Ghotbi, who left Tehran for California as a teenager in 1977, was well aware what World Cup qualification meant for the soccer-crazy Iranian people. He soon learned what it meant for Ahmadinejad.

Since becoming president in 2005, Ahmadinejad has visited the national team during training on numerous occasions. His most recent visit was last weekend as the players prepared for a vital home game against Lebanon on Tuesday, which Iran won, 4-0. (If Iran beats South Korea this coming Tuesday, it guarantees a spot in the World Cup next year, and it still could get in with a tie or a loss, depending on other results next week.)

Ahmadinejad also was rumored to have been involved in the hiring and firing of Daei as coach and in pushing for certain players to be included in national team rosters.

Ghotbi’s first 2010 World Cup qualifier was a trip to North Korea on June 6, 2009. Ahmadinejad provided the presidential plane so the team could return home as fast as possible for a must-win game against United Arab Emirates in Tehran just four days later. Iran won that game, 1-0.

Iran then failed to get the necessary victory in South Korea. “I do believe the distractions played a big part in our team’s concentration, performance and result,” Ghotbi said, referring to the mass demonstrations and clashes then going on in Tehran. “Our players saw the images on CNN and BBC upon our arrival in Seoul. They were also in communication with friends and family back in Iran, and the violence in the streets consumed their thoughts.”

Ghotbi claimed no prior knowledge of the wristbands. “I still do not know what happened behind the scenes in Seoul, why and who was behind it.”

Nor, he said, did he know why the bands were removed for the second half; he was focused on tactical issues. At the time, people close to the team suggested that there had been government officials in the locker room talking to the players at halftime.