Iran 2023 AFC Asian Cup Squad
Head Coach: 
Amir Ghalenoei
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of Birth/Age | Caps | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GK | Alireza Beiranvand | 21 September 1992 (age 31) | 63 | 0 | Persepolis |
| 12 | GK | Payam Niazmand | 6 April 1995 (age 28) | 8 | 0 | Sepahan |
| 22 | GK | Hossein Hosseini | 30 June 1992 (age 31) | 10 | 0 | Estaghlal |
| 2 | DF | Sadegh Moharrami | 1 March 1996 (age 27) | 28 | 1 |  Dinamo Zagreb |
| 3 | DF | Ehsan Hajsafi (captain) | 25 February 1990 (age 33) | 137 | 7 |  AEK Athens |
| 4 | DF | Shojae Khalilzadeh | 14 May 1989 (age 34) | 34 | 1 | Tractor |
| 5 | DF | Milad Mohammadi | 29 September 1993 (age 30) | 54 | 1 | AEK Athens |
| 13 | DF | Hossein Kanaanizadegan | 23 March 1994 (age 29) | 46 | 4 | Persepolis |
| 19 | DF | Majid Hosseini | 20 June 1996 (age 27) | 26 | 0 |  Kayserispor |
| 23 | DF | Ramin Rezaeian | 21 March 1990 (age 33) | 58 | 6 | Sepahan |
| 24 | DF | Aria Yousefi | 22 April 2002 (age 21) | 2 | 0 | Sepahan |
| 25 | DF | Saman Fallah | 12 May 2001 (age 22) | 2 | 0 | Gol Gohar |
| 6 | MF | Saeid Ezatolahi | 1 October 1996 (age 27) | 60 | 1 |  Vejle |
| 7 | MF | Alireza Jahanbakhsh | 11 August 1993 (age 30) | 76 | 15 |  Feyenoord |
| 8 | MF | Omid Ebrahimi | 15 September 1987 (age 36) | 58 | 1 |  Al-Shamal |
| 14 | MF | Saman Ghoddos | 6 September 1993 (age 30) | 42 | 3 |  Brentford |
| 15 | MF | Rouzbeh Cheshmi | 24 July 1993 (age 30) | 31 | 3 | Esteghlal |
| 16 | MF | Mehdi Torabi | 10 September 1994 (age 29) | 47 | 7 | Persepolis |
| 17 | MF | Ali Gholizadeh | 10 March 1996 (age 27) | 32 | 6 |  Lech Poznan |
| 21 | MF | Mohammad Mohebi | 20 December 1998 (age 25) | 15 | 4 |  Rostov |
| 9 | FW | Mehdi Taremi | 18 July 1992 (age 31) | 76 | 42 |  Porto |
| 10 | FW | Karim Ansarifard | 3 April 1990 (age 33) | 100 | 29 |  Omonia |
| 11 | FW | Reza Asadi | 17 January 1996 (age 27) | 8 | 1 | Sepaham |
| 18 | FW | Mehdi Ghayedi | 5 December 1998 (age 25) | 12 | 4 |  Ittihad Kalba |
| 20 | FW | Sardar Azmoun | 1 January 1995 (age 29) | 75 | 49 |  Roma |
| 26 | FW | Shahriyar Moghanlou | 21 December 1994 (age 29) | 6 | 2 | Sepahan |
Most Capped Player: Javad Nekounam – 149
Top Goalscorer: Ali Daei – 108
Iran 2023 Asian Cup Preview
Amir Ghalenoei and his Iran side return to Qatar for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup, as the nation prepares to take part in the competition for a record breaking 15th time (most alongside South Korea).
The Iranians have lifted the trophy on three occasions, back-to-back-to-back in 1968, 1972 and in 1976, and finished third when they last appeared in the competition back in 2019 when they were knocked out by Japan in the semi-final.
They booked their spot in this year’s finals by topping their AFC second round 2022 World Cup qualification group ahead of Iraq, Bahrain, Hong Kong and Cambodia, with Karim Ansarifard and Sardar Azmoun finishing as the group’s top goalscorers with seven goals apiece.
Team Melli kickstart their campaign against Palestine in Al Rayyan on 14 January, before taking on Hong Kong in the same location five days later, and they close out the group stages against the United Arab Emirates on 23 January.
Iran Player To Watch
The aforementioned qualifying top goalscorer Azmoun is our Iranian player to watch at the Asian Cup in Qatar as he aims to maintain his excellent goalscoring form at international level.
Azmoun has registered a direct goal contribution in each of his last seven matches for Iran, netting eight goals and providing four assists within that timeframe.
Currently on loan at Roma from Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen, the 29-year-old has failed to make an impact under Jose Mourinho. Since arriving in the summer, he has registered just one goal in 13 Serie A matches.
Despite this, he has still continued to shine for Iran and his record in the competition speaks for itself. In the 2019 Asian Cup, Azmoun was his side’s top goalscorer with four goals, following on from his two goals at the 2015 edition of the tournament in Australia where they were knocked out in the quarter-finals.
Add Sportslens to your Google News Feed!
