to TM. He showed it on the pitch yesterday. BTW, its Noorafkan (spotlight or searchlight) not Noorafkhan.

Go TM!

[Iran_19]

From now on teams like Lebanon, Syria, UAE will play much more defensive game against us and it will be harder to score.
Iraq game plan was stupid yestarday They managed to beat us twice in the last 6-7 years so they were convinced they can do it again, they opened up the game very early and was going for win. Lol
Poor coaching by DA.


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[Essi]

just checked the schedule with regards to home/ away games, it's so perfect that SK away is the second last match, really good for us, at this point we've hopefully secured qualification already, having Lebanon home in the last game after that!

Actually SK away is the next game if I'm not mistaken.