The mark of a great man is how he faces adversity, deals with it and comes up a winner.
We have many who fell by the way side when attacked with such ferocity that Ali Daei was. But we know the nature of him and his steel will keep him from crumbling and forces him to withstand and then defeat his foe.
Ali Daei is a proud man. He has reason to be proud.
I am not going to rehash the already threaded path of his past glories and honors.
I am going to speak about how a man, great or not, would like to finish that glorious phase and begin a new phase of life.
No-one would like to finish such a stellar and dynamic career as a football player with calls for retirement and resignation by others.
Daei is no exception.
Any player needs to see his efforts and exploits appreciated and honored at the time of him hanging up his boots. ANY player, no matter how insignificant his deeds and conquests.
Now, put yourself in Ali Daei’s shoes. The player who had effectively put IRAN on the world’s footballing map. Who introduced our football to the rest of the world. Given his accomplishments, it is but natural for him to want a fitting end to his footballing career as a player.
But he was denied of this. Many people are responsible for this.
He, himself is not bereft of responsibility. But such matters needed to be handled with care and intelligence which was absent.
I can understand Daei’s ambition to end his career after a high such as a World Cup appearance , and maybe a goal, which would be any player’s dream. So he bore the catcalls. He endured the snide remarks . And in return, he trained and kept himself in shape for his “ideal” finish.
Branko, Iran’s coach, due to his insecurities and short-sightedness, insisted on playing Daei for any and all games, be it a competitive one, or an insignificant friendly against weak oppositions! This insistence, coupled with the fact that rarely did Branko sub Daei out, even in those meaningless games, to allow other players be tested and subsequently, reduce the mounting media and fan pressure on the aging Daei, made matters worse and incited fans' ire even more than before.
Persistence with this irrationality resulted in multitude of problems at the most inopportune of times; the World Cup games! Without going through the other aspects of this terrible decision-making, we recall Daei’s sub-par performances that didn’t help things at all.
On his return to Iran, he was greeted with even more animosity and aggression, not to mention the ridicule and finger-pointing by fans who absurdly blamed the World Cup fiasco on Daei! Yes, we are that petty and fickle, I’m afraid!
Once a legendary hero to the people of Iran, he had turned to the object of hate and mock by many fans and media!
If we notice, the man was not given a chance to redeem himself and certainly not an opportunity to retire with dignity and style that befitted his years of contribution to our football.
So what does he do? What any great man does when he is cornered. He fights back.
And given his immense determination and maturity, rather than getting into petty squabbles with the media or other personalities, he does it in style and where it makes the biggest statement; on the football field.
Scoring 10 goals while frequently sitting on the bench, coaching a team, rather than playing on the pitch, at such an age, is to be admired and acknowledged. But his coup’ de tate was when he coached his team to victory over all others and claim the championship on his very first stint as a coach. Well, the final goal that sealed his claim to the throne must have been a sweet icing on the already magnificent cake and a slap in the face of all those who berated him.
THIS, provided the fitting finale’ he was always after, to end a career so stellar that is not paralleled by any other Iranian player yet. This was a dignified farewell that he deserved, where fans clamored to hug him and kiss him, to press his hands and congratulate him on his unexpected victory. Where he was hoisted over the champion players’ shoulders and hailed as their HERO.
Ali Daei didn’t ask for much and didn’t expect the world.
Ali Daei wanted to go out on a high that deservedly reflected his conquests, with dignity and while people called him a “hero”.
I am thankful to God that he got it.
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