Tehran - The Iranian Football Federation (FFI) on Wednesday
appointed Iranian-American Afshin Qotbi as new head coach for the
country's national football team, ISNA news agency reported.
FFI vice-president Mehdi Taj told ISNA that Qotbi lead Iran's
national football team in the remaining three World Cup qualification
games against North and South Korea and the United Arab Emirates.
Qotbi has already signed the contract and will come to Tehran on
Thursday, Taj said.
The FFI deputy added that Qotbi will have one Dutch and one
Iranian assistant.
Qotbi's appointment came after Iran's newly-appointed coach
Mohammad Mayelikohan resigned Tuesday after only two weeks on the
job. His resignation was a fresh blow to the national team as it
struggles to qualify for the 2010 World Cup finals.
Mayelikohan had succeeded Ali Daei who was dismissed following a
2-1 home defeat against Saudi Arabia in a World Cup qualifier on
March 28.
The result has left Iran with an uphill battle to qualify for the
2010 finals in South Africa.
Qotbi, 46, is an electrical engineering graduate from the United
States, who however has spent most of his working life as a football
coach.
He has strong coaching credentials, including a spell at Korean
side Samsung and was technical assistant to South Korea under
Dutchman Guus Hiddink.
After the Asian Cup 2007, he was hired by Persepolis Tehran
and led the capital's team to its first championship in years but
severed his contract last year after differences with the club
directors.
Football observers consider Qotbi as the best option for the
national team due his mixed Western and Persian mentality.
The FFI turned in March last year to Qotbi but at the last minute
chose national team skipper Ali Daei instead which many critics
considered a political rather than a technical decision.
Iran has to play a vital match against North Korea in June. A
defeat in Pyongyang would mean the end of their hopes of going to
South Africa.
Iran has only six points from their five Group B games and must
still play against the two Koreas in Pyongyang and Seoul as well as
against the United Arab Emirates in Tehran.
The top two teams qualify directly for the World Cup while the
third-placed team has an opportunity to qualify via play-offs.
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