Mehdi Mahdavikia

Mehdi Mahdavikia (, born July 24, 1977 in Tehran, Iran) is an Iranian Football (soccer) player who currently plays for Eintracht Frankfurt in the Fußball-Bundesliga. He is captain of the Iran national football team and usually plays as a right winger or full-back.

Club career

Mehdi has been playing for Hamburger SV since 1999. He previously played for Persepolis F.C. 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 Fußball-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 FC Schalke 04.

Mehdi Mahdavikia's strongest points are his vision, passing skills, fast paced runs, and set-pieces such as corners, spotkicks and free kicks. He is usually the right-footed alternative to Van der Vaart's well known left foot. 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 magic carpet.

On June 8, 2007 he signed a 3-year contract with Eintracht Frankfurt.

Club career statistics

Last update: 13 August 2007

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 Asian Cup 2004, 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 national football team 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 and Yahya Golmohammadi who had publicly announced their intention to retire after the tournament. Mahdavikia was given the captain's band on August 16, 2006 in an Asian Cup Asian Cup 2007 (qualification) versus Syria national football team.

Awards and Honours

Individual

- HSV Player of the Year, 2002/03 and 2003/04
- Asian Footballer of the Year, 2003
- Chosen as the best offensive winger of the Bundesliga in the 2002/03 season by Kicker (sports magazine)
- Asian Young Footballer of the Year, 1997
- Won the Golden Boot award with Bank Melli F.C, 1995

Team

With the Iran national football team
- FIFA Football World Cup
- - Appearances and Goals: 1998 (1), 2006

- AFC Asian Cup
- - Appearances: 2000 (Quarter Finals) , 2004 (Third Place), 2007 (Quarter Finals)

With Hamburger SV
- Liga-Pokal: 2003
- UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2005

With Persepolis F.C]

- Iran's Premier Football League champion: 1995/1996, 1996/1997, 1998/1999

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.

Mahdavikia's brother, Hadi Mahdavikia currently plays for Saipa F.C] and his nephew, Mostafa Mahdavikia plays for Fajr Sepasi both in Iran's Premier Football League.

Famous matches

Mehdi's most prolific club match was Hamburger SV's match against Juventus in the UEFA 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.

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.