I caught up with Farhad Andalibi for Part 2 of the series. Farhad is the webmaster of Iranian Football website IranGoals.com. Almost 18 years old, football captivated Farhad ever since he was a kid. He started following Team Melli from the Asian Cup held in 1996. A passionate Iranian fan if you ever will find one, I thank Farhad for agreeing to this interview.

Tell us a bit about the Road to the World Cup � the qualification, and the emotions the fans went through at the time.

We were all confident that we would qualify to the World Cup this time, but there were some unforgettable moments indeed. The 0-1 loss to Jordan at home was a shocking moment for all of us. We were playing much better than Jordan but one chance was enough for them while we missed more than 10 excellent chances.

But we still had another 90 minutes to go in Amman. One unforgettable thing about this match was that Vahid Hashemian came back again to play for Team Melli after refusing to play for a long time. Thanks to Ali Daei and AliReza Vahedi-Nikbakht who both scored a goal we won this match.

The most shocking and emotional moment was definetely the match against Qatar. After just eight minutes Vahid Hashemian scored the first goal of the match and we all were waiting for he second goal, but instead Qatar scored the equalizer. Again in the second half, Iran started with many goal scoring chances but all chances were wasted by Team Melli. Then only fifteen minutes from the end Yahya Golmohammadi scored an own goal. It wasn’t his fault but everyone was disappointed.

Even the commentator of Tapesh TV thought our WC dreams were over. But only 3 minutes later Borhani finished a beautiful pass of Kaebi and the game was level again. Finally in the last minute of the game we got what we deserved. Vahid Hashemian scored the third goal for Iran and we were qualified to the second round…

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There are 56 days to go for the Fifa World Cup to start. In these 56 days, I aim to interview 32 fans for the 32 participating nations to get their perspectives. Impossible? Or at least very difficult to achieve this?

Where there is a will, there is a way! I ensue, thus, on an exciting journey. I hope you can enjoy the ride with me. Presenting Part 1 of the series.

I caught up with Benjamin, popularly known as Bense to get the German view. Bense writes in the World Cup Blog for Germany. He is 24 years old and is studying Economics in the University of Dortmund. A Mannschaft fan ever since 1990, Bense is going to volunteer both for the World Cup and his city during the World Cup. I thank Bense for agreeing for this interview.

What challenges has Germany as a country faced and how has it overcome them looking back as the World Cup is nearly upon us?

They came back after the disastrous Euro in 2000, Völler formed a younger team. After Euro 2004, Klinsmann took over and did the exact same thing, but for real. He keeps the younger players in the squad that might still have 10 more brilliant years with the team. That concerned quite a lot of people, because there is a lack of efficiency and veteran players. And of course, Germany couldn’t play any “competitive” games except for Confederations Cup, because they didn’t have to qualify.

What style of football does the national team play?

I’d say more technically skilled than before. As always, physical, cautious, basing on a good collective and team spirit.

What do you think your country’s prospects are?

It’s gonna be hard in the round of the last 16, but if we manage to win against England or Sweden, we’re gonna march on.

Who will be the most important player for your country?

The most important player right now is Ballack. He ain’t a leader but with his qualities, he can decide a game on his own.

Which player in your country’s side would you most like to get rid of?

Bernd Schneider. Too slow. To few goal shots. Too few creativity.

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