Zob Ahan Esfahan F.C.

Zob Ahan Esfahan Football Club (Persian: باشگاه فرهنگى ورزشى ذوب‌آهن اصفهان, Bâšgâhé Futbâlé Zobâhané Esfahân) is an Iranian football club based in Fuladshahr, Iran. It competes in the Persian Gulf Pro League. The team is sponsored by the Isfahan Steel Company, which also goes by the name Zob Ahan. The club's main rival is fellow Isfahani team Sepahan, which is also sponsored by the rival steel mill Mobarakeh Steel Company.

Zob Ahan
Full nameZob Ahan Esfahan Football Club
Nickname(s)Gandos (The Marsh Crocodiles)
Founded6 July 1969 (1969-07-06)
GroundFoolad Shahr Stadium
Capacity21,000[1][2]
OwnerIsfahan Steel Company
ChairmanNima Nakisa[3]
Head CoachMohammad Rabiei
LeaguePersian Gulf Pro League
2022–23Persian Gulf Pro League, 9th
WebsiteClub website

Zob Ahan club also has a basketball team, sponsored by the same Isfahan Steel Company, which is one of the teams in the Iranian Super League.

In the 2010 AFC Champions League. Zob Ahan finished as runners-up losing 3–1 to South Korean club Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma in the final.

Zob Ahan has won the Hazfi Cup on four occasions (2002–03, 2008–09, 2014–15 and 2015–16) and have finished as runners-up one time (2000–01). The club has also finished as League runners-up three times (2004–05, 2008–09 and 2009–10) and has won the Iranian Super Cup once (2016).

Club history

Early years (1969–1980)

Mohammad Ali Taghizadeh Farahmand established the club in 1969. They entered the Takht Jamshid Cup in 1973 and end season in the 10th place. They promoted to the quarterfinals of the Hazfi Cup in 1976. Their best results in Takht Jamshid Cup was earned in 1977–78 in the 8th place. Zob Ahan prepared its team by buying 14 players from their local rivals Sepahan.

Azadegan League (1980–2001)

The team has participated in the highest division of the Iranian league system since 1973, except for the 1995 season when they played in the 2nd division. After Iranian Revolution in 1979, Takht Jamshid Cup was suspended due to Iran–Iraq War. After the end of the war, league began again in the title of Azadegan League. They were once again promoted to the 1st division the year after.

PGPL (2001–present)

Zob Ahan currently play in the IPL starting from 2001. The club's first honor, remains the winning of the Hazfi Cup in 2003, after defeating the Shiraz-based team Moghavemat Sepasi in the finals.[4] This feat was repeated in the 2008–09 Hazfi Cup, when the club beat Rah Ahan to re-claim the title after 6 years.[4] The club made its first appearance in the AFC Champions League in 2004, as the winners of the 2003 Hazfi Cup, but were eliminated in the group stages.

Having missed out so narrowly on winning their first-ever domestic league title in the 2008–09 season, Zobahan were one of the title contenders once again in the 2009–10 season, never dropping out of the top-four positions throughout the season. However, at the end, they had to settle for second place once again after finishing six points behind their city rivals Sepahan. They also lost their grip on the Hazfi Cup after a shock 0–2 loss to a second-division side Gostaresh Foulad in the semi-finals.[5]

2010 AFC Champion League

In the 2010 AFC Champions League Zob Ahan finished first on the group stage that included FC Bunyodkor, Al-Wahda and Al-Ittihad. By finishing first they qualified for the first time for the Knockout stages. On the Round of 16 they draw country neighbours Mes Kerman winning 1–0. The club then qualified to the quarter-finals and were drawn with title holders Pohang Steelers, Zob Ahan won 2–1 at home and draw 1–1 on Korea, knocking-out shockingly the title holders. Zob Ahan played against Saudi powerhouse Al Hilal which they won 1–0 at home, and won 1–0 on Saudi Arabia with a goal from Igor Castro leading the club to an historical Asian Champions League final where they face Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma. On 13 November, in the final Zob Ahan lost 1–3 to Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma. At half-time the score was 0–1 with a goal from Saša Ognenovski, in the second-half Zob Ahan conceded an early goal scored by Cho Byung-Kuk making the score 0–2, Zob Ahan finally scored the goal from Mohammad Reza Khalatbari making 1–2, but on the last minutes of the game Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma scored the 1–3 and killed the game. Zob Ahan couldn't be the champions on their 2nd Asian Champions League participation always being under-dogs, but they fought like warriors and made Iran proud. The following year the club made it to the quarter-finals but lost to Korean club Suwon Samsung Bluewings.

Dark years

After the 2011 Champions League, Zob Ahan's golden age seemed all but over. A 6th place league finish in 2012 meant that the club failed to retain its spot in the Champions League. The following year, the club finished 14th in the league, narrowly avoiding relegation through a play-off. Fan attendance started to dip and Zob Ahan had another sub par year in the 2013–14 Iran Pro League season, finishing 13th, changing three managers during the course of the season and again narrowly avoiding relegation.

Resurrection under Golmohammadi and Hosseini

Zob Ahan players celebrating Hazfi Cup title in 2015

In summer of 2014 Zob Ahan announced Yahya Golmohammadi as the club's new manager. Golmohammadi introduced a possession based philosophy to Zob Ahan and after a poor start to the season, Golmohammadi's tactics and the addition of Kaveh Rezaei paid off and Zob Ahan when on a six match unbeaten run which placed them 6th in week 23. On 5 December 2015 Zob Ahan defeated Persepolis 2–1 in the Hazfi Cup semi-final to advance to the final for the fourth time in club history. On 15 May 2015 after a 0–0 draw against Padideh, Zob Ahan finished fourth and returned to the AFC Champions League after five years. Zob Ahan also won their third Hazfi Cup title after defeating Naft Tehran 3–1 in the final.

On 23 February 2016 Zob Ahan won its first match AFC Champions League since 2011, defeating Lekhwiya of Qatar 1–0. Zob Ahan qualified for the Round of 16 of the AFC Champions League on 20 April 2016 after defeating Saudi club Al Nassr 3–0 in match day 5. However, Zob Ahan were defeated 3–1 on aggregate by Emirati club Al Ain in the Round of 16. Zob Ahan once again qualified for the final of the 2016 Hazfi Cup to defend their crown against Esteghlal. Zob Ahan defeated Esteghlal in penalties and won the Hazfi Cup for the fourth time in the club's history. Zob Ahan won the Iranian Super Cup after beating Esteghlal Khuzestan 4–2 in extra time. This was the first trophy that Zob Ahan won in Foolad Shahr Stadium.

In the beginning of the 2016–17, after poor results, Golmohammadi was fired as manager of the team and was replaced by Assistant coach Mojtaba Hosseini. Hosseini led Zob Ahan to the semi-finals of the Hazfi Cup, where they lost to Tractor in extra time.

Colours and crest

One of Zob Ahan's nicknames is Sabzpoushan ("The Greens", Persian: سبز پوشان), stemming from their traditional kit, which is predominantly green. From the foundation of the club, the common home kit includes a green shirt, black or white shorts, and white or yellow socks. White and black colours are also seen in the kit. The away kit of the club is commonly with a white background.

Stadium and facilities

The home stadium of the club is Foolad Shahr Stadium located in Fooladshahr, Isfahan. The stadium had 20,000 capacity but was renovated to hold about 30,000 people in 2011. The stadium was built in 1998. There training stadium is located outside of Isfahan named Zob Ahan Private Stadium.

Rivalries

Zob Ahan is part of the Esfahan derby or Naghsh-e-Jahan derby, one of the biggest derby's in Iran. According to Iranian football journalist Afshin Afshar, the rivalry between Zob Ahan and Sepahan is one of the most important matches in the Iran Pro League.

The Esfahan derby goes back to the 1970s, when Zob Ahan and Sepahan faced each other in Takht Jamshid Cup seasons (1974/75, 1975/76, 1976/77, 1977/78). Their rivalry resumed in the 1990s when they faced each other in Azadegan League seasons (1993/94, 1996/97, 1997/98) and from then on the two met each other twice a year.

Players

First-team squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Iran IRN Parsa JafariU25
2 DF Iran IRN Amir Hossein Sedghi
3 DF Iran IRN Hamed Noormohammadi
4 DF Iran IRN Mohammad Ghoreishi
5 MF Iran IRN Pouya Pourali
6 DF Iran IRN Nader Mohammadi
7 DF Iran IRN Masoud Ebrahimzadeh (Captain)
10 MF Iran IRN Sajjad Ashouri
11 MF Iran IRN Kamal Kamyabinia
14 DF Iran IRN Arman Akvan
15 MF Iran IRN Ebrahim Reza Zadeh
16 DF Iran IRN Arman Ghasemi
18 MF Iran IRN Amir Mohammad LotfpourU23
22 GK Iran IRN Soheil MirlohiU23
23 DF Iran IRN Amirhossein Jeddi
24 DF Iran IRN Mehran Derakhshan Mehr
29 MF Iran IRN Mehdi GoudarziU21
26 MF Iran IRN karar azariU21
28 MF Iran IRN Mehran NafariU23
No. Pos. Nation Player
29 MF Iran IRN Pouya MokhtariU21
33 GK Iran IRN Habib Far Abbasi
36 DF Iran IRN Jalal MaddahiU21
60 MF Iran IRN Edris RahmaniU21
61 MF Iran IRN Mohammad Soltani MehrU25
66 FW Iran IRN Saeid Bagherpasanad
70 FW Iran IRN Bahman Salari
77 FW Iran IRN Saman Nariman Jahan
80 FW Iran IRN Mohammad Hossein EslamiU23
88 MF Iran IRN Sajjad Jafari
90 MF Iran IRN Rouhollah Seifollahi
99 MF Iran IRN Mohammad Reza Soleimani
  • U21 = Under 21 Player
  • U23 = Under 23 Player
  • U25 = Under 25 Player

For recent transfers, see List of Iranian football transfers summer 2022.

Retired numbers

No. Player Position Zob Ahan debut Last match ref
30 Iran Mehdi Rajabzadeh AM June 2003 15 May 2018 [6]

On 18 June 2018, the club decided to retire the squad number 30 in memory of Mehdi Rajabzadeh.

Notable players

This list of former players includes those who received international caps while playing for the team, made significant contributions to the team in terms of appearances or goals while playing for the team, or who made significant contributions to the sport either before they played for the team, or after they left. It is clearly not yet complete and all inclusive, and additions and refinements will continue to be made over time.

Famous Players

For notable players see List of Zob Ahan F.C. players.
For details on former players see Category:Zob Ahan Esfahan F.C. players.

Players on international cups

Cup Players
Argentina 1978 FIFA World CupIran Rasoul Korbekandi
United Arab Emirates 1996 AFC Asian CupIran Ali Akbar Ostad-Asadi
France 1998 FIFA World CupIran Ali Akbar Ostad-Asadi
IndonesiaMalaysia 2007 AFC Asian Cup
ThailandVietnam
Iran Mehdi Rajabzadeh
Qatar 2011 AFC Asian CupIran Shahab Gordan
Iran Ghasem Haddadifar
Iran Mohammad Reza Khalatbari
Iran Farshid Talebi
Brazil 2014 FIFA World CupIran Ghasem Haddadifar
Russia 2018 FIFA World CupIran Mohammad Rashid Mazaheri

Club captains

# Name Nat Career in
Zob Ahan
Captaincy Shirt
Num
1
Rasoul Korbekandi Iran 1969–80 1970–80
1
2
Mahmood Ebrahimzadeh Iran
Iran
1976–86 1980–86
7
3
Rahman Rezaei Iran 1996–01 1997–00
10
4
Ali Akbar Ostad-Asadi Iran 1995–03 2000–03
15
5
Sepehr Heidari Iran 2000–07
2012–14
2003–07
3
6
Mohammad Salsali Iran 2004–14 2007–14
7
7
Mehdi Rajabzadeh Iran 2003–07
2010–11
2012–18
2014–18
30
8
Ghasem Haddadifar Iran 2003– 2018–
8

Club officials

IPL managers

Only IPL matches are counted.

Last updated 10 August 2021.

Name Nat From To Record
PWDLWin %Final Position
Nasser Hejazi Iran Jul 2001 Dec 2001 2086440%3rd (until week 20)
Bahram Atef Iran Dec 2001 Jul 2002 623333.4%(01-02) 6th
Samvel Darbinyan Armenia Jul 2002 May 2003 5221112040%(02-03) 8th (03-04) 4th
Rasoul Korbekandi Iran May 2003 Jun 2007 9039262543.4%(04-05) 2nd, (05-06) 6th, (06-07) 8th
Zoran Đorđević Serbia Jun 2007 Oct 2007 1034330%17th (until week 10)
Bijan Zolfagharnasab Iran Oct 2007 May 2008 24811533.4%(07-08) 6th
Mansour Ebrahimzadeh Iran Jul 2008 Jun 2012 13462482446.3%(08-09) 2nd,
(09-10) 2nd,(10–11) 3rd,
(11-12) 6th
Rasoul Korbekandi Iran Jun 2012 Oct 2012 1131727.3%15th (until week 11)
Farhad Kazemi Iran Oct 2012 Jul 2013 23610726%(12-13) 14th
Mahmoud Yavari Iran Jun 2013 Jul 2013 211050%Win in the Relegation play-offs
Luka Bonačić Croatia Jul 2013 Jan 2014 20371015%14th (until week 20)
Mojtaba Taghavi Iran Jan 2014 Feb 2014 714214.3%15th (until week 27)
Firouz Karimi Iran Feb 2014 Jun 2014 430175%(13-14) 13th
Yahya Golmohammadi Iran Jun 2014 Sep 2016 6726261538.8%(14–15) 4th
(15–16) 6th
(16–17) 14th (until week 7)
Mojtaba Hosseini Iran Sep 2016 Jun 2017 23117547.8%(16–17) 4th
Amir Ghalenoei Iran Jun 2017 Jun 2018 301510550.0%(17-18) 2nd
Omid Namazi United States Jun 2018 Nov 2018 1125418.1%(18–19) 11th (until week 11)
Alireza Mansourian Iran Nov 2018 Dec 2019 3510141136.8%(18-19) 6th
(19–20) 11th (until week 16)
Miodrag Radulović Montenegro Jan 2020 Jun 2020 521240%(19–20) 11th (until week 21)
Luka Bonačić Croatia Jun 2020 Aug 2020 922522.2%(19–20) 12th
Rahman Rezaei Iran Sep 2020 Feb 2021 151866.6%(20–21) 14th (until week 15)
Mojtaba Hosseini Iran Mar 2021 Aug 2021 1233625%(20–21) 14th
Mehdi Tartar Iran Aug 2021 Present 301071330%(21–22) 7th

Current coaching staff

Source:[7]

Position Name
Head coachIran Mehdi Tartar
Assistant coachesIran Hossein Pashaei
Iran Mohammad Salsali
Iran Mohammad Nouri
Goalkeeping coachIran Hossein Inanlou
Fitness coachIran Amir Jamali
AnalystIran Kianoush Forouzesh
PhysiotherapistIran Abbas Moradi
Iran Behzad Moradi
DoctorIran Amir Hossein Sharifianpour
LogisticsIran Mahmoud Mehruyan
Team ManagerIran Mahmoud Yazdkhasti
B team Head CoachIran Mehdi Rajabzadeh
Media OfficerIran Ehsan Baeedi

Chairpersons

Chairperson Tenure
Iran Mohammad Mehdi Taghizadeh
July 1969 – July 1977
Iran Mostafa Ghanei
July 1977 – February 1979
Iran Asghar Nilchian
May 1979 – May 1984
Iran Fazollah Omranian
May 1984 – May 1988
Iran Heydar Taheri
May 1988 – May 1992
Iran Nematollah Zargar
May 1992 – June 1996
Iran Alireza Shogi
June 1996 – June 2004
Iran Saeed Azari
June 2004 – June 2009
Iran Asghar Dalili
June 2009 – August 2011
Iran Khosro Ebrahimi
August 2011 – September 2013
Iran Saeed Azari
September 2013 – August 2019
Iran Javad Mohammadi
August 2019 – January 2020
Iran Ahmad Jamshidi
January 2020 – September 2020
Iran Javad Mohammadi
September 2020 – January 2021
Iran Mojtaba Fereydouni
January 2021 – July 2023
Iran Nima Nakisa
July 2023 – present

Season-by-season

For details on seasons, see List of Zob Ahan F.C. seasons

The table below chronicles the achievements of Zob Ahan since 1973.

Season League Position Hazfi Cup ACL Notes
1973–74 Takht Jamshid Cup 10th Not held did not qualify
1974–75 11th
1975–76 9th 1/8 Final
1976–77 15th 1/16 Final
1977–78 8th Not held
1978–79 N/A did not finish
1981–82 Isfahan's 2nd Division 1st Promoted
1983–84 Isfahan League 3rd
1984–85 2nd
1991–92 5th
1993–94 Azadegan League 4th 1/8 Final
1994–95 8th 1/16 Final Relegated
1995–96 2nd Division 2nd 1/8 Final Promoted
1996–97 Azadegan League 10th 1/8 Final
1997–98 3rd Not held
1998–99 12th Third Round
1999–00 5th First Round
2000–01 4th Final
2001–02 Iran Pro League 6th Quarterfinal
2002–03 8th Cup
2003–04 4th Semi-Final First Round
2004–05 2nd 1/8 Final did not qualify
2005–06 6th 1/8 Final
2006–07 8th 1/16 Final
2007–08 6th 1/8 Final
2008–09 2nd Cup
2009–10 2nd Semi-Final Runner-up
2010–11 3rd 1/16 Final 1/4 Final
2011–12 6th 1/8 Final Play-off
2012–13 14th 1/4 Final did not qualify
2013–14 13th 1/4 Final
2014–15 4th Cup
2015–16 6th Cup 1/8 Final Super Cup
2016–17 4th Semi-Final First Round
2017–18 2nd 1/16 Final 1/8 Final
2018–19 6th 1/16 Final 1/8 Final
2019–20 12th 1/16 Final did not qualify
2020–21 14th 1/16 Final did not qualify
2021–22 7th 1/16 Final did not qualify

Individual records

Lists of the players with the most caps and top goalscorers for the club, (players in bold signifies current Zob Ahan player). Mehdi Rajabzadeh is the club's all-time most capped player and top scorer with 93 goals in 296 games. This list includes goals from Iran Premier League.

Most appearances

As of 6 May 2020
Name Nationality position total
1 Ghasem Haddadifar  Iran Midfielder 330
2 Mehdi Rajabzadeh  Iran Forward 296
3 Esmaeil Farhadi  Iran Forward 280
4 Rasoul Korbekandi  Iran Goalkeeper 265
5 Mohammad Salsali  Iran Defender 220
6 Sepehr Heidari  Iran Defender 175
7 Ali Akbar Ostad-Asadi  Iran Defender 164
8 Mohammad Mansouri  Iran Midfielder 155
9 Hassan Ashjari  Iran Defender 139
10 Morteza Tabrizi  Iran Forward 138

Top Goalscorers

As of 6 May 2019
Player Period Appearances in PL Goals in PL Appearances Goals
1 Iran Mehdi Rajabzadeh 2003–07; 2010–11; 2012–18 296 93 353 106
2 Iran Morteza Tabrizi 2013–18 138 39 179 53
3 Iran Esmaeil Farhadi 2005–15 280 44 308 47
4 Iran Mohammad Reza Khalatbari 2006–11; 2019– 129 34 157 43
5 Brazil Igor Castro 2008–12 121 30 153 42

Top Scorers by season

Season Player Goals
2001–02 Iran Reza Sahebi 7
2002–03 Iran Reza Sahebi 6
2003–04 Iran Mehdi Rajabzadeh 9
2004–05 Iran Mehdi Rajabzadeh 8
2005–06 Iran Mehdi Rajabzadeh 14
2006–07 Iran Mehdi Rajabzadeh 17
2007–08 Iran Esmaeil Farhadi 9
2008–09 Brazil Igor Castro 16
2009–10 Iran Mohammad Reza Khalatbari 11
2010–11 Iran Seyed Mohammad Hosseini 12
2011–12 Iran Mohammad Ghazi 7
2012–13 Iran Mehdi Rajabzadeh 8
2013–14 Iran Mehdi Rajabzadeh 9
2014–15 Iran Masoud Hassanzadeh 9
2015–16 Iran Morteza Tabrizi 7
2016–17 Iran Morteza Tabrizi 11
2017–18 Iran Morteza Tabrizi 13
2018–19 Iran Amir Arsalan Motahari 6

Asian record

Zob Ahan's starting line-up Final against Seongnam, 2010 AFC Champions League

Asian Club Championship / AFC Champions League

Asian Club Championship / AFC Champions League
Season Round Rival Home Away Rank/Agg. Notes
2004 Group stage
(Group A)
Uzbekistan Pakhtakor 1–0 2–0 2
Qatar Qatar SC 3–3 0–0
Bahrain Riffa
2010 Group stage
(Group B)
United Arab Emirates Al-Wahda 1–0 1–0 1 Runners-up
Saudi Arabia Al-Ittihad 1–0 2–2
Uzbekistan Bunyodkor 3–0 0–1
Round of 16 Iran Mes Kerman 1–0 1–0
Quarter-finals South Korea Pohang Steelers 2–1 1–1 3–2
Semi-finals Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal 1–0 0–1 2–0
Final South Korea Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma 1–3
2011 Group stage
(Group D)
United Arab Emirates Emirates 2–1 0–1 1
Saudi Arabia Al-Shabab 0–1 0–0
Qatar Al-Rayyan 1–0 1–3
Round of 16 Saudi Arabia Al-Nassr 4–1 4–1
Quarter-finals South Korea Suwon Samsung Bluewings 1–2 1–1 2–3
2012 Qualifying play-off Iran Esteghlal 2–0 2–0 Not Qualify
2016 Group stage
(Group B)
Qatar Lekhwiya 0–0 0–1 1
Uzbekistan Bunyodkor 5–2 0–0
Saudi Arabia Al-Nassr 3–0 0–3
Round of 16 United Arab Emirates Al-Ain 0–2 1–1 1–3
2017 Group stage
(Group C)
United Arab Emirates Al-Ain 0–3 1–1 3
Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli 1–2 2–0
Uzbekistan Bunyodkor 2–1 0–2
2018 Qualifying play-off India Aizawl 3–1 3–1 Qualify
Group stage
(Group B)
United Arab Emirates Al Wahda 2–0 3–0 2
Uzbekistan Lokomotiv 2–0 1–1
Qatar Al-Duhail 0–1 3–1
Round of 16 Iran Esteghlal 1–0 3–1 3–2
2019 Preliminary round 2 Kuwait Al-Kuwait 1–0 1–0 Qualify
Qualifying play-off Qatar Al-Gharafa 2–3 3–2
Group stage
(Group A)
Iraq Al-Zawraa 0–0 2–2 1
United Arab Emirates Al-Wasl 2–0 1–3
Saudi Arabia Al-Nassr 0–0 2–3
Round of 16 Saudi Arabia Al-Ittihad 3–4 2–1 4–6

Club honours

Domestic

Continental

Ownership

The owner of the Zob Ahan FC is Isfahan Steel Company. Company is the first Iranian steel maker opened in late 1960, based close to the cities of Fooladshahr and Zarrinshahr, Isfahan Province.

Zob Ahan-e Esfahan and Iran's first car manufacturer, Iran National (renamed Iran Khodro after the Iranian revolution) were parts of a significant move from mainly agriculture-based economy toward industrialization by the pre-revolutionary government of Amir Abbas Hoveida.

References

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