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Iranian Mehdi Mahdavikia (R) fights for the ball against Qatari players Yousef Adam and Saud Shamimari during their World Cup Asian qualifiers match in Tehran 18 February 2004. Iran won 3-1. AFP PHOTO

FIFA - The spotlight may have been firmly focused on Japan and Korea Republic in recent years, but there is at least one other footballing power in Asia, and it is starting to demand serious attention. No one loves football more than the Iranians, and their team has been giving them plenty of cause to cheer in recent times, soaring seven places in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking for March 2004, to reach 24th place, its highest ever position. What is more, there may be better times ahead, as the country prepares for the Asian Cup and the remaining qualifiers for the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany.
Last February’s victory over Qatar was particularly satisfying for Iran. A comfortable 3-1 home win in an Azadi stadium that was completely empty (as a result of punishment imposed in the aftermath of incidents during the Asian Cup qualifying campaign) represented the perfect start to its qualifying campaign for the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany.

In addition, that was the result that allowed the Melli to jump to 24th place in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings, thereby eclipsing its previous best placing of 27th. That standing was reached back in December 1998, when the Iranians scorched through the Asian Games with wins over China (2-1 and 1-0), Uzbekistan (4-0), and laos (6-1).

Second in the Asian zone
Following their recent jump, Iran are now the second highest-ranked AFC nation, behind Korea Republic but ahead of regional rivals Japan and Saudi Arabia. This represents real progress for the Iranians, and local supporters have not been slow to recognise this fact - iranmania.com, iransportspress.com, and the Persian Journal are amongst the media outlets who have hailed this “historic achievement.”

One of the keys to the Iranian success has been the cleverness of Croatian head coach Branko Ivankovic. Having served as Miroslav Blazevic’s assistant with Croatia at France 98, the manager has shown his experience by finding the right blend of foreign-based and local players. Some thirty Iranian players earn a living abroad, the best known being defender Rahman Rezaei (Messina, Italy), striker Alireza Nikbakht-Vahedi (Al Wasl, UAE) and inspirational playmaker Mehdi Mahdavikia (Hamburg SV, Germany), who was AFC’s Footballer of the Year in 2003.

While the above trio may be the stars of the team, Iran-based players like Ali Badaavi and Reza Enayati are starting to forge big reputation for themselves. The most famous local-based player though, is the legendary Ali Daei, who has returned home after many years playing abroad. Not only is Daei back, but he’s still banging in the goals, and his recent brace against Laos saw him create a special piece of history – by reaching 89 goals for his national team, he broke a long-standing world record that had previously been held by none other than the great Ferenc Puskas. “I would like to congratulate Ali Daei on breaking this 30 year-old record,” said Ivankovic, “This is a superb achievement by both him and the national team. Everyone should be proud of him.”

An abundance of talent
The vibrancy of Iranian football at the moment is such that Ivankovic is certainly not stuck for options, though he says he feels no need to tinker too much with his team. "I keep a close eye on any promising players in the domestic league,” he admits, “but I have to say I’m quite happy with my current squad.”

Neverthless, Ivankovic will probably need to exploit all the resources available to him if his team are to reach the twin targets they have been set for this season. The first objective is to get through to the final Asian qualifying phase for Germany 2006. This should be well within the means of Iran, since they have already put broad daylight between themselves and Qatar, while Jordan and Laos do not appear to be realistic contenders. Mahdavikia, for one, believes that the 3-1 win over Qatar and the 7-0 demolition of Laos have set the side on the path to glory. “I sincerely hope that Asia and the rest of the world understood the message,” he explains, “We want to qualify for Germany.”

Before getting to Germany, however, Iran must plan their trip to China for June’s Asian Cup. They will travel with a clear mission: “The most important thing at the moment is to perform well at the Asian Cup,” says Ivankovic, “we will have to prepare meticulously in order to be successful, but the fitness and the motivation of my players will enable us to achieve our goal.” If confidence counts for anything, Iran are set to continue their impressive climb.

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