Top 5 biggest names in the Iranian national team setup in 2023

Iran have surprised many people around the world in recent years with their performances under former boss Carlos Queiroz. After only qualifying for the World Cup three times in history before his arrival, the Persian Stars doubled this number during the Portuguese's reign, qualifying for three straight tournaments, before he left to take over at Qatar following World Cup 2022.

What's more, Iran are beginning to produce elite players with more regularity. Some of the biggest names in the squad at these tournaments are now making Premier League news or plying their trade across major European leagues. It's hard to see any of these names living up to the great Ali Daei, but each of these five players have made a name for themselves in the wider footballing world and Iranians can now be proud to boast some big name, exciting talent in their ranks.

Here are the five biggest names around the current Iranian national team setup:

5. Saman Ghoddos
Fans of the English Premier League will be aware of 29-year-old attacking midfielder Saman Ghoddos. He was pivotal inhelping Brentford secure a long-awaited return to the top flight and has gone on to make 28 Premier League appearances in the following two seasons. After spells in Sweden and France, playing in England has really helped to raise the profile of this exciting member of this current crop of Iranian talent.

4. Ehsan Hajsafi

33-year-old Ehsan Hajsafi is the proud captain of the Iranian national team. He currently plays at AEK Athens in Greece, an historic club with a huge profile. Prior to that, Hajsafi had stints across Greece and Iran, as well as a spell in Germany, but he is perhaps best known for his performances as part of Carlos Queiroz's stable, well organised defence at multiple World Cups.

His career highlight may have been shepherding that Iran backline through the group stage of World Cup 2018 while conceding just two goals in three games against the firepower of Spain, Portugal and Morocco, in the tournament's "Group of Death".

3. Sardar Azmoun

At 28, the prodigal Sardar Azmoun is currently pulling up trees in the Bundesliga for Bayer Leverkusen, after ending a long and successful spell at Zenit Saint Petersburg in Russia. His phenomenal 41 goals in 68 games for his country harkens back to the great Ali Daei. Azmoun's star is building in Europe and a move to the Premier League seems imminent. He has even told the media that he once turned down a move to Liverpool. Azmoun is certainly on the way to becoming one of Iran's most famous and most loved footballing exports.

2. Alireza Jahanbakhsh
The extremely impressive winger Alireza Jahanbakhsh is well known to English football fans for his

three-year spell at Premier League club Brighton & Hove Albion, where he made 50 appearances. After impressing there, he moved on to Feyenoord, where he reached the UEFA
Europa Conference League final last season and looks set to win the Dutch league title this campaign. He has proven to be a key player during his last two seasons in the Netherlands and is almost certain to win the first top flight league title of his career in the coming weeks, which will surely heighten his profile even further.

1. Mehdi Taremi

Top spot on this last has to go to Mehdi Taremi. Since moving to Porto in 2020, the 30-year old has become as potent a striker as you can find in Europe's elite top five leagues. His numbers in the Portuguese Primeira Liga may be impressive, but what really caught the eye of the global football world were his 5 goals in 7 UEFA Champions League games earlier this season.

Taremi's ability to score in big games extends to those involving the toughest opposition in the game, and he is surely on the radar of many major European clubs now.
Whether or not any of these great players can come close to measuring up to the likes of Ali Daei remains to be seen, but they are all certainly gaining ground in their own right. They are all increasing their respective profiles, building fame and notoriety, either through outstanding performances at club level or heroics for the Iran national team. We can expect to see more such names emerging in the years to come.