Edmond Bezik ( fa, ادموند بزيک; hy, Էդմունդ Բազիկյան, born 12 August 1975 in

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...

, Iran) is a retired

Armenian-Iranian Iranian-Armenians ( hy, իրանահայեր ''iranahayer''), also known as Persian-Armenians ( hy, պարսկահայեր ''parskahayer''), are Iranians of Armenian ethnicity who may speak Armenian as their first language. Estimates of thei ...

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

. He played for

Persepolis , native_name_lang = , alternate_name = , image = Gate of All Nations, Persepolis.jpg , image_size = , alt = , caption = Ruins of the Gate of All Nations, Persepolis. , map = , map_type ...

Sepahan Foolad Mobarakeh Sepahan Sport Club ( fa, باشگاه فرهنگی ورزشی فولاد مبارکه سپاهان اصفهان, ''Bâšgâh-è Varzeši-ye Fulâd-è Mobârake-ye Sepâhân''), commonly known as Sepahan S.C., are an Iranian spor ...

and Ararat Tehran and was a member of

Iran national football team ) ''(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 ...

. He is currently head coach of

's under-23 team.

Club career

Bezik originally started his play in the

FC Ararat Tehran FC Ararat ( fa, آرارات تهران, ''Ârarat Tehran'') is an Armenian diaspora football team based in Tehran, Iran who play in the Tehran Province League. Ararat football club is the football club of the multisport Ararat Club in Iran. A ...

, which has a policy of recruiting young Iranian footballers of Armenian ancestry. There he was noticed for his impressive finishing skills, and was soon transferred to Persepolis Tehran. There he was able to please fans and scored some memorable goals. Arguably his most memorable game may have been in 1996 during the Tehran derby between Persepolis FC and Esteghlal. Persepolis had not beaten Esteghlal for seven seasons, but Bezik was able to score the last minute winner in that match to claim a spot in many Persepolis fan's hearts. Success was short-lived though and after a couple of very poor seasons, he along with many other Persepolis players were let go from the team. Bezik was immediately signed by Foolad Sepahan. His move to

Isfahan Isfahan ( fa, اصفهان, Esfahân ), from its Achaemenid empire, ancient designation ''Aspadana'' and, later, ''Spahan'' in Sassanian Empire, middle Persian, rendered in English as ''Ispahan'', is a major city in the Greater Isfahan Regio ...

was just what his career needed. In the 2002–03 season of the

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 ...

, Bezik became the league's top goalscorer with 13 goals, and led the team to the league championship. He was deservedly called up to the

national team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exam ...

and was starting to make his way into the squad when he became injured. He has come back from his injury but has not been able to score consistently. When new Sepahan manager,

Luka Bonačić Luka Bonačić (; born 21 March 1955) is a Croatian football coach and former professional player. Early life He was born in Split, Croatia that was then part of Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. He began his football career at the Spl ...

was hired, he deemed that Bezik was not needed for the squad. Bezik signed a one-year contract with

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 ...

outfit,

Shahrdari Bandar Abbas Shahrdari Bandar Abbas ( fa, شهرداری بندر عباس, ''Shiherdari-ye Bendâr Obas'') is an Iranian football club based in Bandar Abbas, Iran. They currently compete in Iran Football's 2nd Division. History Establishment At the end of ...

, with whom he will be playing until the end of the 2006–07 season. Bezik's work ethic, and hard work is always a positive point for his clubs.

Top goalscorer

Having scored 22 goals for Ararat, 32 goals for Persepolis and 30 goals for Sepahan, he scored a total number of 84 goals during his time in Iran's top division football league, becoming the top division's all-time top goalscorer.

Honours

Club

;Persepolis *

Iranian Football League The Iranian football league system is a series of interconnected leagues for football clubs in Iran. Structure The current structure has been in place since 2001. The Persian Gulf Pro League (PGL) is the highest level of club football in Iran. I ...

(3): 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000 *

Hazfi Cup Hazfi Cup (Jām-e Hazfi; ) is the Iranian football knockout cup competition, run by the Iranian Football Federation. The Iranian football league was not held during the 1980s, hence the winner of Hazfi Cup represented Iran in the Asian Club Cha ...

(1): 1998–99 ;Sepahan *

(1): 2002–03 *

(1): 2003–04

Individual

Iran Pro League The Persian Gulf Pro League ( fa, لیگ برتر خلیج فارس, ''Lig-e Bartar-e Xalij-e Fârs''), formerly known as the Iran Pro League ( fa, links=no, لیگ برتر ایران, ''Lig-e bartar-e Irân''), is the highest division of profe ...

Top Goalscorer: 2002–03

References

"Close-Up on Edmond Bezik"
Persianfootball.com, 2 January 2005, Retrieved 18 July 2006
"مصاحبه با ادموند بزيك"
Tebyan.net, 29 May 2003, Retrieved 18 July 2006

External links

a
TeamMelli.comEdmond Bezik
at Tehran Football Committee {{DEFAULTSORT:Bezik, Edmund 1975 births Living people Footballers from Tehran Iranian people of Armenian descent Iranian footballers Ethnic Armenian sportspeople Iran men's international footballers Men's association football forwards Persepolis F.C. players F.C. Shahrdari Bandar Abbas players Sepahan S.C. footballers F.C. Ararat Tehran players Persian Gulf Pro League players Azadegan League players Persepolis F.C. non-playing staff