Daei urges media to lay off his team

Daei is a playing legend in Iran having scored a world record 109 international goals in 148 matches but has come under fire towards the end of his career. In his final year as a player, which ended with the 2007 Asian Cup, he received a hail of criticism from the Iranian media, who insisted he was too old to lead the line.

He is now under even more scrutiny in one of the most high profile jobs in Iran outside of the government.

"The Iranian football fans are very passionate about their team, and so are the media," Daei told Reuters after Friday's draw for the final round of Asia's World Cup qualifiers. "There is always pressure on us, especially from the media, which can be very critical. If (the media) in Iran can lay off a bit and give us a chance, it will make it easier for us. "But when you are in Iran football, you know that you will be criticised. Hopefully we can produce the results and get them on our side."

Daei's coaching report card reads well so far after he steered Iran to the final round of qualifying for South Africa 2010.

In round three, after a sluggish start, they finished top of Group Five with three wins and three draws, four points ahead of the United Arab Emirates.

Before Daei took over, Iran went almost a year without a competitive win and did not score in six successive matches. They face UAE again in the fourth round along with other Group B opponents South Korea, Saudi Arabia and North Korea.

Kamran Ahmadpour, a journalist with Navad, a sports daily, said Iran's vociferous soccer media is an anomaly in a country that exercises strict controls on the press. "In politics, the media can't write what they want. But when it comes to football, there is no red line," Ahampour told Reuters. "The only thing we don't write about is the players' private lives but anything other than that is okay. Iranians love their football and the media can be very influential. "We keep a check on soccer in the country."

The top two teams from Group B earn automatic qualification to the World Cup finals.