Mehdi Mahdavikia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mehdi Mahdavikia
Personal information
Full name Mehdi Mahdavikia
Date of birth July 24, 1977 (age 29)
Place of birth Tehran, Iran
Nickname The Carpet, The Rocket
Position Right Midfielder
Club information
Current club Hamburger SV
Number 7
Youth clubs
 ? Bank Melli FC
Professional clubs*
Years Club Apps (goals)
 ?-1995
1995-98
1998-99
1999-2007		 Bank Melli FC
Persepolis FC
VfL Bochum
Hamburger SV

12 (3)
195 (24)
National team**
1996-present Iran 96 (12)

* Professional club appearances and goals
counted for the domestic league only and
correct as of 9 December 2006.
** National team caps and goals correct
as of 12 October 2006.

Mehdi Mahdavikia (Persian: مهدی مهدوی کیا ‎ , born July 24, 1977 in Tehran) is an Iranian football player and captain of the Iranian national football team. He currently plays for Hamburger SV in Germany as a right winger or full-back.

Contents

[edit] Club career

Mehdi has been playing for Hamburger SV since 1999. He previously played for Persepolis club in his native Iran and VfL Bochum in Germany. His initial position for HSV was right fullback, from which he was known for his attacking runs, as he has previous experience as a right winger and at times has played as a striker. For the 2006/2007 Bundesliga season he has moved back to his natural position of right wing, in support of Center Midfielder Rafael Van der Vaart. He was awarded Hamburg Player of the Year in 2003 and 2004 by the fans, and also attained the envious title of the top assister of goals in the Bundesliga. However, compared to his previous season, he had a poor season in 2004/05 and was benched. In the 2005/06 season he has gained his old form back and was able to regain his spot as a starter, being influential in many of Hamburg's victories, such as scoring the winning goal against Bundesliga heavyweights Schalke.

Mehdi Mahdavikia's strongest points are his vision, passing skills, fast paced runs, and set-pieces such as corners, spotkicks and free kicks. Apart from being a total professional on the pitch, he is also known as a perfect gentleman off the pitch, always finding the time for fans and reporters to answer questions or sign autographs. His nickname in Hamburg is The Carpet (der Teppich) for his ability to "magically glide past" his opponents like the popular Iranian tapestry. He is very popular in Hamburg, the HSV faithful regularly chanting "Mehdiiiiiii" when he touches the ball.

[edit] International career

Having been awarded Asian Young Footballer of the Year in 1997, Mehdi Mahdavikia was considered Iran's best player in the 1998 FIFA World Cup and was named in the list from which the team of the tournament was chosen. In 2003, he was awarded Asian Player of the Year by the Asian Football Confederation. He was also the top assister in the 2004 Asian Cup, exhibiting stunning form to steer Iran's attack to superb attacking football.

Mahdavikia was one of the influential players that played in Iran's crucial 1-0 victory over Bahrain to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup held in Germany. Following the FIFA World Cup in Germany, 2006, Mahdavikia was expected to assume the role of Captain in the Iranian national side, replacing Ali Daei who had publicly announced his intention to retire after the tournament. Mahdavikia was given the captain's band on August 16, 2006 in an Asian Cup qualifier versus Syria.

Japan's Shunsuke Nakamura(L) pursues Mehdi Mahdavikia(R).
Enlarge
Japan's Shunsuke Nakamura(L) pursues Mehdi Mahdavikia(R).

[edit] Personal life

Mahdavikia is married to Sepideh and has a daughter, Asal.

In April 2006, Mahdavikia caused a stir when it came out he married a second wife named Samira while being in his native Iran, thus practising bigamy. He himself has stated that he made a "big mistake", was "lured into a trap" and ended the affair after a short while. As of May 2006, Mahdavikia plans to prosecute Samira for slander. [1] [2] [3]

[edit] Famous matches

Mehdi's most prolific club match was Hamburger SV's match against Juventus in the Champions League. He was the impetus that rallied Hamburg back after being down 3-1 by scoring once, assisting one and winning a penalty for Hamburg that saw Hamburg take a 4-3 lead; Juve managed to equalise with an Inzaghi penalty. Mehdi's greatest national team match, arguably, was against South Korea in the 2004 Asia Cup where he assisted three goals in Iran's 4-3 win. Many also point to his dynamic game against the United States in World Cup 1998 that saw him score Iran's second and winning goal, as his best ever.

[edit] Legacy

Mehdi Mahdavikia is a candidate for the greatest Iranian player of all time because of his impressive longevity while playing top-flight football, and regular contributions to both his club and national team.

[edit] Notes

    [edit] External links

    Preceded by
    Japan Shinji Ono    		 Asian Footballer of the Year
    2003    		 Succeeded by
    Iran Ali Karimi
    Preceded by
    Thailand Bamrong Boonprom    		 Asian Young Player of the Year
    1997    		 Succeeded by
    Japan Shinji Ono


    Iran Iran squad - 1998 FIFA World Cup Iran

    1 Abedzadeh | 2 Mahdavikia | 3 Saadavi | 4 Khakpour | 5 Peyrovani | 6 Bagheri | 7 Mansourian | 8 Dinmohammadi | 9 Estili | 10 Daei | 11 Azizi | 12 Nakisa | 13 Latifi | 14 Mohammadkhani | 15 Ostad‑Asadi | 16 Shahroudi | 17 Zarincheh | 18 Hamedani | 19 Seraj | 20 Pashazadeh | 21 Minavand | 22 Boromand | Coach: Talebi
    Iran Iran squad - 2006 FIFA World Cup Iran

    1 Mirzapour | 2 Mahdavikia | 3 Bakhtiarizadeh | 4 Golmohammadi | 5 Rezaei | 6 Nekounam | 7 Zandi | 8 Karimi | 9 Hashemian | 10 Daei | 11 Khatibi | 12 Roudbarian | 13 Ka'abi | 14 Teymourian | 15 Borhani | 16 Enayati | 17 Kazemian | 18 Navidkia | 19 Sadeqi | 20 Nosrati | 21 Madanchi | 22 Talebloo | 23 Shojaei | Coach: Ivanković
    Hamburger SV - Current Squad

    1 Wächter | 2 Sorín | 3 Atouba | 4 Reinhardt | 5 Mathijsen | 6 Wicky | 7 Mahdavikia | 8 Karl | 9 Guerrero | 10 Kompany | 11 Lauth | 12 Kirschstein | 13 Fillinger | 14 Jarolím | 15 Trochowski | 16 Klingbeil | 17 Sanogo | 18 Hampel | 20 Demel | 22 Berisha | 23 van der Vaart | 25 Ben-Hatira | 27 Laas | 28 de Jong | 30 Benjamin | 33 Feilhaber | 37 Hennings | 38 Ljuboja
    Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../m/e/h/Mehdi_Mahdavikia_b6ff.html"