Marked for Karim Torabi
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings2 Nov 2026
Successful dribbles: 24. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.
The terraces2 Nov 2026
At 22 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.
Match31 Oct 2026
Three points for Padideh, 1‑0 the final word against Sepahan in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Boardroom2 Nov 2026
$3.8M on the table at Padideh
The board have answered with money instead of encouragement, which is the only answer a manager ever wants. Spending it well is now entirely his problem.
Player ratings2 Nov 2026
Marked 7.60 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, Padideh had the best player on the pitch.
Squad2 Nov 2026
Karim Torabi is no longer first choice
The manager has re-ordered his thinking and Karim Torabi has come out of it lower. He will be told it is temporary, and the players who have heard that before will avoid his eye.
Squad2 Nov 2026
A place in the month's best eleven for Saeid Hosseini
Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Saeid Hosseini has come out of that comparison in the side, and Padideh have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
“We earned that. I asked them for a reaction and I got one, and now I want the same again on Saturday.” Shahriar Hajsafi on a 1‑0 afternoon that pleased him more than he was prepared to show.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Karim Torabi, and the manager let it.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Steady
The dugout26 Oct 2026
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Padideh may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Player ratings26 Oct 2026
Successful dribbles: 22. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.
Squad26 Oct 2026
Words at Padideh training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Amir Rezaeian is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Match24 Oct 2026
Foolad made Padideh work for it, but the scoreboard read 2‑1 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Squad26 Oct 2026
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Mehdi Mohammadi commits to Padideh for another 3 years.
The dugout26 Oct 2026
“The players deserve the credit. My job was easy today.” It was not, and everybody in the room knew it; after 2‑1, Shahriar Hajsafi could afford to be generous.
The dugout26 Oct 2026
The manager makes an example of Milad Noorafkan
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Market26 Oct 2026
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Karim Moharrami signs something — a contract at Padideh or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
The dugout26 Oct 2026
The plan did not have a place for Karim Torabi
Nobody at Padideh is suggesting he is out of form. The manager simply wanted somebody with a different set of qualities for ninety specific minutes, and there is nothing a player can train to fix that.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad5 Oct 2026
There were 6 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Player ratings5 Oct 2026
Successful dribbles: 21. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Squad5 Oct 2026
Words at Padideh training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Amir Rezaeian is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Squad5 Oct 2026
Words exchanged at Padideh
Amir Mohammad Panahi and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The dugout5 Oct 2026
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Match3 Oct 2026
It needed Amir Rezaeian to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Siah Jamegan, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
The dugout5 Oct 2026
“It is not the end of the world and it is not good enough. Both of those are true.” The manager, after a 1‑1 draw, said the honest thing and then went to say it again inside.
Market5 Oct 2026
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Amir Rezaeian signs something — a contract at Padideh or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
The dugout5 Oct 2026
The shape wanted a different profile against this opponent, which is a real football answer and no comfort at all to the man it is about. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market7 Sep 2026
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Padideh can pretend not to have heard.
Boardroom7 Sep 2026
Deadline passes with 6 signed and 5 gone
That is the business done at Padideh until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.
Boardroom7 Sep 2026
The number the board signed off was not enough. It has been asked again and raised its own offer to $278.1K — a club that wants Erfan Darvishaali enough to be asked twice.
Transfer targets7 Sep 2026
Padideh asked and Sepahan said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Transfer targets7 Sep 2026
The offer went to Tractor this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
Transfer targets7 Sep 2026
Padideh offered $110.0K; Esteghlal Khuzestan said it was not close. The manager will be told the money is still there for the right player, which is what managers are told.
Market7 Sep 2026
The name of Milad Noorafkan has come up in conversations Padideh were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Words at Padideh training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Amir Rezaeian is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout7 Sep 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Karim Torabi, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market31 Aug 2026
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Market31 Aug 2026
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Boardroom31 Aug 2026
The number the board signed off was not enough. It has been asked again and raised its own offer to $111.2K — a club that wants Erfan Sazegari enough to be asked twice.
Transfer targets31 Aug 2026
The offer went to Esteghlal Khuzestan this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
Player ratings31 Aug 2026
Successful dribbles: 20. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Transfer targets31 Aug 2026
Padideh asked and Esteghlal said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
The dugout31 Aug 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Saeid Irankhah, and the manager let it.
The dugout31 Aug 2026
“A point is a point and I will take it, but we should have had all three.” Shahriar Hajsafi after the 0‑0 draw, and the sentence every manager in the country said at some stage this weekend.
Squad31 Aug 2026
The system has changed and his position has not. A footballer can improve his form; he cannot improve the manager’s formation, and that is the whole of the problem.