Zesh Rehman
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| Zesh Rehman | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Zeshan Rehman | |
| Date of birth | October 14, 1983 | |
| Place of birth | Birmingham, England | |
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 21⁄2 in) | |
| Playing position | Central defender | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club | QPR | |
| Number | 28 | |
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 2003–2006 2003–2004 2006 2006– 2007 |
Fulham → Brighton (loan) → Norwich City (loan) Queens Park Rangers → Brighton (loan) |
21 (0) 11 (2) 5 (0) 46 (0) 8 (0) |
| National team2 | ||
| 2005- | Pakistan | 6 (0) |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
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Zeshan 'Zesh' Rehman (Urdu: ذيشان رحمان) (born October 14, 1983 in Birmingham, England) is an British-Pakistani football defender for Queens Park Rangers. He also plays for the Pakistan national football team and was the first Pakistani to play in the Premiership. He is the first Pakistani international footballer to play professional football in England. Zesh has created history in the U.K and in Pakistan. He is considered a role model to many aspiring young Asian footballers not only in the U.K. but also abroad.
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[edit] Club career
[edit] Starting out at Fulham
A product of the FA Youth setup and Fulham Academy, Zesh was also an England youth international in the past at U17 and U20 age levels. He was with Fulham Academy when he was 20 years old FA Premier League club from London was able to garner some media attention from British Asian groups by being perhaps the first Asian player to ply his trade in the top division of English football. Although a centre-back by trade, Zesh had been used as a holding midfield as well as right back in his career there, which also involved a brief loan stint at Brighton & Hove Albion where he impressed with his dedication towards the game as well as good strong character at such a young age.
Having made 30 appearances in all competitions for Fulham, 26 from the starting line up and 4 as a substitute, Zesh had to consider his options for the up coming seasons if he was to get regular football. Before he made his next move he was well aware of the importance of regular first team football.
Although he had two years remaining on his Fulham contract his hunger for regular first team football was too strong and he decided to spend the next two seasons getting as much experience as possible.
[edit] Queens Park Rangers
Rehman was loaned out to Championship side Norwich City for the rest of the season, as a defensive cover to the injury-hit Canaries. He made 5 starts for the canaries. Before the 2006/07 season, Rehman completed a transfer to Queens Park Rangers F.C. from Fulham on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee in August 2006.Rehman was quoted saying "All I want to do is play; the money doesn't interest me anymore". He further added "I could have sat at Fulham and just been happy to pick up my wages but that's not what I am all about".
In his first season at Q.P.R Zesh made 27 appearances (25 from the start and two as sub). It was not easy joining a team that had just avoided relegation the previous season, had very little budget and had an inexperienced manager in charge. Zesh struggled, but gained valuable experience of how tough life can be at other clubs. Towards the end of the season Zesh accepted a loan offer to former club Brighton for a month and gained some valuable first team football experience.
[edit] Return to Brighton & Hove Albion on loan; Another chance at QPR
This had become Zesh's second loan stint with the club after a previous loan deal during the 2003/04 season while at Fulham. Zeshan Rehman made his return to Brighton & Hove Albion on 24th March 2007 in a 0-0 draw against visitors Huddersfield Town F.C.. In a recent interview, Zesh has advised fellow British Asian football players to 'stick with their roots' as he feels, given by his own experience, that Asians will not get opportunities to represent England if they're not good enough, and should instead at least make a mark at the international stage by playing for their countries of origin. Zesh ended his loan stint by playing the full 90 minutes and earning a yellow card in the process for the final game of the League One season in the 1-1 draw for Brighton & Hove at Cheltenham Town FC on May 5th 2007, Zesh claiming an assist for the opening goal. He featured in 8 full games during his loan stint. That final game was Zesh's 35th appearance of the season. (33 from the start and 2 as sub). One year away from Fulham and 35 more competitive games, more experience and a new mentality for the future was now gained.
Returning to QPR at the start of the new season, chances were limited. However through hard work, good attitude and a injuries and suspension problems in the squad allowed Zesh to get his opportunity in the side during the packed Christmas period of the season which helped him gain the confidence of the fans and the manager with some solid and consistent displays with Q.P.R picking up 4 wins, two draws out of 8 games since he got back into the team. Zesh helped to lift the team off the foot of the table and into a more respectable league position. The 3-1 victory over Leicester City on New Years Day 2008 was Zesh's 50th game in all competitions since leaving Fulham back in 2006.
[edit] Club Career Stats
Last update: 20 May 2008
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals |
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 Fulham |
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Fulham |
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Brighton & Hove Albion |
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Fulham |
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Fulham |
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Norwich City |
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Queens Park Rangers |
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Brighton & Hove Albion |
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Queens Park Rangers |
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[edit] International career
Zesh always wanted to represent England, but becoming the first British Asian to don the England senior football shirt seemed too far away, due to lack of first team opportunities at Fulham. Because of his Pakistani parentage and possessing dual Pakistani and British nationality, he also qualified to represent the Pakistan national football team.
At first he was reluctant to become a Pakistani international, but he eventually opted for the Asian country, although a lot of British Asian groups were against this and wanted Zesh to fight for an England place more to set a standard for British Asian youth. It was, however, an unrealistic aspiration.
With that in mind, and with the blessings of his father, Zeshan made his international debut for Pakistan, on December 7 2005 at Karachi against Sri Lanka in the 2005 SAFF Cup, receiving decent attention from the Pakistani media circles and fans. Pakistan ultimately reached the semi-finals before losing out to Bangladesh 1-0. In that short space of time Zesh helped to raise the profile of the game in Pakistan, encourage youngsters to play the game and also help to raise the profile of Pakistan in the U.K and on a global stage. Since then, worries of little first team action for club have made him ignore the AFC Challenge Cup 2006 and the AFC Asian Cup 2007 qualifiers for Pakistan, and consider his next move very carefully recognising that his club football is the bread and butter but international football is also important.
He was named among the squad for the Pakistan team's World Cup 2010 prelimenaries against Iraq in October, 2007, and played the match in Lahore but couldn't help contain the current Asian champions Iraq from winning 7-0. In the second leg, he put in a commanding display in the reverted 4-4-2 formation, leading Pakistan to a very credible 0-0 draw.
Due to club commitments and injury Zesh had to miss out on the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup qualifiers for Pakistan; a situation that proved costly for the national team as defensive blunders cost them the chance of qualifying despite a promising start to the campaign. He also had to miss SAFF Cup 2008 due to illness.
[edit] External links
- Zeshan Rehman career stats at Soccerbase
- QPR swoop to sign Fulham's Rehman
- Seagulls land Rangers ace
- Asian origin footballers asked to stick to their roots
- Official website of Zesh Rehman
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