Ahdaaf » Iran

WCQ2018 Asia: 6 Talking Points from the Middle East

Hamoudi — Wed, 07 Sep 2016 15:38:41 +0000

QATAR: Late capitulation deals double blow to their hopes of making 1st WC before 2022

Over the course of the two matches Qatar failed to really make their mark on the WCQ and worse, capitulated in the later stages of both games to come out of the first two matchdays with a grand total of 0 points. Sebastian Soria, Amine Lecomte and Rodrigo Tabata have all failed to do something of note for their adopted nation and even when it is 0-0 Qatar play as if they are losing, with a lack of chances created and respecting the opposition just a tad too much. Dreams of WC 2018 are slowly running away…

UAE: Brought back down to earth against Australia

It wasn’t a bad performance, but the humidity did play a role in the partial snoozefest in Abu Dhabi. We at Ahdaaf just feel that the UAE took an extra step in confidence against Australia and played with the same system against Japan – which wasn’t entirely successful in fact. Mahdi Ali’s selections have sometimes left fans baffled and poor performances from key players Ali Mabkhout and Amer Abdurlahman have not helped in any sense.

SAUDI ARABIA: Is this run sustainable?

3 penalties, 3 goals, 2 wins, 6 points. Saudi Arabia have beaten Thailand and Iraq with just penalties, both of whom are considered the weakest teams in the group on paper. Saudi are group toppers for now, but their poor performances indicate that they really don’t stand a chance against Japan, the UAE and Australia. They’ve lacked ideas in building play and for the most part of the first half against Iraq struggled to reach the opposition goal, which led fans to tweet “we don’t even want to reach the bloody World Cup, let us reach Iraq’s goal first before that!”

IRAN: Two soulless performances, but 4 points from two difficult games indicates they’re on the right track.

On the bigger picture, Iran has started their World Cup qualification campaign well with a 2-0 win at home against Qatar, and a 0-0 draw in a tough game away from home in China. But once the details come into it, it’s been a below par showing from the Iranians. A disappointing performance against Qatar at home, where there was no rhythm in the team and a lack of buildup play, they needed a mistake from the Qatari keeper in 93rd minute to get the breakthrough. It was a similar lacklustre performance against the Chinese. A hopeless 0-0 draw with barely any clear cut chances created. Questions have been raised and Queiroz will have to improve his team’s overall performance when they meet tougher opponents in Uzbekistan and South Korea in October.

SYRIA: Looking to be a thorn in oppositions’ side

Realistically, Syria are not looking to qualify for the World Cup. Sure, they’re looking to face teams one by one in what will be a series of finals. But the lack of facilities and organisation plus the presence of an actual manager will hinder their progress. Yet, when has that ever played a large role in football? Syria did manage to hold on for a good 75 minutes against Uzbekistan, but an Aleksandr Geynrikh goal proved too much. A draw “at home” against South Korea followed and that came with the taste of a win and congratulations from many in Asian football.

IRAQ: Two defeats, no points. What now? Back to Younis and Co. or to rebuild?

Iraq were left shell-shocked by the manner in which they lost at the Shah Alam stadium to Saudi Arabia. Their demanding fans and media blamed defeat solely on the Qatari referee however their coach Radhi Shanaishel – under-pressure after just two matches – insisted individual mistakes and not referee Khamis Al-Marri, had cost them. “I believe the game was in our own hands and we handed it to the Saudi team,” the Iraqi coach told the press after the game. Iraq’s second defeat in six days after an opening loss to Australia in Perth leaves them joint-bottom of Group B, with coach Radhi Shanaishel in a perilous position.

RESULTS AND STANDINGS:

PRESS TALK: August 31, 2016

Hamoudi — Wed, 31 Aug 2016 16:52:23 +0000

Press Talk is back with international football this time. Saudi Arabia, U.A.E, Qatar, Iran, Syria and Iraq are all of the Middle Eastern Nations participating in the Third Round of the World Cup 2018 (AFC) Qualifiers. What are the media around the region saying ahead of the matches?

Reminder:

Qatar travel to Tehran to face Iran, while Uzbekistan meet the relatively unknown prospect of Syria. Iraq and the UAE face tough nations in Australia and Japan respectively, meanwhile Saudi Arabia have the easiest opponent in Thailand.

QATAR: We are ready [for Iran]

A tough match for Qatar, but the players are more than confident in getting the 3 points in Tehran. Expectations are relatively high after a near-perfect second round qualification but it’s very premature to claim that a win against Iran between their fans will be an easy feat. Qatar will have to be at their absolute best to gain a point, but Qatar’s level against the bigger sides has been a bit of a wildcard since the 2015 Asian Cup.

CARLOS QUEIROZ, IRAN: Qatar’s efforts should be appreciated

Queiroz has said “Qatar have brought the World Cup to Asia so their efforts should be appreciated. Not only do they deserve our respect, but their investments and works off the pitch to bring WC to Asia should be appreciated”.

Meanwhile Andranik Teymourian in his press conference asked the fans to come to the game tomorrow, especially because the game is free for public to attend. From the outset this already seems like Iran have taken a much more respectful approach against Qatar, where everyone are looking for 3 simple points. Surely this game will be good, but tough for both sides.

AHMED KHALIL, UAE: We came to win

The UAE’s “win” against Japan at the Asian Cup in 2015 will go down as one of the greatest nights in Emirati football history. Holding out until penalties was no mean feat but the team are expected to do so again. Japan are no longer under now-UAE Pro League’s Al-Wahda manager Javier Aguirre, but the man behind Algeria’s successful run at the 2014 World Cup: Vahid Halilhodzic. Especially after the UAE’s up and down performance levels with Mahdi Ali recently, one will wonder if the UAE can engineer a challenge on Japan soil or crumble under the pressure.

SYRIA: Yes, we can

It has been quite a shock to see Syria here, in this round. They are aiming for a play-off spot and the fans from all around the world are with them. They’ve gone out with the English saying of “Yes, we can”. Still without arguably the best striker in the Middle East Omar Al-Soma, the Syrians have now forgotten about the player and are firm believers in the team they have and will support them “Qalban wa qaliban”, as the saying goes in Arabic.

YEHIA AL-SHEHRI, SAUDI ARABIA: Our aim is 3 points

Saudi Arabia have the easiest opposition out of the Middle Eastern teams, it goes without saying. Their record against Thailand is also pretty good over the years and at home they are expected to take 3 points if they want to repeat the feats of 1994, 2002 and 2006 in qualifying for the World Cup. They’ve got the best opposition they could ask for and any points dropped will result in alarm bells around Saudi football.

IRAQ: “MEDIA SILENCE” FOR PLAYERS

Ahead of their match against Australia, Radhi Shnaishel has forbidden the players to speak to the media. This is in a bid to keep the players focused on the technical and tactical aspects for the match rather than spend time fighting over unnecessary matters. Iraq qualified for this round after initially struggling but will want to do their usual thing in surprising the rest of the nations left in the qualifying rounds. Can Shnaishel engineer a shock start to their campaign as he did with their fascinating Asian Cup run in 2015?

Persian Gulf Pro League Preview: 2016/17 Season

Hamoudi — Thu, 28 Jul 2016 17:51:18 +0000

As the 2016/17 Persian Gulf Pro League approaches us, we present a team to team guide of all 16 clubs participating in the upcoming campaign. The first matchday kicked off on July the 25th, as fans anticipate what could turn out to be yet another exciting season of the Iranian top division.

Esteghlal Tehran

Manager: Alireza Mansourian

2015/16 position: 3^rd

2016/17 predicted position: 2^nd

Key signing: The signing of creative midfielder, Bakhtiar Rahmani, will surely give the Blues more creativity further up the pitch as their centre of midfield was lacking a advanced play-maker last season.

Key Player: Omid Ebrahimi was voted the best midfielder of 2015/16 season, so it’s only natural to highlight his importance for team once again as the central midfielder finished as the club’s top goalscorer last season.

Summary: After a disappointing end to last season, the club took the decision to change the manager and backroom staff and bring in no less than 12 new players including some big names such as Bakhtiar Rahmani and Kaveh Rezaei. The fans will definitely expect them to win the league as this season promises to be more exciting than ever.

Esteghlal Khuzestan

Manager: Mansour Pourmousavi

2015/16 position: Champions

2016/17 Predicted Position: 9th

Key Signing: Skilful winger, Mehdi Momeni, left the club last summer but endured a difficult campaign at Naft Tehran and Esteghlal Tehran, but Esteghlal Khuzestan have brought him back to add more goalscoring threat further up the pitch.

Key Player: captain and centre back, Mohammad Tayebi, was a key figure in the club’s success last season and the new manager will look to him to lead as example with the club looking to defend their title and make some noise in the AFC Asian Champions League.

Summary: After their incredible success last season, Esteghlal Khuzestan suffered a torrid summer as they lost their talented manager and many of their star players. Mansour Pourmousavi has been promoted from assistant manager to head coach as the club look to make a respectable challenge at defending their title and appear in their first ever Champions League campaign.

Foolad Khuzestan

Manager: Naim Sadaavi

2015/16 position: 12^th

2016/17 predicted position: 13^th

Key Signing: with the departure of Leo Mesaric and Mehdi Badrloo, the signing of powerful centre back, Abdollah Karami, can prove to be pivotal for Foolad’s hopes of a successful season. The central defender was part of the Foolad side that won the 20114/15 league title.

Key Player: Box to Box Cameroonian midfielder, Mathias Chago, is proving to be one of the most influential midfielders in the league and the club did a great job at retaining him for yet another season.

Summary: After a disappointing two years, Croatian manager Dragan Skocic, left the club in the summer as former player, Naeim Saadavi has been given the role to take care of first-team affairs. The club have failed to add any real quality to their team, and on paper they seem to be behind other clubs in terms of quality.

FC Mashhad (Former Siah Jamegan)

Manager: Farhad Kazemi

2015/16 position: 13^th

2016/17 predicted position: 10^th

Key signing: FC Mashhad have had a major clear-out this summer with 18 new players coming into the club. Ayoub Kalantari could prove to be a huge signing. The 25 year old offers a great passing range and great positioning in central midfield, with his manager will surely build the team around his abilities.

Key Player: Hamid Reza AliAsgari’s goal on the final day of the season managed to keep the team in the league for one more season. His experience and abilities down the right side of the team will be very important. He offers a lot of versatility on the wings as his experience 2could also prove to be key for his side.

Summary: Farhad Kazemi is proving to be a great manager at keeping teams in the league, as he managed to keep FC Mashhad in the league on the final day and on goal difference. This summer he has been very busy and his signing look to be adding more quality to the team. His experience and his players’ abilities could provide a great combination and they could enjoy a mid-table position this season.

Gostaresh Foolad Tabriz

Manager: Faraz Kamalvand

2015/16 position: 9^th

2016/17 predicted position: 6^th

Key Signing: Gostaresh’s owners have invested heavily into the team this summer, and the signature of Mohammad Reza Khalatbari, made some heads turn in the Iranian football community. The experienced silky winger could provide a lot of attacking threat to a team that already boasted a powerful forward line.

Key Player: Dariush Sojaeian – the 23 year old left footed midfielder performed fantastically well last season as bigger clubs took attention and showed huge interests in signing him. His stellar performances earned him a few international caps but the club did really well in retaining his services for the upcoming campaign.

Summary: Gostaresh had a solid season in the last campaign, they’ve had a busy summer and made some big name signings so the board will expect Kamalvand to do slightly better this season and finish in the top 6. Their pre-season was also very successful with a stand-out 3-0 win over Turkish giants Fenerbahce.

Mashin Sazi Tabri

Manager: Rasoul Khatibi

2015/16 position: 2^nd (Azadegan League)

2016/17 predicted position: 11th

Key signing: Payam Sadeghian – the 24 year old is a hugely talented midfielder but is usually surrounded with controversy. His return to his hometown of Tabriz with Mashin Sazi, could bring him back to his best as Mashin Sazi will bid to survive comfortably.

Key Player: Andranik Teymourian – the Iran national team captain, is an extremely important signing for the newly promoted team. The central midfielder is hugely experienced and will bring many qualities on and off the pitch to this team.

Summary: Mashin Sazi had a successful transfer window this summer and Rasoul Khatibi look to have built a solid balanced side. This is the first time that the city of Tabriz has 3 teams in the top division, and Mashin Sazi wouldn’t want that to change at the first time of asking. A mix of experienced and young players will give Mashin Sazi a good platform to have a solid season and survive comfortably.

Naft Tehran

Manager: Ali Daei

2015/16 position: 5^th

2016/17 predicted position: 8^th

Key Signing: Mohammad Ghazi – the experienced striker is a favourite of Ali Daei as he has brought the 31 year old to Naft from Saba Qom. His experience and style of play will add something different to Naft.

Key Player: Iman Mobali – Naft’s board worked day and night to make sure Mobali remained at the club following the departures of the team’s key players and the club’s financial troubles. Daei will be pleased with his decision to remain at the club as he will definitely be the engine in the team with his assists once more.

Summary: Naft Tehran suffered hugely this summer. As if the loss of their manager Alireza Mansourian wasn’t enough, star players such as Alireza Beiranvand, Jalal Hosseini and Vahid Amiri have all left the club. There was even rumours of the possibility of the team being disbanded but with new financial support and new investment, the club recruited Ali Daei as manager and some new players. Daei’s ability to work immensely with young players and Naft’s reputation at producing youngsters will provide a great combination and Naft will finish the season in mid-table regardless of their financial troubles.

Padideh

Manager: Mohammad Reza Mohajeri

2015/16 position: 10^th

2016/17 predicted position: 16

Key Signing: Shahab Gordan – Padideh had previously struggled for a good experienced goalkeeper, but Gordan’s signing will surely sort the problems out in goal. The 32 year old has a vast experience in the Persian Gulf Pro League and if he cuts out his occasional error, he’ll be a massive help to Padideh.

Key Player: Hossein Moradmand – Moradmand is a young powerful centre back who has been likened to former Team Melli and Sepahan defender, Hadi Aghili. He rarely makes individual mistakes and this season can be very important for him in getting a move to a much bigger club and even making a case for a potential international cap.

Summary: Padideh hasn’t had the strongest transfer window, and it may be difficult for them to continue the pattern of the last few seasons and finish mid-table. There’s no strong relegation candidate so Padideh may be one of many clubs fighting for survival come March and April.

Peykan

Manager: Majid Jalali

2015/16 position: 1st (Azadegan League)

2016/17 predicted position: 12th

Key signing: Ali Hamoudi – the attacking full-back snubbed many offers from already established teams in the league to sign for the newly promoted side.

Key player: Siavash Yazdani – Yazdani is a 24 year old centre back who was one of the star players in last season’s Azadegan league. His performances in the last campaign helped Peykan win promotion and his role in the team will be no different this season.

Summary: Peykan invested heavily in their team for the upcoming season. The appointment of experienced manager, Majid Jalali, may be their biggest move in the summer. They have a lot of quality on paper and it’s difficult to see them get relegated, although stranger things have happened.

Persepolis

Manager: Branko Ivankovic

2015/16 position: 2nd

2016/17 predicted position: 1st

Key Signing: Alireza Beiranvand – some argue that Persepolis’s failure to win the league in the last campaign was due to a lack of a top class goalie. Well, Beiranvand’s arrivals will surely remove all doubts as he comes with a massive reputation as one of the brightest young keepers in the Middle East.

Key Player: Mehdi Taremi – last season’s Persian Gulf Pro League’s top goalscorer was voted as player of the season a few weeks ago. His goals will be vital to help the Reds end their 9 years wait for a league title.

Summary: Persepolis are undoubtedly the favourites for this league title. The Reds already had a very strong team but the signature of the likes of Beiranvand, Jalal Hosseini (Centre back) and Vahid Amiri (winger) will give them more solidity in the back and more goals up the pitch. It’ll be difficult to see anyone finish above them.

Saba Qom

Manager: Samad Marfavi

2015/16 position: 7th

2016/17 predicted position: 14th

Key signing: Mirhani Hashemi – the versatile defender can play in centre and left side of the back 4. His arrival will help Saba replace many of the star players that departed in the summer.

Key Player: Mohammad Ousani – goals will be key for Saba in the coming season and it looks like their main source for goals will be Mohammad Ousani. He has to be prolific if Saba are to survive in the league.

Summary: Saba Qom quite possibly had the worst summer out of all PGPL teams. Following financial troubles, manager Ali Daei left the club and they lost as much as 11 key first-team players. Their new signings and the new manager don’t seem to be up to the massive task at hand and they may be facing trouble.

Saipa

Manager: Hossein Faraki

2015/16 position: 8th

2016/17 predicted position: 4th

Key Signing: Masoud Hassanzadeh – former Zob Ahan striker was subject of a lot of speculation over 12 months. This season will be key for him as he’ll be keen to show his skills and also prove he deserves a spot in the national team squad.

Key player: Mehdi Torabi – his performances last season have made him one of the best young players in the country. The Iran international can play either side of the wing and he’ll be a nemesis to all full-backs across the country.

Summary: A combination between good young team and a manager who is known for working with youngsters, gives Saipa a great chance for success this season. They’ve been trying to qualify for continental football for a few seasons but with Faraki’s arrival at the helm, they have a fantastic chance at achieving their ambitions.

Sanat Naft Abadan

Manager: Nader Dastneshan

2015/16 position: 3rd (Azadegan League)

2016/17 predicted position: 15th

Key signing: Agil Etemadi – the Iranian-Dutch goalkeeper made a surprising move when he signed for newly promoted Sanat Naft from Dutch side Almere City. His performances will be key as the Sanat Naft faithful hope for their team to survive in the league at the first time of asking.

Key Player: Hossein Baghlani – Baghlani is considered a local player and he will understand what it means to play for the popular Abadani team. The central defender was a key performer in Sanat Naft’s bid for promotion last season.

Summary: Sanat Naft is one of the oldest and most popular teams in Iran. Their promotion made many football fans pleased as they will add more colour and flair to the top division. They’ve added a few quality players to their team but they’ll still be around the relegation zone come the final weeks of the season.

Sepahan

Manager: Abdollah Veisi

2015/16 position: 11th

2016/17 predicted position: 5th

Key signing: Jalaleddin Alimohammadi – following Saba Qom’s financial troubles, Sepahan were quick to snap up the prolific winger. Alimohammadi was Saba’s star player in the last couple of seasons and he’ll definitely add many qualities to Sepahan.

Key player: Shoja Khalilzadeh – he is one of the best central defenders in Iran and following huge speculations linking him to Persepolis, Sepahan did extremely well to retain his services.

Summary: following last season’s terrible campaign, Sepahan had a major clear-out in the summer. A new manager at the helm and many new players, mostly young and relatively unknown, has given Sepahan a new look. They’ll be hoping for ACL qualification but they’ll face a lot of competition.

Tractor Sazi Tabriz

Manager: Amir Ghalenoei

2015/16 position: 4th

2016/17 predicted position: 3rd

Key signing: Edinho – a former favourite, he returns after spending a disappointing season in the Qatari Stars League. He has a good goalscoring record in Iran and Tractor fans will be hoping his goals will be a constant theme throughout the season.

Key player: Mohammad Reza Akhbari – the young goalkeeper has been performing consistently well for the last few seasons and he will undoubtedly be a key member of the team.

Summary: Tractor Sazi performed relatively well during the summer, with some interesting additions. The arrival of Edinho, Karrar Jassim, Mohammad Nouri and Hadi Mohammadi will give a new look to Tractor Sazi. They have the ACL to look forward to but Ghalenoei will be aiming for the club’s first ever league title.

Zob Ahan

Manager: Yahya Golmohammadi

2015/16 position: 6th

2016/17 predicted position: 7th

Key signing: Yaser Feizi – Zob Ahan had a poor window and a signing from a 2nd division club could quite possibly be their best move in the summer. Feizi, who is a centre forward, scored 19 in 24 games for Oxin Alborz in Iran’s third tier.

Key player: Ghasem Haddadifar – arguably the best playmaker in the league, his presence is key for any team. The game is revolved around him and his great vision and composure on the ball makes him one of the best players in the league.

Summary: Zob Ahan have done fantastically well in the last two seasons under Golmohammadi but this season may be different. They’ve lost many of their first-team players and it doesn’t look like they’ve replaced them well. This is a very young team and with ACL to come, it looks unlikely they can perform well on both ACL and league fronts.

BEST GOALS: AFC U-23 CHAMPIONSHIP

Hamoudi — Wed, 03 Feb 2016 12:42:35 +0000

REPORT: QATAR 2-1 IRAN | AFC U-23 CHAMPIONSHIP

Jilbin George — Sat, 16 Jan 2016 07:23:47 +0000

After silencing the Chinese dragon in the first game, Al Annabi took on the mighty Iran, who are the current WAFF-U23 champions. The scales were tied in this high octane match following the earlier matches for the both sides.

The class of game was billed up to an international level.

Ahmad Alaa started off with the team today in the match, scoring in the 34th minute past the offside trap setup goal, which again was breached, slipping the ball through the legs of the Iranian custodian in goal – Mohammad Reza Akhbari. Ali continues with his impressive run from the previous match against China where he was introduced during the 2nd half & scored a goal too. Ali Hasan tried to score one during the dying minutes of the 2nd half however the Iranian goalkeeper safely palmed it away.

Ahmad Alaa celebrates the opener. (Photo: theafcdotcom)

In the 2nd half Iran tried to regain the match back again within 5 minutes of kickoff, with a shot on the Qatari custodian Muhanned Naim, who safely palmed it away at a very tight angle. Muhanned was instrumental during the game, saving an Iranian penalty which was awarded when Ahmad Yasser brought down Iranian forward Arsalan Motahhari.

Later on, none other than Abdelkarim Hassan scored his 3rd goal of the tournament from a corner just like in the previous game against China. His run has been quite impressive too. The Iranians pulled one back just before the end of the game in the dying minutes, however it was too late for the Iran National Team. Qatar go into matchday 3 with a 100% record, where not many people expected them to be at this point.

Coach Felix will be happy that the tough games are over with a comfortable 6 points and a guaranteed position in the quarters. It looks to be seen which will be the 2nd team to qualify from this group along with Qatar.

The next game is with Syria on the 18th. The biggest match-up there will definitely be on the left flank where Abdelkarim Hassan faces Syria’s creative winger Mahmoud Al-Mawas, one of the better players in the tournament. In this game he successfully neutralised Kanani, but Al-Mawas is not easy competition.

Highlights:

AFC U-23 CHAMPIONSHIP: PLAYERS TO WATCH | PART 1

Ahdaaf ME — Sun, 10 Jan 2016 20:46:11 +0000

The AFC U-23 Championship is one where players can make their mark on before going to the big one: senior national team football. However, many of the players this year are already seniors for their respective national team, which may show the lack of components to form an experienced squad (Syria, Yemen) or just downright talent.

We give you an expert Middle Eastern look at the best players to watch, and why.

QATAR

Abdelkarim Hassan

DoB: 28/08/1993

Position: LB – LW | Club: Al-Sadd

Having being a key part of Al-Sadd and Qatar national team setup for the best part of four years, it is sometimes easy to forget Abdelkarim Hassan is just 22 years old. The athletic left back will captain The Maroons at home and will want to lift his first piece of silverware for the nation. One of the early graduates of the famed Aspire Academy, Hassan opted to continue his progress at home with Qatar’s most successful side, Al-Sadd, unlike many of his colleagues who now ply their trade for Qatar owned Eupen in the Belgian second division. This decision has so far proved the right one with the defender lifting the 2011 AFC Champions League. He then established himself as a regular international and now has more than 40 senior caps to his name. Solid in the tackle, the Qatar U-23 captain possesses great pace and athleticism which helps his frequent marauding runs down the left flank. A self-confessed disciple of the Roberto Carlos school, Hassan never shied away from trying his luck from distance and as the eyes focus on the more attacking players in Doha, Abdelkarim’s experience and ability will prove a vital weapon for the hosts in their pursuit of a spot in Rio2016. -WJ

Ali Asad

DoB: 19/01/1993

Position: CAM | Club: Al-Sadd

If Akram Afif is expected to pump in the goals for Qatar, it will be Ali Asad who will wield the magic wand and set it all up. The midfield maestro has been getting rave reviews ever since he stepped up from the Al-Sadd youth ranks and made his mark with the senior team. Although he made 7 appearances in the league winning campaign of 2012-13, it was 2014 that came to be known as his breakout year. His displays with Al-Sadd led to international call-ups and Asad wasted no time in getting down to business. First he starred for the Qatar B team at the WAFF Championship, picking up the Best Player award before turning in a crucial performance when the senior NT won the Gulf Cup in Riyadh. His rise has continued in 2015; he netted a hattrick against Bhutan in the World Cup/Asian Cup qualifiers while also becoming the go-to man in the Al-Sadd midfield alongside Xavi Hernandez. With lots of top level experience already under his belt, the 22 year old Asad is now one of the four senior players in the Qatar Olympic team. Going into Tuesday’s match against China, the young lads of Qatar will be looking to him to be an inspiration. -AH

Akram Afif

DoB: 18/11/1996

Position: CAM – RW – LW – ST | Club: KAS Eupen [loan]

Without a doubt, the main man for Qatar at the AFC U-23 Championship will be Akram Afif. With a pair of quick and tricky feet alongside intelligent finishing, expect him to be a handful for opposing defences. The 19-year forward has been raising eyebrows with a series of impressive displays that has accompanied his rise from the Aspire Academy age group teams. Coming from a footballing family, with both father and brother having played in Qatar, Afif has had a name to live up to. But with the way things are turning out, it seems he will take on the mantle of the family’s best before he’s even 23. Aspire recognized his potential early on and sent him to Villareal and Sevilla to fine-tune his skills. It was in 2014 that Afif actually hogged the headlines with four goals in Qatar’s successful AFC U-19 Championship campaign, including the winner against DPR Korea in the final. He then moved to the Aspire-owned Belgian second division side KAS Eupen, marking his debut with a goal before making further impressive appearances over the year. His rise has been such that he has already been called up to the Qatar senior team and went on to get a goal and an assist on his debut against Bhutan. 2015 also saw Afif play at the U20 World Cup and although Qatar crashed out at the group stage, he managed to score against Senegal. In October, he finished as top scorer with 4 goals in the WAFF U-23 Championship. -AH

IRAN

Rouzbeh Cheshmi:

DoB: 24/06/1993

Position: DM – CB – CM | Club: Esteghlal

Cheshmi is the captain of Iran U-23s national team and is thought of very highly by the coaching staff at club and international level. A defensive midfielder by trait, he can also play at centre back and central midfielder. His leadership skills alongside his high intelligence makes him a crucial player for this side, he is an ever-present figure and gives his team balance by sitting in front of the back four and giving security to his defenders. His composure on the ball makes him a vital part of any offensive move and he’ll be at the heart of everything for this Iran side. -SS

Mohammad Reza Akhbari

DoB: 15/02/1993

Position: GK | Club: Tractor Sazi

Every team needs a good goalkeeper to succeed and Iran have a great number one to rely on when the tournament comes. The 22 year old has had plenty of first team experience as he’s spent the last two seasons playing regular football for Saipa and Tractor Sazi. His performances have made him one of the best keepers in the Persian Gulf Pro League, which has prompted a few call ups to the Iran’s senior team. At 190cm, he is more than capable to command his area. He has been part of the Iran youth setup for a long time so the coaching staff will have full belief in him as he goes into the tournament high in confidence. -SS

Amir Arsalan Motahari

DoB: 10/03/1993

Position: ST | Club: Naft Tehran

This young striker defines the role of a classic “poacher”. He grabbed the attention in the 2014/15 season when his goals helped Naft Tehran qualify from the ACL group as well finishing 3^rd in the domestic league. He was given the “best newcomer” award at the end of the season. He is a smart finisher who comes alive in the box, if he gets the right service he can be one of the deadliest strikers in this tournament. Iran will hope he can carry his great goal scoring tally (12 goals in 17 caps) for the U23s side as they push for an Olympics qualification. -SS

SYRIA

Omar Khribin

DoB: 15/01/1994

Position: CAM – ST | Club: Al-Dhafra (UAE)

Omar Khribin is arguably one of the best players in this tournament, well, for Middle Eastern teams at the very least. His rise has been fantastic, starting off at Al-Wahda in 2003 at the age of 9 years old and lasting with the club until 2011 before playing in the Iraqi Premier League. That is where he became the star he is today, starting off with Quwa Al-Jawiya before ending 2015 with Al-Minaa Al-Basri and leaving the league as top scorer.

He made his big move just a week ago to Al-Dhafra in the United Arab Emirates, playing a sole game before travelling to Doha and catching up with his teammates in the Olympic squad. He arrived in Doha with high morale after scoring on his debut against the biggest club in the U.A.E and one of the region’s top clubs: Al-Ain.

Omar Khribin may be remembered for his double against Singapore a few months ago, where he scored a 93^rd minute winner for Syria in the World Cup Qualifiers. He excelled in that match as a false 10, which is the role he often plays in for club and country. But, Khribin is no stranger to playing up front especially as his physical and technical abilities allow him to thrive with his teammates; most notably Osama Aomry and Mahmoud Al-Mawas. -HF

Mahmoud Al-Mawas

DoB: 1/1/1993

Position: RW – LW | Club: Riffa (BHR) [loan] | Al-Arabi (KUW) [parent club]

Born on the 1^st of January in 1993 (sharing the same birthdate with 5 other players in the team!) Mahmoud Al-Mawas has already earned a blend of experience from the region’s leagues. Like any true “Hamasni” (born in the Syrian city of Homs), Al-Mawas went through the ranks of successful Al-Karamah in Syria that had the likes of Firas Al-Khatib and Mohammad Qwayed as part of the club.

Al-Mawas is a right winger by trade, using his creative abilities more so than your traditional winger like abilities to beat his man. Wall passes, drifting into the centre and even pushing the left back deeper to allow right back Alaa Al-Shibli space on the right are some of his tasks on the field which he excels in. He did exactly that in the Bahraini Clasico against Muharraq:

The partnership between Khribin and Al-Mawas is going to be of high quality due to their time playing together, especially with the good form that they’ve been producing for their clubs too. The Syria team is no doubt one of the stronger teams in the tournament, and now full backs will have to contain the vibrant Al-Mawas too. -HF

Amro Midani

DoB: 26/1/1994

Position: CB | Club: Al-Minaa (IRQ)

Amro Midani is a strong, calm defender for the Syrian Olympic Team and will look to lead the defensive line in the absence of the experienced players who played in the national team. He’s played with Humaid Mido and Omar Khribin at Al-Minaa in Iraq, showing how far the Syrian team goes in terms of chemistry.

He’s only 21 but he’s rational and intelligent, as opposed to being rash and aggressive. He’s one of the better defenders in the Iraqi Premier League at such a young age and he will continue to grow – this tournament being the ideal platform for him to build from. He’s also a product of one of the best youth academies in Syria, Al-Wahda Damascus.

His large afro will certainly grab your attention but watch out for his performances and how he stabilizes the Syrian defence line, who will expect the likes of Arsalan Motahari and Akram Afif. -HF

SAUDI ARABIA

Fahad Al-Muwallad

DoB: 14/09/1994

Position: LW | Club: Al-Ittihad

Fahad Al-Muwallad is more of a player to watch rather than the leading star in this team, and the reason for this is that he may be considered overrated by opposition fans and Al-Ittihad fans themselves. He can either be a frustrating winger who wastes chances, or a deadly forward who will punish defenders. Fahad Al-Muwallad, the Arabian Raheem Sterling?

One thing you cannot take away from the lad is his shooting on its day. Whether it is a bicycle kick, a lob or a powerful long shot straight into the top corner, Fahad Al-Muwallad never fails to surprise you. But placing all hope on him is detrimental, as the weight goes on his small shoulders. When tasked to lead the team recently against Al-Ahli Jeddah in the Crown Prince Cup semi-final, he failed to produce anything worth mentioning.

But, pair him up with Abdulfattah Assiri and Abdulrahman Al-Ghamdi in a competition for youngsters – expect him to excel. -HF

Abdulfattah Assiri

DoB: 26/02/1994

Position: RM | Club: Al-Ittihad

Dubbed the “Messi of Saudi Arabia”, Abdulfattah Assiri is one of the most underrated players in the region and rightly so. Technically gifted, weaving past players like the legend himself at times, it’s going to be interesting how he will play a role in this squad especially that Mustafa Bassas occupies the same role. However, both can operate in the centre if needed.

Assiri is often the creative hub in his team, and he is usually dangerous in all positions. That’s right, whether you find him on the flanks, deeper in the centre, located in the half spaces or even in the box, he will create chances for you. His ability to move between players in tight spaces is relatively on a good level although still a work in progress as he needs to place more emphasis on having a smoother final touch to escape cleanly.

Nevertheless, in terms of eye candy, Assiri is arguably the #1 on that list to watch in this tournament. -HF

Mustafa Al-Bassas

DoB: 02/06/1993

Position: CM – RM – RW – RB | Club: Al-Ahli Jeddah

When the Saudis kick off their U-23 tournament against Thailand, they will be looking at Mustafa Al-Bassas as one of the most senior players in the team. Al-Ahli’s 22 years old man has been in the heart of the Jeddah based club’s unbeaten run of 48 games since 2014. The midfielder first broke into the first team in 2012 under Czech tactician Karel Jarolim, often coming from the bench but gradually established himself alongside Walid Bakhshwin in central midfield. Bassas is also capable of playing out wide as a right back or a right winger. His energy and skill on the ball enables him to play an important role in the team’s attacking play. Yet, his final product needs improvement as evident by his poor return of one assist and no goals from 8 appearances this season and a meagre return of just 4 goals in 2015. Already a full international with 15 senior caps to his name, Bassas is yet to break his international duck. Nevertheless, those stats don’t paint the full picture when it comes to Bassas’ attacking contribution, he often sprays passes to the attacking wide men from deep or ventures in Di Maria-esque runs down the middle to break opponents defences, and despite his unassuming physique (172 cm), the Jeddah-born Ahli youth product does not shy from a tackle and often relishes a midfield battle. His combativeness and forward looking mentality will be key if the Green Falcons are to make it to Rio 2016. -WJ

2015 REVIEW PODCAST

Hamoudi — Thu, 31 Dec 2015 19:11:06 +0000

Hello and welcome to the 2015 Review Podcast of Middle Eastern Football done in English for you by none other than Ahdaaf. Here, we talk about all that’s been happening across the half-season and any other news of note before we head into 2016 and who to watch before the impending Asian Champions League and AFC Cup that both begin in February.

Speakers:

Dan J.
Hamoudi Fayad
Sina Saemian

Content:

00:30 – Iran
17:02 – UAE
32:11 – Saudi Arabia
50:05 – Qatar
1:02:37 – Bahrain
1:06:55 – Iraq
1:09:35 – Jordan
1:15:25 – Kuwait
1:18:35 – Lebanon
1:22:40 – Oman
1:24:01 – Palestine
1:28:47 – Syria

EP1: MIDDLE EASTERN FOOTBALL PODCAST FT. BEYONDTHEPITCH & DANTANI

Hamoudi — Fri, 25 Dec 2015 11:17:22 +0000

Link to the Episode – http://traffic.libsyn.com/btpmedia/OWS.12232015.mp3

One World Sports: Concussions, Kafala and Closing the Gap in Middle East

Featuring Omar Al Raisi and Hamoudi Fayad

As many of the top European leagues move to the holiday break and the winter transfer window begins to open for business, we take a step back to address two very big issues in world football while opening the window to football in the Middle East with a new partner. First up is attorney and youth coach Derek Howard who served as Co-Lead Counsel, representing the plaintiffs in a ground breaking soccer concussion lawsuit in the United States that delivered common sense regulations to exposing youth players to the act of heading a soccer ball. This week head injury in sports is being discussed once against in North America as a new movie titled, Concussion, hit theaters nationwide and it once again sparks much debate about how science has opened a deeper understanding of how concussive and sub-concussive hits affect the brain, especially in our youngest people where the damage can be even more extensive. Then in part two of this episode, UEA sports journalist Omar Al Raisi and Hamoudi Fayad , the co-founder of Ahdaaf.me, give us a view of Middle Eastern football including a first look at Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Iran and the UAE as the key benchmark nations for the region and how kafala continues to dominate perceptions of the region as the 2022 World Cup has magnified the debate (minute 24:00 of the podcast). Some important topics in this episode and an introduction to a new partner who will deliver us even further insight into a fascinating part of the world and its football.

DOMESTIC WEEKLY REVIEW: SEPTEMBER 25-30

Ahdaaf ME — Fri, 02 Oct 2015 14:15:13 +0000

Arabian Gulf League – U.A.E

Persian Gulf Pro League – Iran

Qatar Stars League – Qatar

Jordan Cup – Jordan

Lebanese Cups – Lebanon

Team and Player of the Week

Arabian Gulf League – UAE

Game of the Week

Al-Wahda 2-1 Al-Ain

Jorge Valdivia returned just in time to face his former club Al-Ain, where he enjoyed some of the best moments of his career despite a disappointing ending. After a 2-game ban (a result of pointing the middle finger at fans on his debut) stopped him from influencing the Abu Dhabi Derby between Al-Jazira and Al-Wahda, he certainly impacted the proceedings back at the Nahyan Stadium in the Abu Dhabi ‘Clasico’ against Al-Ain.

Two maestros went up against each other: the teacher and his student. A similar bond between Ronaldinho and Messi. Omar Abdulrahman, a #10 like Valdivia himself, learned from Valdivia while rising through the ranks at Al-Ain. They met once again, only for the former to taste victory.

The possession was all in Al-Ain’s favour to begin with, trying to bring the ball into dangerous positions via their wingers (Rashed Essa and Ryan Babel) who had the propensity to cut inside looking to occupy the spaces Omar Abdulrahman left while dropping deep to help the defensive midfielders.

Al-Wahda’s front line however, came against the run of play. Mohammad Al-Akberi has been on fire with Al-Wahda lately and the youngster proved himself in a big game by exploiting former AFC Player of the Year Nominee Ismail Ahmed to lob the ball towards Sebastian Tagliabue. By the end of the game, he had scored his 10th goal of the season in the space of 6 games.

The second goal came 10 minutes after half time where a clear offside goal was scored on the Zaeem. The assist came none other from El Mago Valdivia himself, playing Tagliabue a fine final pass. Al-Ain needed some changes, and Zlatko Dalic forced a couple of changes.

Moment of the Week.

Taking off Mohanad Salem – their best centre back – and keeping Ismail Ahmed – a liability – alone in a very unorthodox back 3 saw the Arabian Gulf League encounter a new tactical variant to the usual. A 3-2-1-4 shape, basically.

The two full backs would tuck in to help Ismail Ahmed while Lee and Bastos dropped by the halfway line to speed up the play. The front four (Essa, Mohammed Abdulrahman, Emenike and Diaky) went 4v4 against the Al-Wahda back line. Complete overload. The ‘1’ in the formation is a certain Omar Abdulrahman who was everywhere, making nippy movements in and around Al-Wahda’s defensive structure to receive the ball and play in the right pass. It worked. Omar assisted Emenike’s goal to bring the score back to 2-1 in favour of Al-Wahda.

The Anabi had goalkeeper Adel Al-Hosani to thank after a masterclass in injury time helping them keep Al-Ain at bay but a red card on substitute and captain Ismail Matar will certainly raise some eyebrows – however not as much as the offside goal that denied Al-Ain a point.

Think the Barclays Premier League is the best league in the world? Look at the Arabian Gulf League in the space of 4 weeks.

Rest of the Games

Dibba 4-2 Al-Jazira

Wow. If there is any score to cause a ripple amongst the AGL fan base it is most certainly this one. Al-Jazira have equipped themselves with foreigners of high caliber: Thiago Neves, Jefferson Farfan, Mirko Vucinic and Park Jong Woo. Moreover, they strengthened their defensive ranks with Al-Ain centre back Fares Juma. Khamis Esmail’s injury hurt them, however Yaser Matar proved to be a decent replacement.

Photo via @FcDibba

Al-Jazira took the lead in the first half and went on to add another in the second half however Theo Bucker masterminded Dibba’s first goals of the season. Dibba – who had scored 1 league goal at this point – went on to score 3 in the space of 15 minutes to ensure victory of the Pride of Abu Dhabi. The return of Abel Braga has not been merry, with Ali Khaseif adding to the defeat with his lacklustre performances in goal.

1-1 draws the norm this week

Baniyas 1-1 Al-Shabab.

Emirates 1-1 Fujairah.

Al-Dhafra 1-1 Al-Shaab.

Al-Nasr 1-1 Sharjah.

All these matches coincided in the same week, with a couple of talking points out of these matches. Baniyas once again proved they are a challenger for the top spots with a resilient outing against fellow challengers Al-Shabab. Meanwhile Renan Garcia returned to the league in Emirates colours, helping them to a 1-1 draw. Hassan Maatouk vibrant as always, bagged an assist however failed to help Fujairah grab another 3 points as he missed a penalty in the 89th minute.

Al-Shabab and Baniyas battled it out in Al-Shamkha.

Al-Nasr started their league season off perfectly: only to ruin it against one of the worst teams in the league. They still head the league with 10 points, however. Makhete Diop returned to goals in Madinat Zayed, earning a point for Al-Dhafra in front of 600 fans.

Persian Gulf Pro League – Iran

Game of the Week

Esteghlal 3-3 Rah Ahan

No one in their right mind thought that Esteghlal (who is controversially on top of the table) would have such a close game against Rah Ahan (who was just hanging above the relegation line). But not everything happens like it seems. Esteghlal went into the game, wanting to raise their points so that they could stay at the top of the league for a longer amount of time. While Rah Ahan who had struggled in the bottom half of the table and had its manager (Farhad Kazemi) sacked, wanted to win the game and come back to the incredibly competitive Persian Gulf Pro League. So while most didn’t expect it, the game between Esteghlal and Rah Ahan was incredibly exciting and extremely controversial!

The game started and it was Rah Ahan who was controlling the game. Milad and Mehrdad Mohammadi, the incredible Iranian twins, were setting up every attack but they were very unlucky and Rahmati was superbly protecting the net. However, it didn’t take too long for the shaky looking Esteghlal to concede, with Bahador Abdi scoring a beautiful long ranger against Esteghlal in the 13th minute to make the game 1-0 to Rah Ahan. Things didn’t change much after the first goal for Rah Ahan, as they were still dominating the game. A dominance which resulted in a slightly controversial penalty call for Rah Ahan, as it looked like Mehrdad Mohammadi was just a bit outside of the box when the foul was committed on him. Some experts believed that the referee made the right call, but a few others believed that Mehrdad Mohammadi was outside of the box when the foul was committed. The extremely controversial referee, Hossein Zargar, called a penalty for Rah Ahan and Sebastian Strandvall scored Rah Ahan’s second goal against Esteghlal from the penalty spot to make the game 2-0.

Photo by varzesh11.com

The game then carried on and aside from Rah Ahan’s suspicious penalty, the game wasn’t too controversial. But that was only until the 35th minute where one of the most shocking decisions from the always controversial referee, Hossein Zargar, occurred. Shahbazzadeh (Esteghlal’s striker) was trying to get around Nenezič (Rah Ahan’s goalkeeper), but when Nenzič got hold of the ball, Shahbazzadeh blatantly dived onto the floor. And while many thought the referee would give Shahbazzadeh a yellow card for simulation, Zargar thought differently and gave a penalty to Esteghlal and a yellow card to Nenezič! Rah Ahan’s players were furiously protesting, but Omid Ebrahimi took the penalty and shot it past Nenezič’s grasp to give Esteghlal some hope for a comeback. And while it was only seconds away from the end of the first half, Esteghlal’s Hanif Omranzadeh held Nenezič’s foot between his feet, and when Nenezič got his foot out in a furious fashion, Meisam Majidi hugged Nenezič from the back and then was pushed away by the extremely frustrated Nenezič’. And while many thought that the referee would call halt and let Rah Ahan have a goal kick, Zargar thought otherwise and gave another penalty to Esteghlal and also gave out a second yellow card to Nenezic for Rah Ahan to go down to 10 men! This was another extremely controversial call from Zargar, who was once again furiously criticized by the experts for his horrible refereeing. After some more protests from Rah Ahan’s players, Omid Ebrahimi was once again behind the ball, and scored from the penalty spot to equalize (2-2) against Rah Ahan. It was then that the first half ended, with lots of controversial calls from the referee and a great attacking play from the underdogs, Rah Ahan.

(Picture of Hossein Zargar winking towards an anonymous source before he called two extremely controversial penalties for Esteghlal)

The second half started and it only took five minutes for Farshad Faraji to score another goal to make the game 3-2 in favor of the 10-man Rah Ahan. However, it only took 2 minutes for Esteghlal to get back in the game with Arash Borhani’s equaliser. The referee then made two big mistakes. First was when Amin Hajmohammadi committed an extremely dangerous sliding tackle on the Rah Ahan’s player, which resulted in him kicking his head and making him bleed. And while many believed that Hajmohammadi should’ve received a red card, Zargar thought otherwise and didn’t even give him a yellow card! Second mistake was when Amin Hajmohammadi scored a header for Esteghlal but Zargar decided that the goal was offside, while it was blatant that Hajmohammadi was on side! Finally, this crazy match ended. And in a game that Esteghlal should’ve probably lost to Rah Ahan, the end result was an extremely controversial 3-3 draw. A match which certainly doubled the Iranian fans’ doubt and worry over the under qualified referees in their league.

Photo by varzesh11.com

Due to certain issues surrounding the weekly review this week we could not do the rest of the games in the Persian Pro League. The results however, were as follows:

Esteghlal Ahvaz 0-2 Gostaresh

Zob Ahan 0-0 Naft Tehran

Malavan 0-0 Padideh

Tractor Sazi 0-1 Persepolis

Saipa 1-0 Foolad

Saba 1-0 Sepahan (SHOCK OF THE WEEK)

Siah Jamegan 0-1 Esteghlal Khuzestan

Qatar Stars League – Qatar

There were plenty of goals and action in Round 3 of the Qatar Stars League as most of the big guns gave convincing performances to register important wins. The round saw 23 goals, bettering the 20 goals scored in Round 2. With the Qatar Stars League deciding to revert to the match pooling system instead of a traditional home-and-away system, the stadiums of Lekhwiya, Al-Sadd and Qatar SC all hosted two successive matches each. After the Round was concluded, Al-Sadd star Xavi Hernandez was selected as the Best Player for the month of September, while Al-Rayyan coach Jorge Fossati was chosen as the Best Coach.

Game of the Week

Al-Rayyan 3-1 Umm Salal

Promoted Al-Rayyan continued their winning march after their return to the Qatar Stars League, defeating Umm Salal 3-1 at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium. Upto 7000 Rayyani fans thronged the stadium, keeping up with the recent hype and rise in attendances. The fans honoured their legendary striker Mansour Muftah who was in attendance with a standing ovation in the 15th minute, a reference to his jersey number.

The match got underway and Rayyan looked dangerous from the start. The Lions took the lead in the 11th minute, when Rodrigo Tabata struck with a fine left-footed shot. The captain celebrated wildly by running to the fans and in the 32nd minute, he was at it again. This time, he diverted a Mohammed Jumuah pass onto the path of Sebastian Soria who made no mistake and slammed home the second goal for Al-Rayyan. Despite replays showing that Soria was in an offside position, the goal was given and Rayyan went into the tunnel with a two goal cushion.

After the restart, Umm Salal made attempts to get back into the game and a major opportunity came 15 minutes into the second half when they were awarded a free kick from around 25 yards out. Ivorian striker Yannick Sagbo sent a great curling finish to the right of keeper Omar Barry, giving his team much needed hope.

However, there wouldn’t be a miraculous comeback after Al-Rayyan scored the next goal. Tabata, Sergio Garcia and Soria all combined in a quick passing move that ended with Soria finishing from close range and getting what would prove to be the final goal of the match. The 3-1 win put Al-Rayyan back on top of the QSL table.

Other games

In the other games, Al-Gharafa managed to get a 2-0 win against Al-Ahli, despite playing the final half hour with ten men. New signing Alain Dioko was playing against his former employers and got his first goal of the season at the stroke of halftime, but was substituted after injuring himself in the process by crashing into the post. The Cheetahs’ defender Anderson Martins was sent off for a high-boot challenge in the 62nd minute, but the team held on to get the win, which was sealed by a superb Fuhaid al Shammari strike in injury time.

El Jaish and Al-Khor played out a drab 0-0 draw, which was the first goalless match of the season. Despite having a fearsome strike force, comprising the likes of Romarinho, Abdelrazak Hamdallah and Sardor Rashidov, the Armymen failed to break down an Al-Khor side which got its first point on the board.

Al-Arabi remain went on top of the table temporarily, ahead of Al-Rayyan’s match against Umm Salal, after maintaining their 100% record with a 4-0 win over Qatar SC. Paulinho opened the scoring a couple of minutes after kickoff. With fans just starting to stream in, the Brazilian latched on to a Yousef Ahmed pass, strode past Mohammed Mubarak and finished with ease. Arabi were in control for the most of the match against a lacklustre Qatar side who were down to 10 men in the 47th minute after Khaled Saleh was sent off for a second yellow card. After that the Reds scored three more goals – Musaab Mahmoud was first, heading in Ashkan Dejagah’s aerial ball; Junior Dutra was next, finishing well from the edge of the box. Finally, Rod Fanni took advantage of a clueless Qatar defence by slotting home the fourth and final goal.

Lekhwiya gave QSL viewers the most brilliant attacking performance of the season so far with a merciless 7-0 thrashing of Al-Kharaitiyat. Vladimir Weiss and Mohammed Razaq scored the first two goals in the second half, capitalizing on their opponent’s defensive mistakes with impunity. At halftime the score was 2-0 but after the restart, the Cops came out hungrier for goals. They ended up scoring five more. Youssef Msakni, Nam Tae Hee and Khaled Muftah all got onto the scoresheet, with Weiss and Msakni ending the match with two goals apiece. It was a flawless display that served to reiterate Lekhwiya’s title credentials early on.

Brazilian striker Muriqui rose to the top of the scorer’s list with a brace and a starring performance in Al-Sadd’s 4-1 win over Al-Wakrah. In the 32nd minute of the match, Muriqui headed a Xavi corner onto the post; the ball bounced off the line and was bundled in by Abdulkarim Hassan. There was a bit of confusion as to who had scored and whether the ball was handled by Abdulkarim but regardless of it all, the goal stood and was awarded to Abdulkarim. Muriqui then sent a perfect through ball in the 61st minute to Nadir Belhadj, who poked the ball past the onrushing keeper and scored into an empty net. The Brazilian then finished off a Xavi through pass in the 70th before Sebastian Saez reduced the deficit from the penalty spot for Al-Wakrah in the 86th. A minute later, Muriqui scored his second and the team’s fourth after slotting in a rebound.

After two 4-0 defeats at the hands of Al-Rayyan and Al-Jaish, Al-Sailiya finally got their first win of the season when they triumphed 1-0 over promoted Mesaimeer. It wasn’t pretty with the Falcons only scraping through courtesy an own goal. It was scored by Mesaimeer defender Osama Mousa who inadvertently hit the ball past his keeper Basil Zaidan in the 62nd minute. The score stayed that way for the rest of the match, meaning that Mesaimeer remain without points or goals after Round 3.

Ramtha and Wehdat make shock early exits – Jordan Cup

Just as the Jordanian Cup saw the entry of teams from the top tier; big boys Ramtha and Wehdat made their way out only one game in. The beauty of the cup as they say. The teams miss out on a quarter final spot and a shot at an AFC Cup spot in 2017.

Ramtha had to make do with a 3-3 draw against second tier side Al-Tara, before waving goodbye to the competition via a penalty shootout. Wehdat – Jordanian Champions and Arab giants – lost to mid-table side Al-Ahli after a fierce shot from Macauley separated both teams.

Fans on the other side of Amman will most certainly be cheering after the exit of Wehdat. Al-Faisaly took a sigh of relief as they stumbled past Al-Sareeh with thanks to a brace from Alassane Diallo. Bragging rights have completely shifted to their side after the Super Cup win in early September.

Al-Ahed & Shabab Sahel celebrate cup wins – Lebanese Elite, Challenge & Super Cup

Shabab Sahel won their second consecutive Challenge Cup after turning around a 1-0 scoreline to newly-promoted Ijtimai into a 3-1 victory. Moussa Kabiru scored a hat trick in 11 minutes, the fastest official hat trick record in Lebanon according to talk around the town.

Al-Ahed meanwhile had to endure a tough 120 minutes to beat a rejuvenated Safa under the command of former Lebanese national team manager Emile Rustom. Debts and problems aside, this Safa side look like they can challenge for honours with the return of dazzling winger Mohammad Haidar.

It didn’t end there as Al-Ahed played once again, 3 days later, in the Lebanese Super Cup against Lebanese Cup winners Tripoli SC who succeeded under the reign of Palestinian Ismail Qurtam last season. A drab match with a few sparks here and there saw an attendance of 50 celebrate the win with Al-Ahed, who scored via a Hussein Awada header to earn their third honour in the space of a year.

Team of the Week

Makani, Sadeghi, Ansari, Nekounam: Persian Gulf Pro League Al-Khadeim, Al-Akberi, Al-Kamali: Arabian Gulf League Msakni, Muriqui: Qatar Stars League Al-Kurdi, Kabiru: Lebanon

Player of the Week

Muriqui – Al-Sadd

DOMESTIC WEEKLY REVIEW: September 16-22

Ahdaaf ME — Wed, 23 Sep 2015 12:43:37 +0000

Our weekly review will attempt to give you the lowdown on every single football league in the Middle East weekly. We didn’t want it to be a very simplified article, which means it goes to around 5000 words. To accommodate reading for you, we have hyperlinks for each league to make it easier for you to navigate through the article.

Arabian Gulf League

Qatar Stars League

Persian Gulf Pro League

Saudi Arabian ALJ League

Jordan, Oman, Iraq, Palestine

Team & Player of the Week

Arabian Gulf League – U.A.E

Game of the Week

Al-Jazira 3-2 Al-Wahda

Imagine your brother scoring a screamer in the 95^th minute to hand your crosstown rivals in the win in a derby match after just coming back from a 2-0 scoreline in the space of 15 minutes? Well, that was what Emirati legend Ismael Matar had to endure as his lesser-known brother Yaser took the spotlight for once with a winner for Al-Jazira.

Complete domination for Al-Jazira at the start saw strike partners Ali Mabkhout and Mirko Vucinic bag their first goals of the season, but – understandably – Al-Jazira faltered and Ali Khaseif handed Al-Wahda the first gift as he mistakenly blundered Sebastian Tagliablue’s long shot into goal with less than 20 minutes on the clock.

Ismaeil Matar (burgundy shirt) disappointed.

Al-Jazira did not stop there in terms of gifts before the Eid break in the Middle East, with a penalty kick given in injury time. Sebastian Tagliablue was the man again, scoring under immense pressure to equalise the proceedings. Yaser Matar had ruined the day for all Wahdawis, unfortunately.

Rest of the Games

Perhaps unfairly, Al-Shaab have been suffering in the Arabian Gulf League with their 3^rd loss on the trot against Emirates of the Ras Al-Khaimah emirate in the UAE. Tarek Al-Ashry, who brought in fellow Egyptian Amro Al-Soulaya (apparently, Soulaya was eagerly wanted by Al-Ahly Cairo this summer) to strengthen the midfield this season. It is safe to say that the signing has started off dreadfully despite scoring a goal in this game, with the Commandos struggling to create clear cut chances for their vibrant attackers Michel Laurent N’dri and Matias Donoso (who has also started off with nothing to note in terms of attacking impact).

The game ended 2-1 to the Ras Al-Khaimah-based side via goals from Colombian import Wilmar Jordan and Brett Holman’s replacement for the time being, Mohammad Mallalah. The latter is an experienced yet technically lacking attacking midfielder who supports his teammates quite well, and knows the ins and outs of lower league football.

But it was Fujairah who took the spotlight with a 3-3 draw against Baniyas. As Ali Zeinnedine puts it “If Fujairah had better defenders and a decent goalkeeper, they would challenge for the Champions League places!” and he is certainly correct. The 8-1 drubbing at Al-Ahli in the opening week of the season was no indicator of their actual quality, and we predicted them to finish 9^th as they still need to strengthen in the required areas to push into the top half of the table.

Hassan Maatouk a revelation once again, scoring alongside the slow starter Christophe Mandanne and the nimble attacking midfielder, Khalil Khameis. Baniyas on the other hand had hit man Joaquin Larrivey score a hat-trick, the second of those this season.

The Bur Dubai Derby between Al-Nasr and Al-Wasl disappointed, with the former scoring two goals through dynamic wingers Pitroipa and Kembo-Ekoko, who both were stars for their teams (Al-Jazira and Al-Ain, respectively) last season, can be considered rejects. They partnered Luis Jimenez (an Al-Ahli reject) in a “reject” trio just behind the front line, where they combined to create mayhem for the Al-Wasl defence.

Caio Canedo returned in time for the Bur Dubai Derby.

Luis Jimenez has scored 4 goals in 3 games, while both wingers scored their first goals of the season in the 2-0 win over Dubai rivals Al-Wasl who looked lackluster despite the return of Caio Canedo. Isolation of Al-Wasl’s full backs were key to the Blue Wave’s win. Not bad for a team who had signed “rejects” at the start of the season.

However the biggest disappointment of the season is AGL Champions Al-Ain’s fans, who came up against Sharjah. 1,897, the worst ever attendance at the Hazza Bin Zayed stadium, was the disappointing number that AGL never wished to see. No one really cares about the AGL anymore, or is this a case of something else? A whole book can be written about that, so let’s leave it for later.

Ryan Babel and Rashed Essa linked up excellently to score and assist each others’ goals, before Renato Caja added in a very late consolation for the King who seem destined for a relegation battle. Babel finally answered his critics, who have been pestering him since his dire pre-season form.

Props to Dibba manager Theo Bucker who set up his team to nullify the threat of Jo and co. of Al-Shabab, who should have won the game had it not been their very poor finishing. That is what they usually say, but Essa Abdulla of Al-Shabab missed an absolutely golden chance that skimmed past the post to the shock of the Green fans. But the belief, tactical organisation and resilience instilled into the Dibba team has been immense since their start to the AGL this season.

We end with Rodrigo Lima, who has now successfully scored in every single game for Al-Ahli since his arrival to the club in the summer. Asian Champions League, Arabian Gulf Cup, Arabian Gulf League – it doesn’t matter to Lima. He will just score. New signing Moussa Sow needs to be have it handed to him though, with his addition in the second half proving vital to Al-Ahli’s 2-1 win over Al-Dhafra.

Rodrigo Lima is unstoppable.

He freed up space for Lima, drawing defenders out and taking them on before playing in the final pass to the attackers ahead. Al-Dhafra meanwhile, looked dire without options in attack. David Barral and Makhete Diop haven’t been the fastest duo on the counter attack and Al-Dhafra will need more runners from midfield to alleviate the attacking burden on the front 2. Young Hamad Raqe’ can be an option for that as he showed in the match against Al-Ain. Tactically, Banide needs to add a few more aspects in the attacking sense to help Al-Dhafra stay up. They have had a tough start to the season (3 losses: against Al-Ain, Al-Nasr, Al-Ahli).

ALL goals for Week 3 done by our friends at @AGGoals:

Written by Hamoudi Fayad

Qatar Stars League – Qatar

Round 2 of the Qatar Stars League culminated on Saturday with all 14 teams playing for the first time and bringing 20 goals. Here is a round-up of all the action starting with our Game of the Week – Al Sadd v Umm Salal, where Xavi Hernandez was the star of the show as expected.

Game of the Week

Al-Sadd 2-2 Umm Salal

Al-Sadd took to the pitch for their first home match of the season on Thursday, keen to show that they were up for the title challenge by beating Umm Salal, who were undoubtedly much better opposition than Mesaimeer who they beat 4-0 in Round 1. Things however, did not go according to plan for Hussein Amouta’s men.

Yannick Sagbo, fresh from a starring role in Umm Salal’s opening day win over Al-Khor, gave the lead to the Barzan Falcons in the 14th minute, when he headed in a Rami Fayez cross. It was goal that came against the run of play; Al-Sadd had dominated the game without much result and were stunned by Sagbo’s leap and finish.

For the rest of the first half, the Wolves of Al-Sadd attempted to get a goal of their own but they were toothless in attack, even with Xavi pulling the strings. Striker Muriqui, who had scored a hattrick in Round 1, was nowhere to be seen. The first half ended with Umm Salal’s one-goal lead intact and Al-Sadd went into the tunnel looking to regroup.

Persian Gulf Pro League – Iran

Game of the Week

Perspolis 1-2 Saipa

After two wins for Perspolis in the Persian Gulf Pro League and the Hazfi Cup, the fans expected Perspolis to achieve another win in home, and put all of the pressure behind. This however did not occur, as Perspolis lost the game to Saipa, partly to the players’ inexperience and also to the referee’s horrendous decision making.

Persepolis started the game well, and in a half that most of the opportunities were for the Reds, Saipa’s defender and goalkeeper both tried to stop Mehdi Taremi and gave away a penalty for Perspolis. At this time Persepolis’s fans were extremely happy that Mehdi Taremi who had shown that he could score penalties, was standing behind the ball. But when his shot slowly rolled into Fallahzadeh’s hands, and the goalkeeper caught the ball without breaking a sweat, Perspolis fans got worried once again.

Photo by Varzesh11.com

It was De Ja Vu all over again, a penalty for Perspolis and an opportunity to get ahead, but a poor shot from the spot and the game remained 0-0. The first half ended, and the second half opened with Perspolis’s fans expecting the players to play the game more offensively and try to score. The Reds, however, sat back and tried to defend as if they were content with the 0-0 draw. And in the middle of the second half, the most controversial scene of the game occurred, where Saipa’s player shot the ball against Ramin Rezaeian’s head in the penalty area, and the referee count the incident as a hand ball, resulting in a penalty for Saipa. This extremely wrong decision was questioned by the experts, and even outraged Persepolis’s players and fans of the referee. Wrong decisions had already changed many of Persepolis’s results this season, and had made the fans way more sensitive towards them. Reza Norouzi, an Ex-Perspolis striker stood behind the ball and scored the penalty to make the game 1-0 for Saipa.

Photo by Varzesh11.com

It was then that Perspolis started to go forward, but they did it so carelessly that a huge gap was created in their midfield and defensive area. Mehdi Torabi, Saipa and Team Melli’s young, smart, and fast winger, saw the gap, and as soon as he got hold of the ball, he ran through Perspolis’s defense and passed the ball back to Gholamreza Rezaei, another Ex-Perspolis striker, who chipped the ball over Sosha’s hands and Umaña’s feet. The game was now 2-0 and the Perspolis fans were outraged with both their players and the referee. Persepolis’s attacks started to get more oriented after they conceded the second goal, but neither Taremi’s bicycle kicks went in, nor Farshad Ahmadzadeh’s horrendous attempt to power the ball into the net in an incredible one on one opportunity.

After this, Perspolis fans, who are known as one of Iran’s most passionate, and most populated throughout Asia, started to leave the Azadi stadium. It was the 90th minute and Perspolis was 2-0 behind against a much weaker opposition, so the fans were disappointed. But at least to consult the remaining fans, Taremi won another penalty in the 90th minute and this time powered the penalty kick past Fallahzadeh who dived the right way but couldn’t reach Taremi’s powerful shot.

Rest of the Games

Sepahan and Tractor Sazi drew 0-0 in a game that both sides were incredibly wasteful with their opportunities.

Foolad lost 0-3 to Zob Ahan at home, with all of the goals coming from the defenders; Hadi Mohammadi, Mohammad Nejadmehdi, and Mehrdad Ghanbari. Foolad still remains in the 16th position, at the bottom of the table, where many think it is a place where they don’t belong.

Rah Ahan lost 0-1 to Malavan at home as well, with Arash Afshin scoring the lone goal. And while Malavan won the game, many believe that they should’ve won 2-0, as the referee mistakenly called their 2nd goal offside. This loss for Rah Ahan, caused their manager, Farhad Kazemi to be sacked a few days later, and be replaced with Mehdi Tartar.

Padideh Mashhad won 1-0 against Siah Jamegan in the Mashhad Derby, with Mehdi Kheiri Mir scoring Padideh’s winner.

Gostaresh Foolad lost 0-2 to Esteghlal Tehran, with Sajjad Shahbazzadeh and Seyed Mohsen Karimi scoring Esteghlal’s goals, in a game that the refereeing was questionable and also controversial, as Gostaresh’s fans believed the referee’s decisions were in favor of Esteghlal.

Photo by Varzesh11.com

Experts also believed that Gostaresh should’ve had a penalty. Esteghlal Khuzestan drew 1-1 against Ali Daei’s Saba Qom, with Farshad Janfaza scoring Esteghlal Khuzestan’s goal, and Mohammad Ghazi scoring Saba’s equalizer in the 96th minute.

Esteghlal Tehran also played Naft Tehran, in their postponed clash, and won 2-1. Milad Fakhrodini and Omid Ebrahimi scored Esteghlal’s goals, and Aloys Nong scored Naft’s lone goal. This game was also controversial, as experts suggested that Naft should’ve had a blatant penalty, and Alireza Beiranvand (Naft’s #1 goalkeeper, and Iran National Team’s second goalkeeper) was crossed out of the final squad list.

Saudi Arabian ALJ League – Saudi Arabia

Game of the Week

Al-Nassr 2-0 Najran

Al-Nassr, the champions of the Saudi Arabian ALJ League for two consecutive times in the last two years, finally won in the third round after a disappointing start to the season by losing 4 points playing against Hajer and Al-Qadisiyah. In the third week only, playing against Najran who had one point from two games, did Al-Nassr secure the three points. Al-Nassr players and president, HRH prince Faisal bin Turki, confirmed several times that this drop in performance is due to the suspension of six players and the injury of others. Despite that, the team captain who was also suspended, Hussain Abdulghani, said on a televised interview that they have to win their match against Najran; and they did.

It was obvious from the beginning of the match against Najran, that Al-Nassr were determined to win and reconcile with the fans, the ten thousand spectators that were rooting for them on at the Prince Faisal bin Fahad Stadium in Riyadh. With two superb strikers, Al-Sahlawi and Modibo Maiga – the new arrival from the English Premier League – and two skillful playmakers behind them, the Polish Adrian Meirzejewski and Yahia Al-Shehri, Al-Nassr could only see a win. After some pressure on Najran defense, Al-Nassr striker Maiga almost scored the first goal when he diverted a cross from Shaya Shraheali on the far post to the goal but Najran’s goal keeper, Abdulaziz Al-Tekrouni, was able to bravely save it. Few minutes later, Meirzejewski was able to cut a pass from the uneasy Najran’s players and pass it to Al-Sahlawi who passed it quickly to Al-Sheri. The defenders went to tackle Al-Shehri and cover Meirzejewski and Al-Sahlawi on the left side leaving Maiga unattained on the right side. Al-Shehri finally passed the ball to Maiga who was standing alone inside the box few meters from the goal keeper. Maiga sent a powerful shot to the other side of the goal keeper scoring the first goal of the match 36′.

The second goal came just five minutes after the kickoff of the second half from a free kick just outside the box. The foul was committed by Najran’s left back, Raed Al-Amri, when Al-Nassr right back, Khaled Al-Ghamdi, received a brilliant long pass from Meirzejewski and tried to run toward the goal but he was fouled few meters before entering the box. Adrian Meirzejewski took the free kick and sent the ball inside the box, but instead it reflected from Najran’s French central back, Mamadou Wague, to beat the goal keeper and hit the back of the net scoring the second goal 51′ for Al-Nassr. After the two goals, no real attempts threatened Al-Nassr goal keeper, Muteb Shraheali, most of them were either too easy for Al-Nassr defense and or just went wide. Al-Nassr, on the other hand, kept trying hard to seal the match, despite the fact that they already scored two goals. Head coach Jorge da Silva, in an attempt to add more energy on the front, pushed the famous Naif Hazazi and Youness Mokhtar coming from The Eredivisie – the top football division in the Netherlands – to the pitch.

The last ten minutes before full time was very exciting, Hazazi was all over the place trying to score the first goal for his new team. However, all of his attempts were either saved by the goal keeper or blocked by the defense. The match ended with only two goals for Al-Nassr and yet another defeat for Najran. This victory puts Al-Nassr back on the track and in sixth place in the ALJ League standings.

Written by Nasser Al-Beshri

Rest of the Games

Al-Hilal 1-0 Al-Raed

After returning from Asian Champions League action in Doha, Al-Hilal faced Al-Raed who became the first team this season to sack their manager, Abdulkader Al-Omrani, replacing him with the Greek Takis Lemonis.

Unfortunately that failed to yield any result from the game, but they did limit Al-Hilal to one of their worst performances of 2015 – under Donis – and that is saying something considering the form Al-Hilal were in since the Greek’s arrival (Donis, not Lemonis).

Carlos Eduardo was signed for a reason, and that is to provide the match winning performances that Al-Hilal need at desperate times. His brilliantly struck free-kick was enough to grant Al-Hilal three valuable points.

Al-Ittihad 1-2 Al-Faisaly

After continuous talk on the new look Al-Ittihad team under the guidance of Al-Balawi behind the scenes, they failed to provide anything of sort in their first home game of the season. 30,000+ fans attended making it the best attendance of the league season until now, but they certainly won’t be happy to see Al-Ittihad perform like this again.

Al-Faisaly replaced all of their foreigners – no, not their 2014/15 foreigners but foreigners they ACTUALLY signed this summer (terminating all of their contracts…) – to bring in Jordanian Hamza Al-Dardour and Togolese Sadat-Ouro Akoriko among others in bold moves that looked to shape up their bid to consolidate themselves in the league.

And Akoriko proved himself, starting off well with a goal before Fahad Al-Saqri scored a wonder goal to take Al-Faisaly into a shock lead. Al-Faisaly have been defeated twice in two games this season, to newly promoted Al-Qadisiyah and in-form Al-Taawon.

Al-Ittihad’s goal was nothing more than a consolation, and time will tell if this team can gel together in a very fast paced league. Before you know it, they’ll be out of the title race. Fans are already calling for Lazlo Boloni’s departure.

Al-Fateh 1-1 Hajer

The main talking point in this game is the beautiful free-kick of Elton, as he scored yet ANOTHER set-piece goal for former ALJ League Champions Al-Fateh. But that wasn’t enough to announce Al-Fateh as winners (they lost 3-0 to Al-Khaleej in the opening week after the appearance of Ali Al-Bleihi in that match caused them to forfeit the match; he was allegedly ineligible for the match) and help them return to challenging for honours.

Their full backs were caught out Mohammad Al-Saiari took advantage of silly positioning to guarantee Hajer a point.

Al-Ahli 1-0 Al-Wahda

Another team that finally played at home were Al-Ahli, now with 7 points but yet to concede despite the alleged retirement of goalkeeper Abdulla Al-Mayoof. They now extend their undefeated streak in the league to over a season (over 29 games at the time of writing) yet the league title has been far away from them since the 1990’s.

Here they grabbed a narrow, but vital, win over Mecca-based side Al-Wahda. The latter have been struggling as of late with the board asking fans to be patient towards a tough time ahead. Will the fans be content with the work being done at the club? Time will tell, with Al-Wahda slowly emerging as a relegation contender.

Al-Taawon 5-1 Al-Qadisiyah

“At this rate, they could be Asian Champions League contenders!” tweeted Othman Al-Twaijri. The Saudi football enthusiast claims that Al-Taawon will definitely challenge some of the bigger teams towards the later stages of this season as Portuguese manager Jose Manuel continues to guide them into a positive rise.

One of the top scorers in the league, Efoulou, and the best creative outlet in the Middle East after Omar Abdulrahman and Bader Al-Mutawa (statistically) is Syrian Jehad Al-Hussain. These guys partner up at Al-Taawon and have been key to their undefeated start to the season. They did so by smashing a very decent Al-Qadisiyah side.

One player to notice is Abdulmajeed Al-Ruwaili. The previous winger has been doing wonders as a makeshift central midfielder for Al-Taawon. Scoring the equaliser and being the focal point of attack throughout Al-Sukkuri’s 5-1 thrashing of Al-Qadisiyah was one of the many things he produced throughout the last month.

Al-Khaleej 0-0 Al-Shabab

Drab, just drab. Al-Shabab drew with one of the worst teams in the league and will have missed out on a valuable two points in their fight for the top four. With another challenger for the top four in Al-Taawon they will need to make sure they can earn maximum points off the smaller teams.

Best Goals of Week 3:

Carlos Eduardo (Al-Hilal)
Abdulmajeed Al-Ruwaili (Al-Taawon)
Elton Jose (Al-Fateh)
Modibo Maiga (Al-Nassr)
Fahad Al-Saqri (Al-Faisaly)

The Rest of ME: Jordan, Palestine, Iraq and Oman

The Khalil Derby – Hebron, Palestine

Ahli Al-Khalil and Shabab Al-Khalil played out a tense game full of attacking intent, only to be halted by the goalkeepers Abu Salim and Shweiki. Shabab needed to bounce back after a disappointing draw in the first week of the West Bank Premier League against Shabab Al-Khadar.

Nevertheless, it came down to Shabab winger and substitute Bassam Armeleh to decide the proceedings seconds after coming on as an 86th minute substitute. Armeleh ruined Ahli’s dominance in the second half with a fantastic move from outside of the box confirming Shabab’s win and sending the fans into delirium. A magical way to replenish last week’s mistakes against Palestine Super Cup winners and fierce rivals Ahli Khalil.

WOW! What a way to win the derby seconds after coming on. Bassan Armeleh scores this ‘worldie’ against Hebron rivals and…

Posted by Ahdaaf ME on Saturday, September 19, 2015

Palestinian winger Nu’man helps Wehdat stay top – Amman, Jordan

Just before the Eid break, Wehdat welcomed the challenge of newly promoted Kufrsoum. A team with high expectations after returning to the league in place of Manshiyat Bani Hassan, their fans would not be surprised with a win. They sought a win.

The players showed that character too as they successfully nullified the threat of Hajj Malick and Abdulla Deeb’s movements and interchanges, with Malik Al-Yassiry leading the back 4 to a compact first half. This in turn led to the confidence of the midfield players who crept up to help the attacking duo with runs and an excess of high-quantity/low-quality shots, pressuring veteran goalkeeper Amer Shafie.

This however, failed to lead them to taking the lead, before a set-piece ruined their organisation. Ashraf Nu’man successfully assisted the excellent centre back Mohammad Al-Basha to scoring the only goal of the game. Al-Basha, who already had a good game, added a goal to add himself as a member in our inaugural Team of the Week.

“Al-Affiyah” Derby disappoints – Sur, Oman

Al-Orouba and Sur battled it out in front of a small attendance in the Oman Pro League to see a drab 0-0 draw further mount pressure on the champions Al-Orouba. The league itself is seeing virtually no fans attending (besides the brilliant fan base of Sohar) games, with complaints made daily towards the preposterous work of the Oman FA.

Midfield work from both teams failed to produce anything of note, with Al-Orouba locked on 5 points after 3 weeks and Sur a point behind. Both don’t want to fall behind in the title race as the weeks go by, which is currently led by Sohar on 7 points.

Iraq

Mohammad Farhan claims that the refereeing team were unfair to his club, Amana Baghdad in their loss to Quwa Al-Jawiya which saw a 77th minute chip separate the sides. The feeling was different on the other side as Humam Tareq, who returned to the league from Al-Ahli Dubai, posed for pictures with a huge smile after the win. However in the other group…

Photo: Quwa Al-Jawiya official Facebook page.

Another man came back, too. Yet this man was a figure in Iraqi football, one that saw one of the fights in the Iraqi national team a few weeks ago. Younis Mahmoud returned to Al-Talaba as they cruised to a 3-1 win over Kahraba, the former being his first professional club as a footballer. His return sparked lots of media attention in Iraq after the national team incident with Yaser Kasim.

Al-Talaba in my blood and Younis is my brother. Photo: Al-Talaba official Facebook page.

Photo: Al-Talaba official Facebook page.

Team of the Week

Akhbari, Mohammadi, Ghanbari | Iran

Al-Basha | Jordan

Al-Ruwaili, Maiga | Saudi Arabia

Pitroipa, Babel, Larrivey | U.A.E

Xavi, Hamdallah | Qatar

Ahdaaf » Iran

WCQ2018 Asia: 6 Talking Points from the Middle East

PRESS TALK: August 31, 2016

Persian Gulf Pro League Preview: 2016/17 Season

Esteghlal Tehran

Esteghlal Khuzestan

Foolad Khuzestan

FC Mashhad (Former Siah Jamegan)

Gostaresh Foolad Tabriz

Mashin Sazi Tabri

Naft Tehran

Padideh

Peykan

Persepolis

Saba Qom

Saipa

Sanat Naft Abadan

Sepahan

Tractor Sazi Tabriz

Zob Ahan

BEST GOALS: AFC U-23 CHAMPIONSHIP

REPORT: QATAR 2-1 IRAN | AFC U-23 CHAMPIONSHIP

AFC U-23 CHAMPIONSHIP: PLAYERS TO WATCH | PART 1

QATAR

IRAN

SYRIA

SAUDI ARABIA

2015 REVIEW PODCAST

EP1: MIDDLE EASTERN FOOTBALL PODCAST FT. BEYONDTHEPITCH & DANTANI

DOMESTIC WEEKLY REVIEW: SEPTEMBER 25-30

Arabian Gulf League – UAE

Persian Gulf Pro League – Iran

Qatar Stars League – Qatar

Ramtha and Wehdat make shock early exits – Jordan Cup

Al-Ahed & Shabab Sahel celebrate cup wins – Lebanese Elite, Challenge & Super Cup

Team of the Week

DOMESTIC WEEKLY REVIEW: September 16-22

Arabian Gulf League – U.A.E

Qatar Stars League – Qatar

READ MORE: XAVI SPEAKS ABOUT QATAR, BARCELONA AND MORE

Persian Gulf Pro League – Iran

Saudi Arabian ALJ League – Saudi Arabia

The Rest of ME: Jordan, Palestine, Iraq and Oman

Team of the Week

Player of the Week