Iran
Star men
Javad Nekounam - Should Iran go well, captain Nekounam could replace ‘Oh Venerable Moustache’ Ali Daei as Iran’s all-time record cap holder. The first Iranian to play in La Liga, Nekounam was signed for over AUD$10m in 2012 to bring domestic success back to Esteghlal before returning to Osasuna.
Ashkan Dejagah - The winger was voted Fulham’s player of the year in 2014 and opposition defences in England know all about the threat he poses. Now plays for Al-Arabi in Qatar.
Sardar Azmoun - The rising star in this squad is undoubtedly the 20-year-old Azmoun. Signed by Russian giants Rubin Kazan, the young striker was subject to a bid from Arsenal earlier this year.
Coach
Carlos Queiroz - A former Manchester United defensive coach – because let’s face it, Real Madrid and Portugal fans would happily let you forget that he held their respective top jobs – Queiroz’s sides produce either ‘dour’ or ‘resolute’ performances, depending on your perspective. Kept Argentina scoreless for almost 90 minutes at the World Cup – look for a more expansive performance from Iran at this tournament in fitting with their favourites tag.
Pedigree – Team Melli have won the Cup on three occasions (’68, ’72,’76); but with the first of these coming against Myanmar, Chinese Taipei and Hong Kong, it’s a bit like New Zealand qualifying through Oceania, isn’t it. Less than the final four will be a disappointment.
Serial champions – Persepolis. Regarded as one of the most popular football clubs in Asia, since 1973 they’ve won nine titles, edging Tehran rivals Esteghlal, who have won eight.
Great sporting moments – Who will ever forget 29 November 1997? Johnny Warren’s tears, mum letting us have jaffas, and Ali Daei and his bloody impeccable moustache. With Australia’s Golden Generation just 15 minutes from ending its World Cup wilderness, The Glorious Moustache threaded a ball for Khodadad Azizi to sweep past Bosnich, leaving the Australian nation, El Tel and I Told You So utterly crushed.
Distance travelled to get to Australia – 12,500km.
What would they be doing if not playing football? Fanning themselves in caravansarai or khans (open courtyards for rest, shelter and trade) along the Royal Road. Built by the great Persian leader Darius the Great in the fifth century BC, this amazing thoroughfare once stretched from Iran all the way across to Turkey.
Random fact – Iran are the current AFC beach soccer champions; they defeated Japan in the final, who in turn knocked out David Zdrilic’s Australia in the semis.
Random Australian connection – Don’t make me keep talking about it.
United Arab Emirates
Star men
Ali Mabkhout - With two impressive young strikers, look for the UAE to pose headaches for opposition defences. Mabkhout picked up the golden boot award at the 2014 Gulf Cup, including the winner in the third place playoff.
Omar Abdulrahman - Meanwhile Abdulrahman was voted most valuable player when the UAE lifted the trophy in 2013.
Coach
Mahdi Ali - An engineer who oversaw Dubai’s parking ticketing system, as a player the midfielder was on the fringe of World Cup winner Carlos Alberto Parreira’s national team squad. He becomes just the fourth Emirati to coach the UAE among 28 coaches over the past 40 years.
Pedigree – Runners-up in 1996 where they lost on home soil to Saudi Arabia on penalties, the UAE have only made it out of the group stage twice in eight attempts, but have won the Gulf Cup twice in 2007 and 2013. Should be competitive.
Serial champions – Al Ain. the Abu Dhabi-based side, nicknamed ‘The Boss’ have won 11 domestic titles; the last two courtesy of 53 goals in 40 games from Ghanaian striker Asamoah Gyan.
Great sporting moments – The UAE went to their first and only World Cup in 1990, with a 2-1 win over China being, remarkably, their only win during qualification. A hatful of draws proved enough, but they were handed a merciless group stage draw of Colombia, West Germany and Yugoslavia and went on to be whipping boys.
Distance travelled to get to Australia – 12,000km.
What would they be doing if not playing football? Buying other people’s football clubs – since 2008 the Abu Dhabi United Group owned by UAE deputy prime minister and royal family member Sheikh Mansour has purchased Manchester City, New York City, Melbourne City (formerly Heart) and a part-share in J-League club Yokohama F Marinos.
Random fact – Once known as the ‘The Pirate Coast’, the UAE was home to a religious sect called the Qarmatians who after sacking and desecrating Mecca in the 10th century – endearing themselves to the entire Muslim world – saw their society disintegrate and were reduced to piracy.
Random Australian connection – The UAE’s most profound influence on football in Australia came with the purchasing of Melbourne Heart. This was followed by the arrival of David Villa, Damien Duff, Robert Koren and Connor Chapman.
Qatar
Star man
Khalfan Ibrahim - Gone are the days when Qatar had to ‘naturalise’ Brazilian strikers to win games, this squad boasts a majority of Qatari-born players (except those from Senegal, Algeria, France, Kuwait, Sudan, Bahrain, Ghana and Democratic Republic of Congo), and the pick of these is Ibrahim. They said of Jay-Jay Okocha that he was so good they named him twice – K3’s full name is Khalfan Ibrahim Khalfan Al Khalfan.
Coach
Djamel Belmadi - A French-born Algerian, Belmadi had a relatively successful playing career with teams such as Marseille and Southampton, but is a comparative tyro as a coach with one Qatari domestic title to his name.
Pedigree – Having failed to win a game at the Asian Cup between 1992 and 2007, Qatar made the quarter-finals in 2011, losing to eventual winners Japan. They’ve never qualified for a World Cup, but should make an appearance in the 2022 tournament, which they are still widely expected to host.
Serial champions – With 13 championships, Doha-based Al-Sadd are the domestic team to beat. With the entire national team squad playing in the Qatar Stars League, Al-Sadd is the best represented, with seven players.
Great sporting moments – “The winner to organise the 2022 Fifa World Cup is … Qatar”. My lawyers have advised me to leave it at this.
Distance travelled to get to Australia – 12,000kms.
What would they be doing if not playing football? Hitting the karak tea; a strong milky tea, infused with cardamom and ginger, it’s a hit with locals and visitors alike and goes down a treat with a cheeky chapatti or two.
Random fact – Qatar have lost only one of 18 international fixtures played over the last year. Sure, this included matches against Indonesia, Lebanon and Yemen, but they’ve also beaten Australia, Uzbekistan and Saudi Arabia twice.
Random Australian connection – Qatar didn’t have it all its own way in the 2022 World Cup bid, no siree. Plucky Australia picked up one of the initial twenty-two votes – not a bad return for the $46m outlay.
Bahrain
Star men
Mohamed Salmeen - He’s the captain, he wears the number 10, and if that isn’t enough, his dad was one of Bahrain’s greatest ever players. A cultured ball-player with almost 100 caps, it’s claimed his suspension for the second leg against Trinidad in 2005 almost single-handedly cost his country a debut World Cup appearance.
Coach
Marjan Eid - The 35-year-old former assistant was thrown the reins after the vastly experienced Adnan Hamad was sacked just three months after his appointment. Bahrain performed poorly at the 2014 Gulf Cup, knocked out in the group stages.
Pedigree – Semi-finalists in 2004, Bahrain failed to progress from the group stage on their three other appearances.
Serial champions – Al-Muharraq SC are 32-times Bahraini Premier League champions – not bad given there’s only been 58 seasons played. Having won 10 of the first 11 championships the silverware has slowed more recently, with only one win over the past five seasons.
Great sporting moments – Bahrain were the surprise package of the 2004 Asian Cup, pushing eventual winners Japan to extra time during the semi-final, before Keiji Tamada put the Blue Samurai through. Midfielder Talal Yousef and tournament golden boot winner A’ala Hubail were picked in the all-star team, and only the mercurial Ali Daei kept the Bahrainis off the podium.
Distance travelled to get to Australia – 12,500km.
What would they be doing if not playing football? Sitting in jail - 2004 Asian Cup golden boot winner A’ala Hubail was arrested in 2011 alongside his brother and fellow national team player Ali Saeed for alleged involvement in anti-government protests as part of the Arab Spring uprisings. The national heroes were repeatedly tortured, sentenced to two years’ jail but later released.
Random fact - Bahrain have played out seven 0-0 draws in 2014 – don’t expect fireworks.
Random Australian connection - Sayed Mohamed Adnan (also detained during the uprisings) was the first Bahraini to play in the A-League. He was part of the championship-winning 2011-12 team and Sydney FC fans might remember a peach of a free-kick he scored against the Sky Blues to give the Roar a last-gasp win.
