|
PFDC-London: PFDC’s Salar Vafaian managed to
make a short phone interview with the uprising Iranian star of Bolton. Below
is the text transcript, translated from Farsi to English
PFDC: On Behalf of persianfootball.com, I am speaking to Andranik Teymourian,
part of Team Melli and Bolton FC. Hello Mr. Teymourian, I wanted to wish you
a belated happy New Year and also thank you for giving us the time to
interview you.
AT: I want to say hello to you and all the listeners, I’m Andranik
Teymourian and I also want to wish a happy new year.
PFDC: thanks very much, there were many questions but we selected a few to
ask you if you don’t mind.
AT: Go ahead please
PFDC: Where and when did you start playing football?
AT: I started playing at the age of 15 with Ararat youth team, I was there
for two years, then I joined Keshavarz and played there for one season, then
I played for Esteghlal of Tehran for two seasons before moving to Oghab to
serve my army duties while playing football and I finally joined Abu Moslem
for two seasons before moving to Bolton.
PFDC: What other offers did you reject before joining Bolton, we all knew
about an Arabic club?
AT: I had plenty of offers from Arabic and German teams but I personally
wanted to play in England. I love their style of play, I think in England I
can become a better player and I saw my style suiting the British style more
than anywhere else.
PFDC: Last week you scored two great goals against Doncaster; your manager
praised you after the match but at the same time added that you are not
ready to start in the premiership yet. What did you think of that?
AT: I hadn’t played for the past 5/6 months and I only got my chances in FA
cup matches. Thankfully I scored two goals and managed to play a good game;
it was a great feeling for me. 2007 has so far been a great year and it was
amazing playing against Liverpool in Anfield. It’s going to take time for me
to adapt to the English football but I think that since I moved, I have
improved drastically and I hope I’d be part of the starting 11 in the near
future.
PFDC: Do you think you can be part of the starting 11? Nolan and Campo play
in your sort of position; do you personally think you can replace either one
of them?
AT: Physically I have no problems however it is all up to our coach, but
personally I think I can even play 90 minutes in all our matches without any
problems.
PFDC: How about the language? Do you take lessons? Are you having problems?
AT: I can speak a little bit especially the football terms, but sometimes
people here speak really fast and because of their strong accent I don’t
understand much. Overall language is not a major problem and with time it
will be sorted.
PFDC: Do you enjoy living in Bolton? Do you not get bored because it’s a
very small town?
AT: I have plenty of family friends here, some of my brothers friends also
moved here. At first it was really difficult but now I’m getting used to it.
PFDC: What do you do in your spare time?
AT: I prefer staying home and watching tv and i don't go out much.
PFDC: In another interview I read that you don’t have a British licence yet,
are you planning on getting one?
AT: The club is sorting it out for me, I have to get my L licence first then
my licence and hopefully I will in the near future.
PFDC: Let’s go back to Team Melli, I don’t want to bring bitter memories
back to your mind but what was the main reason for our failure in the WC in
your opinion?
AT: I honestly think the players really did try their very best to advance
to the second round. Unfortunately our players were lacking in fitness and I
think that was really our only problem.
PFDC: What do you think of Amir Ghalenoei?
AT: He was a successful coach in Esteghlal the past few years, and IFF
officials wanted an Iranian coach for Team Melli since they believed that we
needed a coach who really knew and understood the players and I hope we
don’t face any problems in the Asian Cup.
PFDC: Hopefully. In terms of tactics and teamwork, what are the differences
between him and Branko?
AT: Branko played 4-2-3-1 but Mr. Ghalenoei does not believe in a 4 man
defence at all and he plays with 3 at the back, usually in a 3-5-2
formation. Obviously he finds this a more suitable formation.
PFDC: In the match against Liverpool it seemed that you were playing more of
an attacking role than your usual defensive midfield role. Which do you
prefer more? Defensive or attacking?
AT: In Branko’s team, I played alongside Nekounam in the defensive midfield
position but Ghalenoei prefers to play with 1 defensive midfielder so I have
a freer role, whether it’s in the centre or on the right.
PFDC: What’s your favourite position? In the centre as a defensive or
attacking midfielder or on the right?
AT: I personally prefer playing on the right wing.
PFDC: How’s your relationship with your head coach, Sam Allardyce?
AT: Well at the beginning I didn’t know his personality and it took a while
for me to get to know him but after 5 months we get along much better. He
gets along really well with most of our players and all the players like him
and respect him.
PFDC: Who do you get along with the best in the team?
AT: I get along with most of the team, but I’m slightly closer with Anelka,
Fortune, Nolan and Campo. Thankfully our players all get along, but I’m
closer with the ones I mentioned.
PFDC: Amongst the Bolton youngsters, has any player has surprised you with
their skills? Some of which who got playing time against Doncaster.
AT: Don't forget, I am one of the youngsters here too. Our younger players
all try their best to be part of the team. It all depends on them and they
have to try their best to fit into the team.
PFDC: Are you playing for the reserves at the same time as the first team?
AT: I played for the reserves for 2/3 months but since I started playing for
the first team, I haven’t played for the reserves.
PFDC: What’s the biggest difference between your training here and in Iran?
We all obviously know that the facilities are much better here in Europe but
what’s the biggest difference?
AT: The main differences here I think are the organisation of the team, the
training, the player's diet and the security.
PFDC: Thank you very much for your time and we all wish you all the best and
we hope we see you playing more and more for the first team in the near
future.
AT: I also want to thank you and your website for giving me this chance and
wish you all the best, thank you and good night.
PFDC would also like to thank Mr. Reza and Miss Kiana Gharikhani without
whom, this interview would have been impossible.
Interview and Transcript
by Salar Vafaian
|
