Ebrahim Mirzapour ( fa, ابراهیم میرزاپور; born 1978) is a retired Iranian
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
goalkeeper, who played most of his career for Foolad F.C .
Club career
Foolad
He started his professional IPL career, playing for
Foolad
Foolad Khuzestan Football Club ( fa, باشگاه فوتبال فولاد خوزستان, ''Bāshgāh-e Futbāl-e Fulād-e Khuzestān'') is an Iranian football club, based in Ahwaz, Khuzestan that plays in Persian Gulf Pro League. Foolad F.C. ...
, and was a member of the team until August 2006. He also made it to the national team while playing for Foolad, immediately becoming the number one keeper for his country. One of his most memorable moments came when he scored a goal on rival goalkeeper
Armenak Petrosyan, off a goal kick. He was the captain of the team which won the
2004–2005 IPL
The Indian Premier League (IPL), also known as TATA IPL for sponsorship reasons, is a men's T20 franchise cricket league of India. It is annually contested by ten teams based out of seven Indian cities and three Indian states. The leagu ...
championship. He also played in
AFC Champions League
The AFC Champions League (abbreviated as ACL) is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition ...
for Foolad. After
World Cup 2006
The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won ...
, despite rumors linking him to
CD Nacional
Clube Desportivo Nacional, commonly known as Nacional and sometimes Nacional da Madeira (), is a Portuguese football club based in Funchal, on the island of Madeira.
Founded on 8 December 1910, it currently plays in the Liga Portugal 2, Portug ...
and
Saipa, he signed a one-year contract with Foolad's rival,
Esteghlal Ahvaz
Esteghlal Ahvaz Football Club ( fa, باشگاه فوتبال استقلال اهواز, ''Bashgah-e Futbal-e Esteqlâl Ahvaz''), commonly known as Esteghlal Ahvaz, was an Iranian football club based in Ahvaz, Khuzestan, that competed in the khu ...
.
Esteghlal Ahvaz & Steel Azin
He was seriously injured after only four appearances for Esteghlal Ahvaz, an injury that kept him out of play for fourteen months. He made his first appearance for his new club
Steel Azin
Steel Azin Football Club ( fa, باشگاه فوتبال استيل آذین, ''Bashgah-e Futbal-e Estil Âzin'') was an Iranian football club based in Tehran, Iran. The club was owned by Hossein Hedayati, owner of Steel Azin Iranian Holding Co ...
in a
Hazfi Cup match against
Shirin Faraz
Rahiyan Kermanshah Football Club ( fa, باشگاه فوتبال راهیان کرمانشاه) (former named by ''Shirin Faraz'') is an Iranian Football (soccer), football club based in Kermanshah, Iran and compete in the Azadegan League. The cl ...
in November 2007.
Saipa
Then, for the
2008–09 season he joined
Saipa. He started the season with being a regular player but he could not keep this and only played in 16 matches. He mentioned that he wants to stay with Saipa. He second season was more successful where he was able to play more matches and was even called up to
Team Melli
) ''(the national team)' other nicknames''
, Badge = Flag_of_Iran.svg
, Badge_size = 190px
, Association = Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran
, FIFA Trigramme = IRN
, FIFA Rank ...
.
Retirement
He joined
Paykan
The Paykan ( fa, پيکان meaning ''Arrow'') is the first Iranian-made car produced by Iran Khodro (formerly called "Iran National") between 1967 and 2005. The car was very popular in Iran from its introduction until its discontinuation. It ...
in the summer of 2010 but after the club's relegation to the
Azadegan League
The Azadegan League ( fa, ليگ آزادگان, ''Lig-e Âzâdegân''), also known as League 1 ( fa, لیگ یک, ''Lig-e Yek''), is the second highest division of professional football in Iran. It was the top-level football league in Iran from ...
, he left the club and joined
Shahrdari Tabriz for the next season but had a serious injury towards the end of the season and did not finish the season. He joined the first division team
Sang Ahan for the next season and played 16 matches. Mirazpour retired from professional football in 2013.
Club career statistics
International career
Ebrahim Mirzapour's introduction to the Iranian football squad certainly raised a few eyebrows in
Iran when the ex-national team coach, the Croat
Miroslav Blazevic Miroslav may refer to:
* Miroslav (given name), a Slavic masculine given name
* ''Young America'' (clipper) or ''Miroslav'', an Austrian clipper ship in the Transatlantic case oil trade
* Miroslav (Znojmo District), a town in the Czech Republic
S ...
preferred him to some more experienced goal keepers. Although Mirzapour started nervously, his solid performance in friendly games and against the odds made Blazevic to have enough confidence in him and install him as the fixed starter in the
World Cup 2002 qualification matches. Mirzapour did not disappoint either as his towering presence and agility against the best of the competition certainly increased his popularity and his fan base. Although he was faulted in one or two occasions during the qualifying rounds, he was also credited for many saves and for preventing defeats in matches, by his solid and strong performance. Iran eventually did not make it to the
2002 World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...
, due to their 2–1 aggregate loss to the
Republic of Ireland in the playoffs.
Ebrahim Mirzapour was able to keep his starting position in the national team coached by
Branko Ivankovic. He was the starting goalkeeper in Iran's successful run of victories, attaining a number of clean sheets throughout the
2006 World Cup qualifying matches.
Iran together with
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
were the first nations to qualify for the
2006 World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...
, where Mirzapour played in all three of Iran's matches.
Although his outstanding reflexes and agility are noted, Mirzapour has a habit of suffering from lapses in concentration and is prone to make mistakes especially on goal kicks. He played a great game in Iran's second World Cup match vs.
Portugal, although they lost 2–0.
Post World Cup
After the world cup and the criticism on him, he was invited to
Team Melli
) ''(the national team)' other nicknames''
, Badge = Flag_of_Iran.svg
, Badge_size = 190px
, Association = Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran
, FIFA Trigramme = IRN
, FIFA Rank ...
again for the match against South Korea in
2007 AFC Asian Cup qualification
The 2007 AFC Asian Cup qualification was held in late 2005 and the final qualification round was held from February to November 2006 with 25 nations participating.
For the first time, the defending champions (Japan), did not earn an automatic ...
match under the new coach
Amir Ghalenoei. After about two years he was invited to
Team Melli
) ''(the national team)' other nicknames''
, Badge = Flag_of_Iran.svg
, Badge_size = 190px
, Association = Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran
, FIFA Trigramme = IRN
, FIFA Rank ...
again in May 2008 under
Ali Daei and played for Team Melli in
West Asian Football Federation Championship 2008
The 2008 WAFF Championship was the fifth West Asian Football Federation Championship, an international tournament for West Asian countries and territories. It was hosted by Iran.
Teams
Six teams entered the tournament.
* (Hosts)
*
*
*
* ...
after about 2 years and won this cup but he got injured in the match against Qatar. He featured in
West Asian Football Federation Championship 2010 and was part of the squad in
2011 Asian Cup
The 2011 AFC Asian Cup was the 15th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were held in Qatar from 7 to 29 January 2011. It was the fifte ...
under
Afshin Ghotbi.
Honours
;Foolad
*
Iran Pro League (1):
2004–05
;Iran
*
Asian Games
The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until t ...
(1):
2002
File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
*
AFC/OFC Cup Challenge (1): 2003
*
West Asian Football Federation Championship
The West Asian Football Federation Championship (), or simply WAFF Championship, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the West Asian Football Federation (WAFF), the g ...
(1):
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
Notes
References
*
External links
RSSSF archive of Ebrahim Mirzapour's international appearancesa
TeamMelli.comInterview with Mirzapour by footballmedia.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mirzapour, Ebrahim
Iranian footballers
Persian Gulf Pro League players
Azadegan League players
Foolad F.C. players
Esteghlal Ahvaz F.C. players
Steel Azin F.C. players
Paykan F.C. players
Shahrdari Tabriz F.C. players
2004 AFC Asian Cup players
2006 FIFA World Cup players
2011 AFC Asian Cup players
Men's association football goalkeepers
People from Lorestan Province
1978 births
Living people
Iran men's international footballers
Asian Games gold medalists for Iran
Asian Games medalists in football
Footballers at the 2002 Asian Games
Medalists at the 2002 Asian Games