Iran's Forgotten Generation

During the mid 80s to early 90s, Iran produced what was arguably its strongest group of players. The effects of the war with arogh, sporadic friendlies for TM in addition to the lack of an organized national league hindered the progress of this group who undoubtedly would have gone to eclipse the success of all generations before and after them. Some of them would linger on long enough to be included in future accomplishments of TM although that would not be the case for most. With the internet still being some years away, most of these players remain unknown to younger TM fans. In this thread we will make note of the individuals, TM and club teams of that era that never received the recognition that they deserved.

First and foremost, we will begin with the most prolific striker Iran has ever produced, Farshad Pious. Pious was the top goal scorer in practically every team and league that he represented. Many considered his lethal finishing instincts on par with Gerd Muller. While he would be invisible for stretches of a match, however, he single handedly rescued Persepolis and Iran from many tight situations with his moments of brilliance by popping up in the right place at the right time. Best examples of this would be in derby matches in 1988 and 1990 where he scored the go-ahead and equalizing goal, respectively, in eventual 1-1 ties. His high scoring output also was reflected in TM matches where he ended up as our top scorer in the 1988 Asian Championship, 1990 World Cup qualifiers (in spite of only taking part in half of the matches), and the 1990 Asian Games.

 

Mojtaba Moharrami, rightfully known as Mojtaba Brehme, has been the best left back Iran has ever produced. While always proficient in his defensive duties, he also contributed to attacks as well and as such created many goal scoring opportunities, scoring on many of them himself. On average Moharrami scored once every 4-5 games, an amazing feat for a defender. He was part of 3 of Persepolis's 4 consecutive Tehran League Championships while also winning the 1991 Asian Cup Winners Cup, scoring 2 goals in the process. With the national team, he won the 1990 Asian Games, although he was suspended for the Final. Moharrami's fiery personality has lead to many suspensions throughout his career, some of which had drastic effects on his club and national team.

During the 1990 World Cup qualifiers and just days before the crucial series against China, Moharrami (along with Ghayeghran and Morteza Fonoonizadeh) were removed from the team due to disciplinary reasons. It was said that during a preparation match against Kirgyzstan the three had gone to a bar and consumed alcoholic drinks and as such were banned from the team. During the 1989 derby between Persepolis and Esteghlal, it had been rumored that he was part of a bet amongst the players. At the conclusion of the match and Persepolis's 1-0 win, Shahrokh Bayani's assault on Rahim Yousefi (with Moharrami trying to separate them) seemed to confirm some type of off the field tension amongst players although it was never confirmed. During the 1992 Asian Championship, Moharrami was one of the players involved in a brawl following Japan's late offside goal that resulted in Iran's elimination. In the 1993 derby, Moharrami was once again accused of being part of a brawl that lead to a 3 year suspension for him. He did return in time to be part of TM's squad in the 1996 Asian Championship and Persepolis's National League triumph.

 

For anyone who had the pleasure of watching Moharrami, he was a must-have in the lineup for any team that he played for. If in fact he became an addict as you claim after he retired, it's irrelevant to his performance on the field. It's like denying Maradona was a good soccer player due to his drug issues.

 

The late Sirous Ghayeghran was one of the most complete soccer players our country has ever produced. An inspirational captain for both club and national team, Sirous, commonly known as Sia Sia by the Anzali locals, controlled the midfield, blasted long range shots at goal, threaded pinpoint passes for forwards, crossed from both flanks, encouraged his teammates, hustled, tackled, saved children from burning buildings…. sorry got carried away. He rose to prominence with Esteghlal of Anzali and then Malavan, before he got lured to Tehran by Keshavarz. Ghayeghran certainly had his ups and downs with the IFF, but his ups clearly outweighed his downs. Our national team suffered a major setback as a result of his absence from our crucial series against China due to an IFF suspension (allegedly for going out for a drink while in the Soviet Union) and part of the reason for our elimination in the first round of the 1990 World Cup qualifiers could be attributed to the apparent lack of a midfield maestro.

He was originally penciled in as one of the many players that resigned from the national team after the 1986 Asian Games in protest to the management of the team, however, Sirous still managed to make the best of this scenario. While his name was originally included on the list, he never actually put his signature on it, thus leaving him with enough leverage to lean either way, depending on what would work out best.

Sirous achieved many honors during his soccer career, but there are a few that stand out more than others. After the mass exodus of our established players and the emergence of young and inexperienced players such as Abedzadeh, Zarrincheh and Namjoo Motlagh, Sirous took charge and became the gel that kept the individuals together as a unit. He masterfully captained the team during the 1988 Asian Championship to a bronze medal. It was during the ill fated game against South Korea, a 3-0 loss, that Ghayeghran emerged as one of the few bright spots demonstrating his thunderous long range shots, forcing the Korean keeper into three acrobatic saves. It was only fitting for Iran to end the tournament with Ghayeghran’s perfectly placed spot kick to give us the win on PKs.

Taking away the captaincy is a major blow to any soccer player, yet in early 1990 when Parvin brought Panjali back to the national team as captain, Sirous made no fuss and accepted his new role. He played a major part in our march to Asian Gold in 1990 and avenged our 1988 loss to the Koreans. In the semifinals in overtime, a perfectly timed run and chip of the Korean keeper enabled Sirous to get the only goal of the game. Once again he took part in the deciding PKs and scored the first of our four goals in the shootout victory over North Korea in the Final.

But perhaps Sirous’s greatest accomplishment was not at the international level, but rather at the club level with Malavan in 1990. During the 1991 Hazfi Cup, Malavan faced Persepolis in the semifinal round. The return leg in Tehran had ended 2-1 in favor of Persepolis, thus a 1-0 victory would have been sufficient for Malavan to advance. Early in the 1st half Malavan earned a freekick that was clearly in Sirous’s territory. The calm and collected run-up towards the ball and the placement in the upper corner of the goal beyond Ghilich’s outstretched hand was pure magic. The one goal lead would have been enough for Malavan but not Ghayeghran. Ten minutes later the Malavan and Persepolis players tangled outside the box for a loose ball that ended up bouncing ahead of Ghayeghran. He charged at it and fired it one touch with one of his trademark thunderous shots that once again ended up in the back of the net. Malavan would win the match 2-0 and advance to the final against Esteghlal, a game Malavan would win in a shootout where once again Sirous emerged as a winner on PKs by converting his team’s first kick after a 0-0 draw. However, going back to the semifinal, after the game Sirous truly showed his class and humility. When asked how he managed to nail those picture perfect long range shots, rather then boast about his skills or bash his opponent’s weaknesses, he simply shrugged, smiled and said, “شانسی‌ بود”.

A true humble gentleman and leader on the field, we can never have a true history of our soccer without the mention of Sirous Ghayeghran. May he rest in peace.

 

He did.

 

Ghayeghran's second goal against Persepolis.

 

Undoubtedly Abedzadeh is mostly remembered for his heroics against Australia in 1997 en route to the World Cup in addition to the World Cup itself and specifically the game against the US. What most don't realize is that he had had an illustrious career prior to what can be remembered as its peak. Due to the fact that he joined TM at a very young age, Abedzadeh managed to be part of the forgotten generation and further his career with the national team as the gradual turnover took place. His absence due to injury during the 1994 World Cup qualifiers had a direct impact on Iran's failure to qualify.

Dubbed the Eagle of Asia, at the club level he initially impressed with Isfahan's Select Team and Isfahan's Tam, defeating Esteghlal in Tehran during the 1990 Iranian National League. In spite of the triumph over Esteghlal, just before the Final between Esteghlal and Persepolis, he transferred to Esteghlal and defeated their red rivals 2-1 to win the National Championship. This lead to Esteghlal's presence in the following year's Asian Club Championship which ended in triumph for them after defeating Liaoning of China in the Final. During his playing years he was one of only a handful of players that represented both Esteghlal and Persepolis.

Abedzadeh's main claim to fame was his uncanny ability in saving penalty kicks. During the 1988 Asian Championship, he saved two Chinese penalty kicks en route to a 3-0 win and third place finish. Earlier in the semifinals he had also saved Saudi Arabia's spot kick during the game. Two years later in the 1990 Asian Games he once again came up big in a shootout by saving two North Korean penalty kicks after a 0-0 tie in the Final, thus ensuring Iran's championship. He would save further penalty kicks in the 1996 Asian Championship in shootouts versus Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. At the club level he replicated his shootout heroics by saving a number of Pas kicks in the semifinals of the 1991 Hazfi Cup.

 

Karim Bavi was an Iranian striker that due to injuries was forced to retire much sooner than expected. He broke into the national team in his early 20s. The mass resignation of TM players following the 1986 Asian Games assured him a fixed spot in the new lineup. His strong aerial game synced perfectly well with the late Dehdari's insistence upon using the flanks for crossing into the box against what was perceived as shorter East Asian opponents. On the flip side as strong as he was in the air, he was equally weak with his foot skills, to the point where one sports magazine, possibly Donyaye Varzesh, accurately described him by stating "در بازی زمینی‌ باوی بازیکنیست در حد صفر". Such categorization was in spite of the fact that Bavi had scored the late equalizer against South Korea with a shot in an eventual 1-1 tie in the Asian Games.

Bavi spent his earlier career in Shahin before signing with Persepolis. While still at Shahin he contributed to many goals with TM and scored in both legs against Kuwait during the 1988 Olympic qualifiers. He also scored the first and fastest goal of the 1988 Asian Championship against hosts Qatar. His header off of a corner kick was struck with such force that even after hitting three opponents en route to goal its momentum still carried it over the line. Bavi continued with Iran's World Cup qualifiers and scoring the goals against Thailand and Bangladesh. By the time the series against China took place, a new coach, Monajati, had taken the reigns from Dehdari and Bavi was being subbed in and out of games. As a result of Iran's failure to qualify, Monajati made way for Parvin who would now coach club and country. In spite of rating Bavi highly enough to sign him for Persepolis, Parvin dropped him from the national team and somewhat justified the move by also ultimately removing him from Persepolis's starting 11. After a couple of indifferent seasons with Persepolis, he finally returned back to Shahin. Due to injuries sustained at the front during the war with Iraq, Bavi retired from soccer before the age of 30.

 

Javad Zarrincheh was another player that like Abedzadeh was able to cover two generations due to his young debut with TM. Following the resignation of TM players at the conclusion of the 1986 Asian Games, Zarrincheh was the heir to Shahin Bayani's right wing back position, a position perfectly suited to the late Dehdari's tactical plans. In four years time and a change in coach, Bayani was reinvited to TM although Zarrincheh kept him out of the starting lineup. With TM Zarrincheh won a bronze medal at the 1988 Asian Championship and a gold medal at the 1990 Asian Games. He was also part of TM's lineup in the 1998 World Cup and provided the cross in which Iran's first goal against the US was scored in a 2-1 victory. Zarrincheh spent the majority of his career with Esteghlal although sandwiched in between was a few years with the high-spending Keshavarz, making its debut in Tehran's First Division League in 1991.

 

Morteza Kermani Moghaddam was a flank midfielder and occasional forward who formed a perfect partnership with Pious both at the club level and national team. He spent the bulk of his career with Persepolis with a few stints elsewhere. During his playing days, his actual name was just as hot of a topic as was his contributions on the field where amongst commentators and news anchormen his first name would alternate between Morteza and Mojtaba and his last name between Kermani Moghaddam and Kermani Magham. On the international level he was known as a player who remained longing for a goal, who would come incredibly close and yet would be denied. During the 1988 Asian Championship, late in the game with Iran trailing Saudi Arabia 1-0, Kermani Moghaddam unleashed a shot from inside the box that kissed the back of the net yet the referee called the goal back for reasons that to this day remain a mystery. In a 1990 W0rld Cup qualifier away to Thailand, he was perfectly set up in the box for an easy tap in, yet slammed his shot off the crossbar in an attempt in which the commentator described as "گل نکردن این ضربه سخت تر از گل کردنش بود". In the crucial away game against China, he met a perfect cross inside the box with an even better header only to see it carom off of the goal post. In the return match in Tehran, Kermani Mohghaddam's instinctive cross seemed almost mouth fed to Pious who converted with a downward header to give Iran a temporary 3-0 lead.

Aside from the multiple titles Kermani Moghaddam won domestically with Persepolis, Kermani Moghaddam won a bronze medal at the 1988 Asian Championship and a gold medal at the 1990 Asian Games. He also won gold in the 1991 Asian Cup Winners Cup where he scored the winning goal in the semifinals in a jam packed Azadi Stadium against Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia. His thunderous shot came off of Pious's side volley, once again demonstrating the great understanding the two had of one another on the field. (Minute 8:45 below)

 

Share some of them.

 

Yes.

 

Majid Namjoo Motlagh was another beneficiary of the mass resigning of TM players following the 1986 Asian Games. Although one of the younger players, he commanded a starting spot in Iran’s midfield for the 1988 Asian Championship while barely out of his teens, resulting in a bronze medal. While Namjoo Motlagh was never a prolific goal scorer, however, he did score a brace against Yemen in the opening game of the 1989 Peace and Friendship Cup. During the 1990 Asian Games, while in group play against North Korea Iran seemed to have hit a brick wall, finally after Namjoo Motlagh was subbed in he was able to provide the kind of crosses that Pious had been asking for all day, scoring the opening goal in an ultimate 2-1 win. Namjoo Motlagh and Iran won gold in the 1990 Asian Games while he scored the decisive penalty kick against North Korea in the Final. The following year, following the first leg of the Afro-Asian Cup against Algeria (a 2-1 win for Iran on home soil), Namjoo Motlagh was injured in a Tehran League game against Pas where he had to be carried off the field. His absence for the return leg may have contributed to the 1-0 defeat and overall loss on away goals. A further personal loss for Namjoo Motlagh was that following the first leg PSG scouts had contacted him about a trial with their club but his injury and long layoff on the sidelines nixed any potential deal.

Namjoo Motlagh’s club career is mostly remembered for his stint with Esteghlal. He was a key player in their midfield and yet it’s a shame that he is probably mostly remembered for the 1988 derby against Persepolis. When Esteghlal earned a penalty kick in the 17th minute, they turned to their young midfielder to bury it in the back of the net. However, Ghilich reacted well to save both Namjoo Motlagh’s penalty kick and its rebound the keep the game scoreless at the time (the game eventually ended in a 1-1 draw with Pious and Mokhtarifar scoring for their respective teams). Following some paperwork issues Namjoo Motlagh temporarily left Esteghlal for Pas for the 1991 season although he returned the following year. He then played for a handful of teams, including Persepolis, before hanging up his boots.

 

Mohsen Garousi was a young forward that burst onto the scene in the late 80s, however, due to circumstances beyond his control was cast aside well before his time was up. Garousi originally suited up for Esteghlal and in his late teens commanded a starting spot. In fact, it was Garousi's individual skill in the box against Persepolis during the 1988 Tehran Club Championship, that yielded the foul and subsequent penalty (although Namjoo Motlagh's strike was saved). Military service saw him transfer to Pas where he formed a deadly strike force was Modirroosta for years to come. While he never won Tehran's League competition was Pas, however, he managed to win two national league titles in 1992 and 1993. He followed that up with a 1993 Asian Club championship gold medal, for which he scored the game winner in the Final.

Garousi was part of the futsal squad that took part in the 1992 Futsal World Cup and finished in 4th place. He also represented TM's outdoor team on many occasions. He was one of the last cuts from the 1988 Asian Championship roster and subsequently cemented his place in the team during the 1990 World Cup qualifiers. In the initial match away against Thailand, with TM leading 2-0, Garousi was subbed in and late in the game scored Iran's 3rd goal. He scored another goal in a friendly against a Kyrgyzstan selection (prior to them becoming an independent country) in a 2-1 win. He also scored in the return match in Tehran, another 3-0 win. For the home and way series against China, he was brought in as a late sub (with Bavi being preferred to partner Pious up front) with Iran trailing 1-0 and ultimately losing 2-0. For the return match in Tehran Garousi started and scored Iran's first goal in an eventual 3-2 win. Following the completion of Iran's World Cup qualifying campaign, the emergence of Marfavi, coupled with a new TM coach in place that simultaneously coached a club team and openly favored his own players, gradually pushed Garousi out of the picture for TM. He had a resurgence and made a brief return to TM in 1996 but was not able to claim a starting position and was ultimately once again dropped.

 

امروز تولد 53 سالگی مجتبی محرمی است. زنده باشی پهلوون​