Last year, sports events either got delayed, canceled, or were streamed online. However, football tournaments are back on track, and it’s time to pick the best footballers around the world. Iranian football is going through an exciting phase, and the country’s players are making their mark across the globe.
Nearing down the end of 2020, FOX Sports Asia announced the nominees for the Best Footballer in Asia. Among these incredible players, four Iranian players got the attention due to their impressive accomplishments. Read on as we look into how these players from Iran made their mark in the world of football.
Mehdi Taremi
Born on July 18, 1992, Mehdi Taremi is one of Iran’s leading football players. He’s the youngest of three siblings in his family. Mohammad, his elder brother, is a footballer, too. He’s a striker currently plying his trade at FC Porto in the top tier of the Portuguese league. Taremi started his career at Shahin, one of the most revered Iranian clubs. There’s been no looking back for this talented striker who made his debut for the Iranian national team in 2015. He has made 22 appearances for the national team and scored 10 goals.
Despite suffering a setback in the 2017/18 season when he was banned for four months after a dispute with Caykur Rizespor, Taremi stepped into the world of European football in 2019. Being a smart goal poacher, Taremi hit the headlines when he scored after just 63 seconds, the second fastest goal ever in the Champions League’s knockout stages. Taremi also has the distinction of being the first Iranian to score in the knockout stages of the Champion’s League.
Mehdi Taremi has burst into the scene as a prolific goal scorer and has achieved the feat of being the top scorer in the Persian Gulf Pro League twice in the 2015-16 and the 2016-17 seasons. He added another feather in his cap after he ended the 2019/20 season at the Primeira Liga as the joint top scorer while playing for Rio Ave.
Taremi has been in the news for his relationship with Sahar Ghoreishi and eventually married his sweetheart in a low-key affair. Currently playing for the top-tier Portuguese team Porto, Mehdi Taremi looks all set to make it big in the world of football.
Hossein Kanaanizadegan
Hossein Kannanizadegan, born on March 23, 1994, burst into the national football scene after being selected to represent the Iranian national team as a defender. He debuted with Persepolis in January 2011 and the local club Saipa.
Kanaani went for a stint in European football too when he joined Beira Mar, a Portuguese club on loan in the month of August in 2013. However, he returned to Iran without playing a single match owing to work permit issues.
After the 2017-18 season, Kanaani joined the Tabriz based Machine Sazi for the 2018-19 season, where he made 27 appearances and even scored a goal. Kanaani eventually returned to Persepolis on July 7, 2019, for a two-year contract. He’s currently playing for Saipa, a top Iranian football club based in Tehran.
Kanaani made his international debut for the senior Iranian team in a friendly against Uzbekistan. He has played for the national team thrice till now. On the personal front, Hossein Kannanizadegan is married to Anis Mohmedi, a social media personality herself.
Shoja' Khalilzadeh
Born on May 14, 1989, the 31-year-old Shoja' Khalilzadeh is another of Iran’s top football players who currently plays for Al Rayyan. He plays in the center-back position. His pace, smart tackles, and a great sense of positioning have earned him much admiration from his fans.
A sterling highlight of Khalilzadeh’s career remains the selection of his stunning goal scored by a scissor kick while playing for Persepolis against Al Ahli. It was picked as the AFC Champion’s League’s best goal for the year 2019. Not only this, Khalilzadeh’s goal for Persepolis, which he scored against UAE’s Sharja, was voted the 2020 Goal of the West at the 2020 AFC Champions League.
Khalilzadeh’s career started at Mes Rafsanjan, which he joined in 2008, which was followed by a stint at Mes Kerman. He had a fruitful association with Sepahan, and he helped the Isfahan-based club win the Persian Gulf League in the 2014-15 season.
Khalilzadeh signed for the Persian Pro League champions Persepolis on a contract of two years. Khalilzadeh bid adieu to Persepolis on October 25, 2020, when he signed for Al-Rayyan entering into a two-year contract with them. A regular member of the Iranian national team, Khalilzadeh is highly regarded as a brave player.
Sardar Azmoun
Born on January 1, 1995, the exceptionally talented Sardar Azmoun currently plays for Zenit Saint Petersburg. He’s also a member of the Iranian national team, where he made his debut at the age of 19 and plays as a forward. The highlight of his international career was his appearance in the FIFA World Cup of 2018.
Azmoun holds the distinction of being the second highest-paid Iranian player of all time after Alireza Jahanbakhsh. Apart from holding the record of being the youngest Iranian scorer of a goal in a Champions League game, he emerged as the highest number of goals in a single season of the UEFA Champions League with 4 goals.
Sardar made headlines at the age of 19 when the English Premier League club Arsenal made an offer worth 2 million pounds in 2014. This created a buzz in Europe, with top-tier teams like Juventus, AC Milan, Liverpool, Tottenham, and Barcelona being interested in Azmoun.
Sardar Azmoun plied his trade mostly in Russia, with the longest stint being at Rubin Kazan. In 2019, Azmoun moved to Zenit St Petersburg, where he spent the most happening years yet of his career. Here he emerged as the top scorer of the Russian Premier League in the 2019-20 season with 17 goals.
Sardar Azmoun has earned football critics' adulation for his aerial ability and the sudden bursts of acceleration coupled with creativity. These qualities drew comparisons with Zlatan Ibrahimovic and earned him the epithet Iranian Messi from the British media.
More exciting moments to witness
All these Iranian players deserve respect and appreciation for the unforgettable moments they have given to their fans. People across the world are excited to see what these players have left in store for them. If you wish to relive the best football moments captured on TV, you now have that option. Many streaming services let you watch live sports events or return to older memorable matches. If, somehow, you are unable to access such video on-demand services, try turning to a VPN for streaming. It will help you bypass regional blocks and get the first-row seat to your favorite matches featuring these amazing Iranian players.