Ali Daei is an Iranian football coach and former striker who captained the Iranian national team from 2000 to 2006. Daei was a legendary goalscorer who was also known for his skillful shooting and aerial prowess. For this reason, he was considered the best Asian football player of all time.
Find out more about Ali Daei’s profile, debut, career, statistics, records, and rankings here.
|
BRIEF |
|
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FULL NAME |
Ali Daei |
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BIRTH |
March 21, 1969 |
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HEIGHT |
1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) |
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NATIONALITY |
Iranian |
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POSITION |
Front/Forward |
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EQUIPMENT |
Iranian national team |
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NUMBER |
10 |
Ali Daei was born on March 21, 1969 in Ardabil, Iran. In 1998, he began his football career at the age of 19 at his hometown club, Esteghlal Ardabil.
He left Ardabil and spent a season playing for Taxirani FC before moving to Bank Tejarat, also a football club based in Tehran, where he played for four years. During his time at Tejarat, he scored 49 goals in 75 games.
In 1994, Daei joined Persepolis, one of Tehran’s elite clubs. From 1994 to 1996 he continued to play for the team, scoring 23 goals in 38 appearances. He moved to Al Sadd for the 1996-1997 season after his great performance in the Asian Cup, and in 1997 he joined Bundesliga club Arminia Bielefeld.
Before ending his three-year contract with Arminia Bielefeld, Daei moved to Hertha BSC.
In the 1998-99 season he joined the Bayern Munich club and helped his team win the Bundesliga that same season.
Shortly after, Daei made history by becoming the first Asian player to play in the UEFA Champions League.
In 1999, he scored his two goals in the UEFA Champions League against Chelsea in a match that Hertha won 2-1, becoming one of the team’s most important players.
Debut
On June 6, 1993, Ali Daei received an offer he couldn’t refuse. The offer was to play for the Iran national football team or Team Melli. Daei debuted in the 1993 Eco Cup in a match against Pakistan, which Iran won.
International career
In a 6–0 victory over Chinese Taipei on 25 June 1993, he scored his first goal for his country, as part of the warm-up match for the 1994 FIFA World Cup.
He was recognized as the top scorer in the Asian round of the 1994 FIFA World Cup qualifiers with four goals in five games.
In 1996, Daei was named top scorer in men’s international football for scoring 20 goals for Iran by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS).
He scored his 85th international goal in a match against Lebanon in 2003, during an Asian Cup qualification match, later surpassing Ferenc Puskás (Hungary) to become the all-time leading scorer in international football.
In 2024, he scored four goals and his active goal total reached an all-time high of 102 total goals.
He then broke a world record by becoming the first male player to score the most active goals in international football.
After retiring, Daei became a soccer coach and coached many soccer teams. The teams he led are:
| 2006-2008 | saipa |
| 2007 | Students from Iran |
|---|---|
| 2008-2009 | Iran |
| 2009 | Islamic Azad University |
| 2009-2011 | Persepolis |
| 2011-2013 | Rah Ahan |
| 2013-2014 | Persepolis |
| 2015-2016 | Saba Qom |
| 2016-2017 | Naft Tehran |
| 2017-2019 | saipa |
Read also | Everything you need to know about the history of football (Soccer).
|
Appearances |
149 |
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Goals |
109 |
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Top scorer |
x3 |
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German Champion |
x1 |
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German League Cup winner |
x2 |
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Iranian champion |
x2 |
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Iran Cup Winner |
x1 |
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Champions League Participant |
x2 |
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World Cup participant |
x2 |
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German Cup runner-up |
x1 |
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Second top scorer |
x1 |
|
All-time leader in caps |
x1 |
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Asian Footballer of the Year |
x1 |
Ali Daei was the world’s top international goalscorer before Portuguese footballer Christiano Ronaldo broke his record.
Daei is currently second only to Christiano Ronaldo on the list of all-time leading scorers in international men’s football.
He has scored 109 goals in 149 appearances.
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Categories: Optical Illusion
Source: ptivs2.edu.vn