Is Ali Daei overrated?

[Mani]

Here is why I think Ali Daei is one of the most overrated players in Iranian football history. A great striker should have the follwing skills which Ali Daei lacks in most parts:

1. Speed - Daei is probably the slowest Iranian forward ever
2. Ball control - Daei always looks nervous with the ball and hardly does any dribbling
3. Passing - I've seen Daei making some great pass like the one in Australia 1997 BUT he has not stayed consistently good when it comes to passing

Now the above is just the skills Ali Daei has never had BUT there are some skills that Ali Daei has lost over the years, such as:

1. Play intelligence - Daei used to be really good in creating spaces up front for other players to take advantage of, but not anymore.
2. Stamina - Daei is not as physically strong as he used to be
3. Temper - Daei used to be one the most well tempered players around BUT nowadays he seems a bit cocky. For example, after scoring against Jordan, not only did he not thank Vahid Hashemian for his cross ball he also YELLED at Javad Kazemian for not passing him the ball in a previous play.

So overall, Ali Daei was the best Iranian "scorer" ever but simply cannot be called "best Iranian player ever".

[nekounam]

He should have retired from the game 2 years ago. I don't know how many more times we're going to have to see karimi dribble 4 defenders and pass the ball off to the team captain only to have him stumble on it or lose it. The only passes he can confidently receive these days (and most of his football career) are ones in the air. Let him score his last two goals, reach the 100 goal international milestone, add to his world record, and "gracefully" retire. I can't help but hope Iran gets two penalty kicks with Daei's name on them in the Qatar game for his own sake as well as that of the team.

[Txtriathlete]

He should have retired from the game 2 years ago. I don't know how many more times we're going to have to see karimi dribble 4 defenders and pass the ball off to the team captain only to have him stumble on it or lose it. The only passes he can confidently receive these days (and most of his football career) are ones in the air. Let him score his last two goals, reach the 100 goal international milestone, add to his world record, and "gracefully" retire. I can't help but hope Iran gets two penalty kicks with Daei's name on them in the Qatar game for his own sake as well as that of the team.

lol
I heard he was interested in going to the WC...
I personally would like to see the helicopter be the spear head of the persian team but thats just MPO.

[RuffRyder]

lol
I heard he was interested in going to the WC...
I personally would like to see the helicopter be the spear head of the persian team but thats just MPO.
We all want Hashemian to be the striker that takes us to World Cup, but since Daei is playing the these qualifying games, he must expect to play in the games.

[Txtriathlete]

Well, if he stays... at 37 (in '06) lets hope he can deliver or that the coach can bench him if need be.

[Power_of_foot]

he was underrated in Munich. He was better than Jancker altough the coach favoured Jancker better.
But now he is going down.
I believe he is still better than Taka something from Hamburg and Yana something from Sampdoria


Here is why I think Ali Daei is one of the most overrated players in Iranian football history. A great striker should have the follwing skills which Ali Daei lacks in most parts:

1. Speed - Daei is probably the slowest Iranian forward ever
2. Ball control - Daei always looks nervous with the ball and hardly does any dribbling
3. Passing - I've seen Daei making some great pass like the one in Australia 1997 BUT he has not stayed consistently good when it comes to passing

Now the above is just the skills Ali Daei has never had BUT there are some skills that Ali Daei has lost over the years, such as:

1. Play intelligence - Daei used to be really good in creating spaces up front for other players to take advantage of, but not anymore.
2. Stamina - Daei is not as physically strong as he used to be
3. Temper - Daei used to be one the most well tempered players around BUT nowadays he seems a bit cocky. For example, after scoring against Jordan, not only did he not thank Vahid Hashemian for his cross ball he also YELLED at Javad Kazemian for not passing him the ball in a previous play.

So overall, Ali Daei was the best Iranian "scorer" ever but simply cannot be called "best Iranian player ever".