Iran is one of the countries that participated in the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Team Melli only tallied one point out of three games against Nigeria, Argentina and Bosnia. This made many football analysts criticize Carlos Queiroz for the poor performance of Team Melli in this tournament.
The contract of Carlos Queiroz with the Iranian Football Federation expired after the World Cup, however, the two sides have yet to reach an agreement over the future of the Portuguese football manager in Iran.
Amir Ghalenoei is believed to be one of the best local coaches in Iran. He has managed to win the IPL title multiple times during his tenure at Esteghlal and Sepahan football clubs. In 2007, he also led Team Melli for a short period of time.
According to reports published by local newspapers, Ghalenoei is rumored to be the next Iran’s coach. However, he says he is not interested in taking this job.
“I have yet to receive any call from the federation in this regard. However, I’m currently serving at Esteghlal and I cannot terminate my contract with this club,” Ghalenoei said in an interview with Kayhan Varzeshi newspaper.
The Esteghlal coach believes that Carlos Queiroz should renew his contract with Iran. “He is a professional football manager and we need to take advantage of his knowledge in this field. It’s been about three years that he has managed Team Melli, so he knows the team very well. I’m sure he will be able to help Iran win the Asian Cup in the upcoming tournament,”
Amir Ghalenoei went on to say that Iranian football coaches have the abilities to manage Team Melli, but they are better to stay away from the Iranian national football team at this time. “There are only three months left to the Asian Cup. It would be a risky job for local coaches to accept this job.”