How the Tone of Khodadad and Nekounam Shifts Now That They Are Like the National Team

Statements by the Tractor manager and head coach after facing harsh conditions over the team's trip to Oman differed greatly from their earlier remarks about national team conditions for the trip to the United States.

The statements of the manager and head coach of Tractor after facing the difficult conditions of sending this team to Oman were very different from their previous statements regarding the conditions of the national team to travel to America.

According to ambassador Arjan; The discussion of facilities and support for Iranian football teams is not a new issue; But sometimes, with changing conditions, it is presented from a different angle.

The Iranian national football team faced a series of operational problems and travel restrictions on the way to prepare for and participate in the 2026 World Cup. The issues that started with the difficulty of issuing American visas for some managerial and executive members of the team and continued until the change of the location of the training camp and the complexity of commuting between Mexico and the United States. Following these conditions, the venue of the national team's training camp was moved from Tucson, USA to Tijuana, Mexico, which increased the distance between the residence of the national team and the stadiums hosting the matches, and the planning for the transportation and rest of the players faced more challenges.

Among other problems faced by the national team were restrictions on entry and exit from America, border formalities and security controls. Also, the necessity of moving between Mexico and the United States and returning to Mexico after the tournament made the travel conditions and time management more complicated for the technical staff and players.

Amir Ghalenoui, the head coach of Iran's national team, also protested many times about the hosting conditions and the problems faced by the national team during the World Cup.

In those days, some football figures, including Khodadad Azizi and Javad Nekonam, took a position in the critical atmosphere of those days regarding the performance of the national team and the talks of its head coach.

Now that those days have passed, the tractor's problems in traveling to Oman to meet Qatar's Shamal have once again raised the issue of travel conditions and support for Iran's representative. This is a topic that Nekonam and Azizi have talked about in the position of the manager of this team.

During the debates after the World Cup, Khodadad Azizi, in response to Amir Qalanewi's talk about the conditions of the national team, pointed to the issue of facilities and financial support and, criticizing the performance of the national team, blamed the results on the technical staff.

During the World Cup, he said: "You went from Antalya to Tijuana. With all the facilities provided by the federation and the board of directors. If they did not give you facilities in America, what does Khodadad Azizi, Javad Khabani, Adel Ferdosipour and all the critics have to do with me? We are at war with the Americans. If you want to criticize them, hold a press conference in the White House and criticize Trump, not us." Americans did not give you facilities, what does God have to do with me?

You are August. Everyone is guilty except you? How did you not have the facilities that 15 days before the World Cup, the Organization of Program and Budget gave 400 billion to the Ministry of Sports and this Ministry handed it over to the Federation. You took this money during the war and in the middle of the embargo. How are you still moaning? All of you have resumes and we are without resumes. You are all good and we are bad. You are angels and we are devils.

Make a conclusion so that we can do it. Mr. Ghalenoui was left out and did not get promoted in 48 teams. Like us and the Kiirosh team that was eliminated. So don't tell people stories. I speak football and I understand football much more than you. My record in football is clear. You want to go to Malaysia and see my picture on the board of Asian football stars.

Now let's take a look at these dear talks about the conditions of the tractor trip to Oman.

In the last practice of his team before the match against the Qatari opponent, the manager of the Tractor team said: "During the coordination meeting before the match with Shamal, I protested that it is true that America has sanctioned, but we are separate from politics. Why do we have to travel 18 hours from Tabriz to Amman? The AFC security officer, the match monitor and other officials coincidentally answered me and said that the coordination of this work should be done by the Iranian Football Federation.

Mr. Taj! It is true that we are not a special team, but we appreciate you stepping up and trying for us. If this story continues and we go around the world, we will withdraw from participating in the Asian Elite League. "

He also said during the presence of the tractor team at the Baghdad airport: last year, the tractor scored the most points in Asia, so that this year there will be no problem for the representatives of Iran. A team will go by direct flight but we cannot go. At the Baghdad airport, a dog followed our player. Mr. Dunyamali, Mr. Taj, gentlemen of the board of directors, follow up on the tractor problem. How should a player who is 18 hours away go and play?

On the other hand, Javad Nekonam, who addressed Ghalenoui during the World Cup, said: Don't make excuses. Iraq became the champion of Asia in war conditions.

At the press conference before the game against Shamal, he criticized this situation and said after the goalless draw in this game: Although we were on the road for 18 hours or maybe more, we played a very good game. I declare my protest once again. If these conditions continue, I have told the club officials that we will participate in next season's competitions with the Omid team and go to the field only to play games. The Football Federation does not care about our team; It is as if we represent Iran's football. The events that happen in football are influential in determining the results. Unfortunately, we do not have a sponsor, and if the next flight is the same, we will come with Team Omid.

The head coach of Tractor went on to criticize the conditions of hosting this match and said: "The stadium, the weather conditions, the flight and everything was in favor of the Qatari team and we were the hosts on paper. We went through difficult situations. The conditions were such that as the final minutes approached, the pressure caused by the distance and the flight affected the players' bodies, and we knew that we would face problems at the end of the game. However, the team played superbly.

Referring to the results of other teams, Nekunam said: We fought for the name of Iran. We defend the name of Iran and the Football Federation and the Ministry of Sports should help. We can only go so far without support and the current situation is not ideal. One team travels directly and another team has to travel 18 hours. I don't want to become enemies at the party, but inside many people don't want to draw conclusions.

Putting these statements together puts an important question in front of Iranian football: When should the conditions of the facilities and preparation of the teams be taken into consideration and how should it be judged about its effect on the results?

During the days of the World Cup, Khodadad Azizi asked Ghalenoui to be accountable for the performance of the national team instead of emphasizing the problems.

Now, however, in the case of the tractor, the main issue from Nekonam and Azizi's point of view is the difficulty of travel, the inappropriate conditions of preparation and the need to support Iran's representative in the Asian Games. Issues that they believe can affect the physical strength of the players and the outcome of the match.

The point to consider in this is the difference in tone and perspective of people when faced with similar situations; When talking about the national team and Amir Qalanewi's criticisms, Khodadad Azizi and Javad Nekonam emphasized the necessity of a conclusion despite the facilities and support provided, but now that the discussion has reached the problems of the tractor and the long journey of this team, the issue of support, preparation conditions and the effect of facilities on the outcome of the match has been highlighted in his and Javad Nekonam's statements.

It seems that judging football problems, when people themselves are in a situation of facing it, can be accompanied by a different perspective; An issue that reminds us of the need to deal equally with national and club football issues.