Scuffed | USMNT, World Cup, Yanks Abroad, futbol in America - #346: Quick check-in with Arya Allahverdi of Gol Bezan

Episode Date: November 28, 2022

We talked about how Iran will set up (probably a 4-5-1), how much they will push forward, how Queiroz will likely get both Taremi and Azmoun on the field, how the flag controversy plays in the Iran locker room, and what Iranians think of Jurgen Klinsmann's comments.----Scuffed is an ad-free podcast. Support that and get exclusive episodes (more than 50 this year), plus access to the Discord including live call-in shows and round-the-clock access to other reasonable USMNT and USWNT fans online, by signing up for our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/scuffed  Skip the ads! Subscribe to Scuffed on Patreon and get all episodes ad-free, plus any bonus episodes. Patrons at $5 a month or more also get access to Clip Notes, a video of key moments on the field we discuss on the show, plus all patrons get access to our private Discord server, live call-in shows, and the full catalog of historic recaps we've made: https://www.patreon.com/scuffedAlso, check out Boots on the Ground, our USWNT-focused spinoff podcast headed up by Tara and Vince. They are cooking over there, you can listen here: https://boots-on-the-ground.simplecast.comAnd check out our MERCH, baby. We have better stuff than you might think: https://www.scuffedhq.com/store Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Welcome to the scuff podcast where we talk about U.S. soccer. This is a quick check-in with Aria Aalverdi of the Gold Bazan podcast. They have an excellent nearly two-hour episode just out yesterday. Is that right? Just yesterday, are you? Yeah, yeah. They got Heath Pierce on there, Stephen Betashore, given a lot of insight and a full breakdown of the win over Wales and then a full, almost an hour about the game against

USA tomorrow. So, Ariah, first of all, how you feeling ahead of tomorrow's game? Adam, I really appreciate you bringing you back on the podcast. It's a real pleasure. I'm looking forward to it, man. I'm looking forward to the game tomorrow. It's going to be an exciting one.

I think I said it on another podcast as saying, I'm happy that this game is meaningful. It's not one of those games where it doesn't mean anything for the standings. It actually means something now for both teams historically, because obviously Iran can get out at the group stage for the first time in their history. So, you know, it's going to be meaningful for us. And I think for US, with the performance you had against England,

if they can beat Iran, it's going to be great for them as well. So it's just going to be an amazing game. Can't wait for it. Yeah. I know, you know, one of the big takeaways from your guys' preview, I thought, was just how interesting of a tactical battle this is going to be between Burhalter and Kyrush. Can you sort of give us your sense of, like, what that, what are the, parameters of that battle between those two?

Well, it's interesting. Actually, in that episode, I asked Carlos Curious a question regarding the US Soccer Federation, because he used to work for US soccer back in the 90s where he wrote a thesis regarding getting US national team to a 2010 World Cup and being competitive nation in the world. And obviously, by then, they were a very team,

good team. He played against England and they drew 1-1, right? So he knows US soccer pretty much in and out. Obviously, it's changed a lot since then, but he knows it really. I'm sure he follows it. He's got a few of his staff working in the US, Marker, John Young. His assistant works out in California.

His goalkeeping coach previously under his tenure, Dan Gaspar works in America as well. So he has a lot of friends and coaches he knows in America. I'm sure he's, So it's going to be an interesting way. I think he will approach the game with a little bit more, you know, defensive tactic. He will try to frustrate the American team who looked, who have looked good.

I mean, yes, they've only scored, what, one goal, but they've looked good. I mean, they've looked dangerous against the English team who struggled. So I think between Greg Berhalter and Carlos Kerr, we're just going to be a battle of who gets it right on the day. You know, obviously Carlos Caros will try and. approach the game in a defensive manner and of a low block or whatever you want to call it but

Greg Bellhot, he has the pace in his team, he has the players in the wings, you know, Waya is looking very strong 1-1. So I think if there are times where Pulisic or Waya are going to isolate the fullbacks 1v1, it could be

dangerous for the Iran defense. So I'm looking forward to it. I think it's going to be a really hard fought match with again tactical details

deciding it now Wales against Wales you guys came out and I think a 4231 right is that about right 433 yeah 433 433 4241

yeah okay and then against England it was a 541 the sort of like really low at least for the first 30 minutes it was it was you know Iran doing a pretty good job of limiting what England

could do. Obviously that unraveled pretty quickly after that. But I'm curious, do you think it's going to be kind of like the 5-4-1 that we saw against England in the first half hour tomorrow? Well, the personnel will be different for sure. Inge's England, obviously, Jahan Bach started. He's suspended for this game for yellow card accumulation. So a few players are missing. Guys like Ali Karimi, who played in that game, he could start depending on if there's any injuries in midfield but I think the personnel will be closer

to the Wales game you know again barring everyone's fit and I think yeah I think a 433 is likely to be the way it goes I just think that the way we shape up could be more of a 4-5-1

you know more bodies in midfield just to kind of because I think the US midfield is brilliant I think they've got a great midfield you know with the physicality Musa McKinney and Adams have you need to make sure you have that midfield superiority numerically. So I think that's what Cairo should be looking for in this game.

So I think he will set up his team to cause kind of two V1s in the wide areas, and also in the middle of the park. So I think it's going to be, again, it's going to be one that if Iran do create any chances, they will have to take it. You know, it's not going to be a chance, a game where you're going to have many chances. I think Iran is going to have very few or far between. We're on the US should be on the front foot, but I think there will be times where also Iran will take control of the game as well.

Yeah, that's, I mean, I think we talked about this the other time we recorded together, but that has been the most difficult thing for the US is breaking down a low block, breaking down a resolute, committed defense, and it sounds like that's exactly what they're going to be up against tomorrow. Yeah, I think, yeah, I think, again, knowing Carlos Keros, you know, I was a little bit surprised with the approach against Wales. I just felt like maybe he felt there was a game to be won there. The Welsh team didn't look particularly strong against the US,

particularly in the first half. I thought the US were all over them. and then against us we did sit back a little bit in the first half we did kind of try to contain it but as soon as we saw especially at the start the second half that they were not really the same team that we thought they were going to be that Iran just took over the game completely and made it pretty easy for them to start breaking them down and towards the end of the game we scored two goals with the US team

it's not going to be that way I think the US defence is looked good I don't know if personnel wise, like Zimmerman and Rie, maybe not to the standard view the US would like it to have, but they're doing really well. As a partnership, they look really good together. So I think it's not going to be easy for a run to score goals against the US team, but I think the personnel we have up front,

Tarami and Sarah Osmond, who looked very good against Welsh team, they have to be on their peas and queues. And I'm looking forward to see how they get on. Can Kyrush start both Taremi and Asmoun if you're going to do a 451 or a 541? I mean, can one of those two sit in that midfield bank? So Tariami tends to play as a left winger or a left midfielder for the Iran. Whenever Sardh, Osmond is playing, especially under Carl's Kairos.

They don't normally play as a front two pairing. They did do in qualification under the previous coach. But under Keros, he tends to play Tari Muzh. me on the left-hand side, coming as an inside forward to help out with Osmond in link-up, link-up play. The other winger, Golizade will probably play more towards a touchline and be a natural winner coming

inside. Which one is the other one? He used to me, Hollisade. Golizade, yeah, Ali-Holizade, yeah, Ali-Ozade, who played on the right wing against Wales. He could probably be that natural. Yeah, yeah, left-footed strike. And, you know, he's got that in his locker. So he'll probably stay on the right wing.

I think Tarami will Well, you can actually, even in the Wales game, although he was, he started in the left wing, he was pretty much playing as a second striker, if not a striker at times. So, yeah,

they can play together. Okay. So you think, let me just try to pin you down here. You think probably a four or five one? Yeah, I think we'll play a four or five one in defensive phase,

four three three when it gets the attacking phase. So, you know, three bodies in midfield, two out wide, one lone striker. but it's quite a flexible formation I think again Tarami comes inside quite a lot so that allows the feelback to get

to get either need to stay back because there's too much space there or the other feelback can get forward the right back can get forward to balance it out so it is quite a flexible formation but that's mainly in the attacking phase in the defensive phase it's quite rigid he wants his team to know the roles

to know where they're supposed to be not working within outside of their zones that he's assigned to each player he wants them to be again familiar with what the scouting and the tactics were

before the game so for example the fillback are supposed to mark Pulisic he has to do that the field game he can't be getting forward and then losing his position and then you know

potentially giving up space you know once he does that yes to get so i think he will ensure his players are well drilled and understand their responsibilities okay well there's been i know you don't love talking about politics but i've got to ask you about these two couple of things off the field um the one is the the way someone at u.s soccer we don't know we still don't know who uh chose to remove the islamic or the the ala emblem from the iran flag I'm not asking you to give like a full accounting of that whole situation but like how does that likely play in the locker room for Iran?

Is that something that's going to make everybody angry? They're going to put it up on the bulletin board. What's what's the deal? Well, it's interesting because they did it and I actually saw it like as soon as they did it. I was on my Twitter account. I just saw it like pop up. I was like, is that not just like a regular fly? Like with no nothing else?

I was like, that's interesting. So I saw it and then I sent it to our group chat and they're like, yeah, that's, they've taken it out. And then obviously the day after the Iran Federation, I think they post like a statement on their Instagram stories saying like, we've complained to FIFA because they've like violated some kind of FIFA statute because it's not the actual flag. like they've not properly put the flag so then they complained and then they actually changed the soccer federation of the US they changed it

they deleted it so yes potentially like the whether it's a media officer of the national team of Iran or the people in the federation of Iran they might want to use that as motivation like oh look these guys

are trying to I don't know cause us like a bit of a circus on social media, so let's try and show them on the pitch, all these kind of things, you know. It adds more fuel to the game, I think, doesn't it? That day, that day, I think from an external perspective,

having the two federations go at each other as well, it kind of causes a bit of that. Personally speaking, I can see why the US Soccer Federation choose to do that. I think it may have been because related to the protests,

related to there are many people in going to the stadiums in Qatar with the pre-revolution flags. It's called the sheer horse sheet flag or the translation as the lion and the sun flag. There's people going to those stadiums

and their flags are being taken off them for taking that in the stadium. And it could be because of that because they want to show support to the people protesting for that reason. So again... So I guess it's a gesture that's not rejected by all Iranians?

Absolutely not. No, absolutely not. Absolutely not. No, absolutely not rejected by it. All Iranians, not at all. It's not that way. It's just I feel like the Federation obviously felt like they were in a position

where they could complain about it because there was a statute according to them in FIFA. And they did so. And they got what they wanted, didn't they? They changed it. So that happened. Okay. What about the other thing is Yirgen Klinzman's comments about Iranian culture.

And I guess it's up for a debate whether he's talking about the actual culture or the soccer culture. But at a minimum, his comments were insensitive. And I wonder how much that's going to, how much do will the team and the players sort of connect what Klinzman said to the United States of America since he lives here and he has coached the U.S. team. Um, look, the thing is like, this, this has become quite big news now because he's tried to say that Iranians are, are saying that because I'm the ex-US coach and, you know, they're just going to be mad because, you know, we're playing Iran are playing against the US on Tuesday. So, so whatever I say, it's going to get blown out of proportion. But that's not the case because what he said isn't so much to do with Iranian people. people as a whole. It is still to do. He keeps saying on his, like on his interviews and even on even on his Twitter account that, you know, it was taking out a footballing context. It wasn't. People are understanding that what he said is in a footballing context. Yes, you said that, um, you know, the Iranian players cheer and, and shout very hotly loudly on this on the sidelines. They get

in the referee's ear and the fourth official's ear. and they make it a big circus on the pitch. And he said that that's their culture, right? It could be right. But it's not true, but it's not true, because ultimately, this stuff happens in every game. Every team will do that. So how can it just be our culture?

Do you know what I mean? That's football's culture. It's not just Iran football culture. Do you know what I mean? So the issue is the way he put it. He put it as if only the Iran team are known for doing that. It's like, no, it's not true. Other teams do it as well.

So it's really the culture of all football. Even the German national team will do that. Even the US national team will do that if they win a game or if it's a very important game because this Wales game was a must win for us, right? Because we had to win it. So of course they're going to be very active on us on the sidelines. Of course they're going to do that.

Even to the point where the presenter of the show on BBC, Gabby Logan was implying that, you know there was gamesmanship or she put it like however you however you want to interpret it at home or i think she was trying to say iranian players were cheating and being overly aggressive and but like the wales goalkeeper took the taramese head off so it's like it's like i don't know how you can justify your argument when that's happened um and you know again you're you're putting it in a in a bracket like that's an iranian thing but it is actually actually a football thing. It's all of football. It's not just one country's football. And I think

the issue of Klinsman is he keeps trying to put in the kind of way of saying, oh, we're offended because of a nation. We're not. We're offended as football fans. Is actually what the reality is. I see. Yeah. I mean, it's totally, I mean, has he ever watched the Italian national team? Sure. Like, has he ever watched? He's been in Conccaf. It's, he's, he's been in Concaf. It's pretty wild over here too. So yeah. All right. Hopefully it doesn't motivate your players too much.

The flag stuff and the Cleanzman stuff. But I hope it's a great game. Anything else on your mind before I let you go? No, I think it's going to be a great game. I'm really looking forward to it. It's been an interesting group. It has. It has been a really interesting group.

I think it's really expectation. because obviously when the group was drawn, what was it, almost six months ago now, we were automatically going a bit crazy because we're like, well, this is going to be a very political in quotation marks group. It's going to be a very feisty group for the same reasons that Clemsman is trying to say. And it's hit that expectation from a footballing and non-footballing perspective, you know, that all these things have happened the last couple of days and they've caused a big, uh, it's been like free marketing for the game, right? It's like free, free, uh, marketing and it's getting a lot of eyes on it. And, um, I'm just looking forward to the match.

One last thing. You said, you said on your podcast that there's, they're going to find, Iran is going to find times to get forward. They're going to, they're going to try to score. Um, how much, I mean, when are they going to do that? How, how much are they going to do that? Because as you know, they can probably go through to the round of 16 with a draw. Yeah. No, I think Carlos Kiroche as a coach will never make his team play a certain way when he knows for a fact that a draw would be enough, right? Of course, if Wales beat England, then we won't go through, right?

Wales will go through it. But when he knows in the back of his mind that the likelihoodness is England's going to probably beat Wales or at least got a draw against them. And all we need is a draw. He's going to set us team up in a way where it doesn't threaten his goal too much and he puts just enough attacking emphasis on the game where there are still some chances created. I think there will be times in the game where we will have a bit of possession and we might

give away the ball and be caught in the counterattack. That will happen, sure. But at the same time, I don't think it's going to be a. a regular occurrence in the game. I think considering the way we played against England, especially that will be in the back of his mind. You know, we have to be a little bit more wary

of the potential pace of the American front line. So again, I do expect a defensive approach, but you never know. With Tarami's attacking prowess and he's shown it in Europe in Champions League, regular top goal scorer in Portugal,

any chance that's given to him he's taking it he scored two goals against England he got an assist against Wales he's looking in good form so I think anything that happens around Tarami is going to be dangerous for them okay hey thanks for doing this I appreciate you

you know good luck to a certain extent tomorrow yeah I appreciate it I don't even know how to normally like say it like can we say good luck to each other do we not say good luck it's just like you know what I'll just end it Like, it's just like, we'll see it tomorrow if you guys get through or if you get through. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's the best way to do it. All right, all the best to you are yeah.

We'll see you.