Marked for Ehsan Cheshmi
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
The dugout6 Aug 2035
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Zob Ahan have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad6 Aug 2035
Ehsan Cheshmi breaks a bone — 16 days out
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 16 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Market6 Aug 2035
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Zob Ahan, and it is not being withdrawn.
Market6 Aug 2035
Soheil Sahraei has one foot out of the door
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Zob Ahan they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad6 Aug 2035
Ali Eslami in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Zob Ahan this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Boardroom6 Aug 2035
5 academy graduates step up at Zob Ahan
Senior shirt numbers handed to boys the coaches have known since they were twelve. Most will not make it and all of them have already done the hard part.
Squad6 Aug 2035
Words at Zob Ahan training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ashkan Rashedi 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.
Market6 Aug 2035
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Ahmad Vafaei has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Market6 Aug 2035
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Saman Beiranvand has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad30 Jul 2035
16 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Zob Ahan lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Squad30 Jul 2035
A fracture rules Ehsan Cheshmi out for 23 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Zob Ahan will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Market30 Jul 2035
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Zob Ahan people have started saying his name in the past tense.
Market30 Jul 2035
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Zob Ahan is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad30 Jul 2035
A falling-out at Zob Ahan
Ali Eslami and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad30 Jul 2035
A row about effort at Zob Ahan
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Saeed Amiri was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Transfer targets30 Jul 2035
Zob Ahan 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 dugout30 Jul 2035
Ashkan Rashedi knocks on the manager’s door
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Ashkan Rashedi trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Market30 Jul 2035
The Ali Eslami story refuses to die
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Ali Eslami signs something — a contract at Zob Ahan or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad23 Jul 2035
23 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Zob Ahan lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Squad23 Jul 2035
30 days out for Ehsan Cheshmi after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Zob Ahan will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Market23 Jul 2035
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Zob Ahan is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Market23 Jul 2035
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Zob Ahan people have started saying his name in the past tense.
Market23 Jul 2035
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Zob Ahan, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad23 Jul 2035
Words exchanged at Zob Ahan
Ali Eslami 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.
Squad23 Jul 2035
Saeed Amiri falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout23 Jul 2035
“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.
The dugout23 Jul 2035
Ashkan Rashedi knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Zob Ahan, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad16 Jul 2035
30 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Zob Ahan lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Market16 Jul 2035
Zob Ahan say no — this time
The offer from Siah Jamegan for Behnam Teymourian was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
Squad16 Jul 2035
Ehsan Cheshmi breaks a bone — 37 days out
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 37 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Market16 Jul 2035
Only the photograph left for Karim Dejagah
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Karim Dejagah will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Zob Ahan the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Market16 Jul 2035
“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.
Squad16 Jul 2035
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Zob Ahan this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad16 Jul 2035
Ashkan Rashedi falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Market16 Jul 2035
The phone has started ringing about Ehsan Ghoddos again, and this time the name on the line is Naft Tehran. Zob Ahan are listening politely and promising nothing.
The dugout16 Jul 2035
The manager makes an example of Ehsan Taremi
“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.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad9 Jul 2035
Mani Sharifnejad damages knee ligaments — 37 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 37 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Squad9 Jul 2035
A fracture rules Ehsan Cheshmi out for 44 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Zob Ahan will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Market9 Jul 2035
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Zob Ahan is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Market9 Jul 2035
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Gostaresh Foulad waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Zob Ahan is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
Market9 Jul 2035
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Zob Ahan, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad9 Jul 2035
Majid Dejagah was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad9 Jul 2035
Words at Zob Ahan training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ashkan Rashedi 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 dugout9 Jul 2035
Kaveh Torabi gets it from the manager
“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.
Market9 Jul 2035
“We are a long way apart, and pretending otherwise helps nobody.” Neither side is close, and the calendar is not on the club's side.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad2 Jul 2035
44 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Zob Ahan lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Squad2 Jul 2035
A fracture rules Ehsan Cheshmi out for 51 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Zob Ahan will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Market2 Jul 2035
Only the photograph left for Soheil Sahraei
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Soheil Sahraei will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Zob Ahan the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Market2 Jul 2035
Add another name to the list: Sepahan have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Behnam Teymourian. The answer from Zob Ahan has not changed — yet.
Market2 Jul 2035
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Squad2 Jul 2035
A falling-out at Zob Ahan
Ali Eslami and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad2 Jul 2035
A row about effort at Zob Ahan
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Saeed Amiri was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Transfer targets2 Jul 2035
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Esteghlal have kept their man, and Zob Ahan go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Market2 Jul 2035
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Ahmad Hajsafi has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad25 Jun 2035
51 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Zob Ahan lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Squad25 Jun 2035
58 days out for Ehsan Cheshmi after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Zob Ahan will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Market25 Jun 2035
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Zob Ahan is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Market25 Jun 2035
Taha Alemi hands in a written request
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Zob Ahan can pretend not to have heard.
Transfer targets25 Jun 2035
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Zob Ahan have done the hard part with Persepolis, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
Squad25 Jun 2035
Words exchanged at Zob Ahan
Ali Eslami 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.
Squad25 Jun 2035
Words at Zob Ahan training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ashkan Rashedi 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 dugout25 Jun 2035
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Soheil Sahraei, and the manager let it.
The dugout25 Jun 2035
Saeed Amiri asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad18 Jun 2035
Mani Sharifnejad damages knee ligaments — 58 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 58 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Squad18 Jun 2035
65 days out for Ehsan Cheshmi after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Zob Ahan will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Market18 Jun 2035
Karim Dejagah has one foot out of the door
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Zob Ahan they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Market18 Jun 2035
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Zob Ahan can pretend not to have heard.
Transfer targets18 Jun 2035
The offer went to Persepolis 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.
Boardroom18 Jun 2035
There is no worse way to lose a footballer. Soheil Sahraei has pre-agreed a move away, which means every appearance between now and June is made by a man the club can no longer sell, and somebody upstairs will be asked why the contract was allowed to get here.
Squad18 Jun 2035
Ali Eslami was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Transfer targets18 Jun 2035
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Squad18 Jun 2035
Footballers are asked about their boyhood club so often that nobody listens to the answer. Leonardo Farah Shahin has just signed for Zob Ahan, and for once the answer mattered.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad11 Jun 2035
Mani Sharifnejad damages knee ligaments — 65 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 65 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Squad11 Jun 2035
A fracture rules Ehsan Cheshmi out for 72 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Zob Ahan will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Market11 Jun 2035
Zob Ahan say no — this time
The offer from Tractor for Behnam Teymourian was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
Market11 Jun 2035
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Zob Ahan have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Market11 Jun 2035
Kaveh Torabi has one foot out of the door
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Zob Ahan they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad11 Jun 2035
Ali Eslami in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Zob Ahan this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market11 Jun 2035
Nicolás Afonso has left for Persepolis in a $380.0K deal. The accountants are pleased; the supporters are less certain.
Squad11 Jun 2035
A row about effort at Zob Ahan
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Behnam Teymourian was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout11 Jun 2035
The manager makes an example of Kaveh Torabi
“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.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad4 Jun 2035
Mani Sharifnejad damages knee ligaments — 72 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 72 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Boardroom4 Jun 2035
Qualification is done, and next season the floodlights come on for something bigger. A stage for the players, oxygen for the accounts and a passport for everybody else.
Squad4 Jun 2035
79 days out for Ehsan Cheshmi after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Zob Ahan will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Squad4 Jun 2035
The kind of year that ends with a name being read out in a hall. Zob Ahan had the benefit of it every week and now have the problem of everybody else knowing.
Market4 Jun 2035
The interest is real enough to have reached print. Zob Ahan have said nothing, which in a transfer window is its own kind of answer.
Market4 Jun 2035
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Zob Ahan can pretend not to have heard.
Squad4 Jun 2035
A muscle injury sidelines Mehdi Azmoun for 17 days
Nobody makes a documentary about a hamstring and everybody in the game fears one. Zob Ahan will be careful with the return date, because the second one is always worse than the first.
Transfer targets4 Jun 2035
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Esteghlal have kept their man, and Zob Ahan go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
The dugout4 Jun 2035
“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.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad28 May 2035
Ehsan Cheshmi breaks a bone — 86 days out
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 86 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Market28 May 2035
Only the photograph left for Saeed Amiri
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Saeed Amiri will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Zob Ahan the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad28 May 2035
A falling-out at Zob Ahan
Majid Dejagah and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout28 May 2035
This is not rotation. Nicolás Afonso has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at Zob Ahan is pretending otherwise.
Squad28 May 2035
A row about effort at Zob Ahan
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Behnam Teymourian was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Squad28 May 2035
The medical room confirms 16 days on the sidelines for Ashkan Torabi, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
The dugout28 May 2035
“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.
The dugout28 May 2035
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
The dugout28 May 2035
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.