Top Iranian Footballers Playing in Europe

Ali Daei’s record of 109 national team goals might have been recently surpassed by the great Cristiano Ronaldo. However, that hasn’t stopped the improvement of the sport of football in that part of the world. The Cheetahs, as they’re also known, participated in the last two FIFA World Cup tournaments (2014, 2018), which was the first time the country has qualified for consecutive World Cups in its history. The Iranian national team was also the highest-ranked team in the continent from Asia from December 2014 to May 2018, which is no easy feat considering that Asian football is also home to well respected teams like Australia, Japan, and South Korea.

The Cheetahs also impressed the world at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. Despite suffering elimination from the competition in the group stages, Iran defeated Morocco, narrowly lost 1-0 to Spain, and was unlucky not to equalise with Portugal, (1-1) in their final group game. The improvement of the Iranian national team over the last decade can be attributed to several factors, but none as important as the increase in the number of Iranian footballers plying their trade in Europe. From the dubbed “Iranian Messi” to a former leading scorer in the Dutch league, Iran has some exciting players to keep an eye on in the major leagues across Europe. Here are some of those players.

Saman Ghoddos (Brentford FC)

Born in Malmo, Sweden on September 6 1993 to Iranian parents, Saman Ghoddos began his career playing for the BK Vangen youth team at the young age of 7. His first taste of professional football was with Limhamn Bunkeflo, where he made his debut just before he turned 18 back in 2011. Ghoddos moved to Trelleborg in 2013, where he spent one season before joining Syrianska in 2014, spending two years before joining Ostersund in 2016. It was with Ostersund that he started to make a name for himself as a prolific attacking player, scoring 10 league goals including the club’s first-ever goal in the top flight of Swedish club football.

The following season with Ostersund saw Ghoddos improve his performances a lot, as he scored seven goals in the Swedish Cup, to help Ostersund reach the final along with his eight league goals. His proficiency in front of goal drew a lot of attention from some clubs in Europe, with Ajax, Hertha Berlin, and some French clubs rumored to be interested in his services. And in the summer of 2018, Ghoddos joined the French side, Amiens for a fee of €3.8 million which is the third most expensive transfer fee received by a Swedish top-flight football club. The move to France wasn’t without controversy, as Ghoddos was suspended from playing football for four months by FIFA, following a complaint by Spanish club SD Huesca that the player had signed a contract with them after their transfer agreement with Ostersund. After scoring four goals and providing another four in 27 appearances during his first season with Amiens, Ghoddos found game time difficult to come by in the 2019-20 season, playing just five games, with three of those appearances coming off the bench.

The Iranian international moved to the English club Brentford on loan in September 2020, making 43 appearances as the London club secured promotion to the Premier League for the first time in almost 75 years. Brentford made Ghoddos’ move to the club a permanent one at the start of the transfer window, with a contract that ties to The Bees until at least the summer of 2023. The transfer further establishes the club’s philosophy of player acquisition that is also popular with many sports betting sites: statistics should drive the players’ salary expectations.

On the international front, Ghoddos appeared twice for the Swedish national team before switching allegiance to Iran in 2017, making his debut for The Cheetahs in October against the Ivory Coast. Ghoddos was a part of Iran’s 23-man squad to the FIFA World Cup in Russia back in 2018 and has featured for the team 26 times.
Sardar Azmoun (Zenit St Petersburg)

Nicknamed “The Iranian Messi” for his dribbling skills and ability to pick a pass, Azmoun found his love interest in football at the age of 9 on a family trip to Turkmenistan. He began his youth career with Iranian football club Sepahan and was featured in a pre-season friendly for the club at the age of 15. Following impressive displays in the Iran youth setups, Azmoun was in high demand by some clubs both in his home country and abroad. In January 2013, he opted to join Russian club side, Rubin Kazan, at the age of 17. Azmoun made his league debut for Rubin Kazan in October 2013, scoring one and providing another coming on as a substitute in the 5-1 drubbing of Anzhi Makhachkala.

Sardar Azmoun caught the eye of top European clubs in the summer of 2014, with Premier League side Arsenal seeing their £2 million bid for the Iranian sensation rejected that summer. After a two-year loan spell with FC Rostov, Azmoun returned to Rubin Kazan in June 2017 before signing a three-and-a-half-year deal with Zenit St Petersburg in February 2019. He was close to moving to the French side Olympique Lyonnais on the deadline day of the just concluded transfer window but Zenit rejected a late move, instead opting to keep him until his current deal expires next summer. Azmoun is expected to become a free agent next summer and should his performances improve in Russia, expect the 26-year-old to attract more suitors than Lyon.

Although he’s still in his mid-20s, Azmoun already has 55 caps for the Iranian senior national team to go along with 37 goals. Safe to say, the future of The Cheetahs lies at his feet.

Alireza Jahanbakhsh (Feyenoord)

Born in Jirandeh, Iran, Alireza Jahanbakhsh is a winger who has featured prominently for the Iranian national team, having appeared at both the 2014 & 2018 FIFA World Cup, along with the 2015 & 2019 AFC Asian Cup.

Probably the most famous name in this list, due to his time in the Premier League with Brighton & Hove Albion, Alireza began his professional career with Damash Terran in 2010, before moving to Damash Gilan a year later. His performances with Gilan earned a move to Europe, where he joined the Dutch side, NEC Nijmegen in 2013.

After two years in Gelderland, Alireza moved to AZ Alkmaar, where his career took the next step up, winning the golden boot award in the Eredivisie in 2018 with 21 and also becoming the first Asian player to become the top scorer in a top-level European league. His performances with AZ earned him a €19 million move to Brighton & Hove Albion in the summer of 2018.

Jahanbakhsh may have failed to set the Premier League ablaze but he had a thing for scoring spectacular goals. He recently returned to the Eredivisie with Feyenoord and will be hoping to rediscover his goal-scoring touch once again.

Jahanbakhsh has 55 appearances and 9 goals to his name for the Iranian national team and will be hoping to add more, as he remains an important part of Dragan Skocic’s side.

Mehdi Taremi (FC Porto)

The name “Taremi'' should ring a bell amongst Chelsea Football Club supporters following his outstanding overhead strike in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League quarter final tie last season. Before his wonder strike against Chelsea, Taremi created history by becoming the first Iranian to score in the knockout phase of the Champions League, when he opened the scoring in FC Porto’s 2-1 second-round first-leg victory over Juventus last season. Taremi has proven himself to be a goal scorer all through his career. The striker won the golden boot in the Persian Gulf Pro League on at least two occasions, before winning the Bola da Prata award in Portugal in his first season in the league with Rio Ave. Taremi ended the 2020-21 season with 16 goals and 11 assists to his name for FC Porto and has become an important player in the team.

The 29-year-old made his International debut for Iran in 2015, and currently has 24 goals in 51 appearances to his name.

Honorable Mentions

Shaho Maroufi
Ali Alipour
Milad Mohammadi Keshmarzi
Karim Ansarifard
Ali Karimi