Tag: AS Roma

Azmoun’s injury is more serious than initially thought.

Team Melli and Roma striker Sardar Azmoun is returning to Rome after suffering a ‘serious’ hamstring injury while on international duty with the Iran national team.

The 29-year-old started the match against Turkmenistan and scored the second goal in a 5-0 win over Turkmenistan on Thursday but was forced off the pitch late in the first half with a hamstring injury.

He has already undergone medical tests in Iran and is now heading back to Rome to be assessed by Roma doctors.

The first fitness updates are quite worrying for Roma and their strikers who spoke to varzesh3 after the game and said: “My injury is serious, I need to get an MRI, but I’m sure it’s a hamstring tendon tear,”

Azmoun is on loan at Roma from Bayer Leverkusen and the Giallorossi have an option to make his move permanent in the summer. The Iran international has two goals and two assists in 21 appearances across all competitions this season.
Azmoun is the second-highest international goal scorer for Iran with 52 goals after the legendary Ali Daei.

Roma are expected to release an official statement after the striker’s medical tests in the Italian capital.

Meanwhile, Azmoun is added to the injury list of Team Melli who is preparing for the return match against Turkmenistan next Tuesday 26th March. The list includes Alireza Jahanbakhsh, who is already in the squad plus long-time absentees Majid Hosseini and Sadegh Moharrami.

Azmoun action week continues as his club coach is sacked!

Jose Mourinho has been sacked by Italian side Roma after two-and-a-half years in charge – with former club captain Daniele De Rossi replacing him until the end of the season.

The Portuguese manager, 60, joined the Serie A side in May 2021 and won the Europa Conference League in May 2022. He was instrumental in bringing Sardar Azmoun to AS Roma.

The former Chelsea, Manchester United, and Real Madrid boss also guided the Italian club to the Europa League final last year, where they were defeated by Sevilla on penalties.
But Roma have won just one of their last six Serie A games this season – leaving them ninth in the table – and were recently knocked out of the Coppa Italia by city rivals Lazio.

He compared himself to Harry Potter – perhaps implying he still has the “magic” touch as a manager – following that defeat. During the match, he received a red card for the second successive game – saying he was “raising expectations” for what the club can achieve. The club’s American owners, Dan and Ryan Friedkin, thanked Mourinho for his “passion and efforts” in a statement announcing his sacking.

They later announced that Rome-born De Rossi – who spent 18 years at the club as a player, making more than 600 appearances – will take over the role until the end of the season.
Mourinho won two Premier League titles and three cups during his first spell at Stamford Bridge, before being sacked and joining Inter Milan, where he won two Italian league titles and a second Champions League.

Mourinho then joined Spanish giants Real Madrid, winning one La Liga title, before a second spell at Stamford Bridge, in which he won his third Premier League.

He later had spells at Manchester United – winning a Europa League title – and Tottenham Hotspur, before joining Roma.

With Azmoun in Doha playing for Team Melli in the AFC Asian Cup, it is not clear if he will be in Daniele De Rossi’s plans or if he will improve his game times in the presence of Lukaku and Dybala. A good showing in Doha will certainly improve his reputation in AS Roma.

Azmoun was dismissed before joining the Team Melli squad

Lazio and AS Roma football teams met in the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia on Wednesday evening. The match ended with Lazio winning 1-0. Zaccagni (51′ penalty) scored the only goal of this match for Lazio. Sardar Azmoun, Team Melli striker, was replaced Rick Karsdorp’s in Roma’s lineup in the 58th minute to vitalize the front line and prevent the team from losing, but he was unable to get anywhere until he was finally expelled from the field in the 90th minute due to a fight with an opponent player!

Meanwhile, the player has arrived in Doha to join the squad on Thursday. It wasn’t the best of circumstances for the naughty boy of Iran, known for his explosive reaction during bad times.

Awaiting Team Melli’s squad list.

With just a few days to the new year and a fortnight to go for the AFC Asian Cup 2023 Qatar, Team Melli is experiencing an eerie silence. The players are carrying out their club duties with mixed fortune in Iran and abroad, while the coaching staff is busy analyzing the performance of the same players over and over again, in a vain attempt to find something encouraging.

Although Ghalenoei claimed that Team Melli is open to all suitable Iranian players, the truth remains that he is not looking anywhere beyond the 30-odd players that he inherited from Carlos Queiroz despite being short of a year now in charge of Team Melli.

A certain unreliable, Mohammad Nabi has claimed that Team Melli will have a couple or more preparatory friendly matches before the team departs to Doha, including a friendly with Japan and Indonesia, but apart from his claim we could not see anything to substantiate that.

There has been no statement or progress report from the Team Melli camp about the immediate plan with two weeks left. The domestic league is being played as normal and the competition is heating up, which is a good omen for Team Melli members playing in Iran.

In Europe,  the progress of the Iranians is mixed. Taremi is back on the scoring trail, Azmun is still a bench player coming in the latter stages of matches with AS Roma and managing to score a solitary goal so far, and Alireza Jahanbakhsh’s days with Feyenoord is coming to an end as the club is not willing to renew his contract and is still a benchwarmer in the Eredivisie. Saman Ghoddos has found himself in a new role at Brentford and he is not doing a bad job either. He is proving to be a versatile footballer now that he has played in all three outfield posts in competitions.

Ali Gholizadeh is not doing too great in the Polish league with Lech Poznan playing a total of 4 matches since the start of the league and now he has been relegated to the second ties team of the Polish league. Saeid Ezatolahi is in Denmark, and his form has been fluctuating and that is evident in his club Vejle BK sitting at the bottom of the league and facing relegation.

The two players in Turkey, Ali Karimi, and Majid Hosseini are in a much better situation as both seem to be regular starters and their team is ranked 4th in the Turkish Super League.

One significant player who will probably miss selection for the Team Melli squad for the Asian Cup is Allahyar Sayyadmanesh, a player who was beaming with confidence and was a star in the Ukraine league, but his transfer to England with Hull has been going from bad to worse. Similar to Sayyadmanesh, it seems that Mehdi Ghaeydi another young Iranian player with so much promise, is not going to make it either despite showing a reasonable standard in the UAE league.

The squad name should be published soon, but no one should be under any illusion that new names will added to the 30-year-old players that have played together and dominated Team Melli since FIFA World Cup 2018 in Russia.

Azmoun scores his first goal for Roma.

Team Melli center forward, opened his scoring account for his club AS Roma in the Italian league this evening when Roma beat Lecce 2-1 in a thrilling encounter at Stadio Olimpico in Rome.

AS Roma were trailing their guests 0-1 with a goal scored in the 72nd minute from Almqvist. However, two minutes into injury time, a cross from Roma’s Nicola Zalewski found Sardar Azmoun who headed into the net for the equalizer.

Two minutes later, Lukaku scored the winner deep into the injury time to the delight of Roma’s fans and its beleaguered coach Jose Mourinho.

Azmoun, who is been occupying the bench for most of the season, came in as a substitute in the 72nd minute. Mourinho’s first choices forward have always been the Belgian Romelo Lukaku and the Argentine Dybala. Azmoun is number three in the pecking order.

Roma had to drop Azmoun’s name from the European competition squad in order to comply with the foreign player’s quota registration by UEFA. That has taken the chance for Team Melli forward to at least play in the Europa Cup which Roma is involved in.

AS Roma is currently in 8th place in Serie A after 11 games and 11 points behind league leaders Internazionale (Inter Milan)

SARDAR AZMOUN DESCRIBES HIS FIRST IMPRESSIONS AS ROMA’S LATEST SIGNING: “I WANT TO WIN.”

Team Melli cnter forward Sardar Azmoun is officially a new AS Roma player.

The 28-year-old – who joined the club on loan from Bayer Leverkusen with a buy option at the end of the season – gave his first interview to Roma TV after signing his new contract.

During the interview, Azmoun described the process leading to his arrival in the Italian capital and the opportunity of working with Jose Mourinho.

“I am very happy, because I am in one of the most important clubs in the world and there are no words to describe my emotions but I am very, very happy to be here.”

“I am aware that I have arrived in one of the best clubs in Europe. Once I heard that Roma were interested in me I couldn’t sleep at night. I couldn’t wait to join the team. I think there is nothing more beautiful for a player.”

“Roma have excellent players, among the best in the world, in every position. When we met in the Europa League, they played aggressively the way I liked it. I like the team, I like how they play. They are very good.”

“For me, Mourinho is the best coach in the world, I can’t wait to work with him, I will definitely learn many things and we will give everything for the team.”

“Obviously we want to win some trophies this year, my goal and dream is to do it with Roma. It has a huge fan base, among the best in Europe. An excellent staff, and an excellent squad. I want to win here.”

The story behind the Special One’s interest – Mourinho finally welcomes Azmoun at Roma

Azmoun is set to join the Giallorossi from Bayer Leverkusen. He’s been a long-time target for Mourinho who had already tried to sign the 28-year-old in 2021, during his first season at the Stadio Olimpico.

Mourinho and Roma’s interest was so evident that Azmoun’s at-the-time club Zenit jokingly warned the Special One off their striker. The Iran international eventually joined Bayer Leverkusen the following summer.

Given Zenit’s reluctance to sell Azmun in 2021, Roma eventually signed Shomurodov from Genoa but the Uzbekistan forward didn’t live up to expectations at the Stadio Olimpico scoring just six goals in 48 games and joining Spezia and Cagliari on loan.

Mou and Azmoun crossed paths this past May during a Europa League semifinal between Roma and Bayer Leverkusen when the Special One hugged the striker before his introduction from the bench in the second half.

Roma needed a new center forward this summer following Tammy Abraham’s knee injury in the last Serie A game of 2022-23. At the moment, Andrea Belotti, scorer of a brace in the first league game of 2023-24, is the only center forward available for Mourinho.

Azmoun has arrived in Rome to undergo his medical tests, and his transfer is expected to be made official soon.

The Iranian forward will join the Capital giants on an initial loan with an option to buy for €13 million.

The Giallorossi are looking to add another centre-forward to their ranks before the end of the transfer window, with Lukaku’s name cropping up in recent times.

Jose Mourinho, who has managed Lukaku at both Chelsea and Manchester United, has indicated that the Belgium international could join alongside Sardar Azmoun.

When asked about Roma’s move for Lukaku, Mourinho said on Friday: “I struggle to talk about Azmoun, let alone talk about Lukaku who is still a Chelsea player.”

AZMOUN LAND IN ROME AHEAD OF AS ROMA SWITCH

Sardar Azmoun is set to join Roma from Bayer Leverkusen.

The capital club has finalized a deal for the Iran international who is expected to join the Giallorossi on loan from Leverkusen after two underwhelming seasons in the Bundesliga.

According to Filippo Biafora of Il Tempo, Azmoun has already boarded a flight to Rome and landed in Ciampino airport at 20h00 local time.

The 28-year-old striker will undergo his medical with Roma tomorrow morning (Friday) before signing his contract with the Italian side.

Roma will have a buy option on Azmoun which will amount to around €13 million.

Roma’s transfer market escapades this season can be best described as a total slog. While certain moves happened in a flash, Roma’s hunt for a second striker to complement Andrea Belotti has hit snag after snag, and when Gian Piero Gasperini reportedly blocked Duvan Zapata’s move to Roma, it seemed like Roma might never get their striker.

Well, the hunt for a new striker is over.

Completely out of the blue, Serie A journalists started reporting this morning that instead of continuing to push for Duvan Zapata, Tiago Pinto decided to go in a different direction: signing Iranian striker Sardar Azmoun from Bayer Leverkusen and fulfilling one of José Mourinho’s original requests when he signed with Roma back in 2021.

Of course, back in 2021, Roma was unable to sign Azmoun and instead went to Eldor Shomurodov, while after his near-move to Roma, Azmoun continued with Zenit for one more season before moving to Leverkusen in the summer of 2022. Now, with both Roma and Azmoun unsatisfied with their current situations, it looks as if the Iranian Messi will truly be wearing a Roma kit.

Azmoun comes to Roma on an inexpensive loan with an option deal (what else), with that option valued at somewhere between €10 and €12 million. As opposed to the rumored Zapata deal, which Atalanta reportedly was finally going to accept this morning until Pinto decided to sign Azmoun, bringing in Azmoun on an inexpensive loan with an option likely leaves the door open for the Giallorossi to push hard for a January signing of Marcos Leonardo. A loan signing also makes Roma’s depth chart at striker seem slightly more manageable if Marcos Leonardo is signed, Belotti rediscovers his form, and Tammy Abraham returns from injury.

There are some hitches that prevent this move from being a perfect transfer, despite Roma seeming to beat out AC Milan for the striker’s signature. First is the simple matter that Azmoun is reportedly injured in the short term, with a reported return date of early September. That injury might make him feel right at home with Roma, but it doesn’t solve the immediate problems the Giallorossi are facing in terms of striker depth.

Perhaps more concerning is that Azmoun will undoubtedly be called up by the Iranian National Team for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup, which takes place between January 12 and February 10 of 2024. Is it really worthwhile to bring in a striker on loan who’s unavailable right now and is almost guaranteed to be unavailable for an entire month later in the season?

This rumor seems to becoming reality incredibly fast, so expect more analysis on the Sardar Azmoun front once he’s landed in Rome. Keep an eye out on the Marcos Leonardo transfer saga as well, as reports indicate that Manchester United might be trying to swoop in on Roma’s pre-agreement with Santos. So that’s fun.

Arsenal interested in highly rated forward Azmoun as Lacazette replacement

Arsenal are eyeing Zenit St Petersburg forward Sardar Azmoun.

Onze Mundial says the Gunners have identified Zenit St Petersburg forward Sardar Azmoun as a potential Alexandre Lacazette replacement.

Lacazette is wanted by a host of top European clubs, including LaLiga champions Atletico Madrid. The 30-year-old’s contract expires next June, meaning a pre-contract can be arranged from January.

And Zenit’s Azmoun – dubbed the ‘Iranian Lionel Messi’ – is on the Gunners’ list to replace the Frenchman.

They are not the first Premier League side to be linked with his services. Azmoun revealed last month that he had rejected Tottenham during the summer.

On a potential transfer, he said: “I never said that I was leaving Zenit. The media wrote that I was undergoing a medical examination and agreed on everything with a certain team. I have a contract, even if I wanted to leave, the club will not allow it. It was the media that sent me to another team.”

“I had offers from Lyon, Roma, Bayer [Leverkusen], and Tottenham. But all the proposals were rejected, this year I will not move anywhere.”

The Iranian forward impressively scored 19 goals in 29 appearances for the Russian club last season. Currently, on duty with his national team playing in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 qualifiers.

Italian media: Roma loses Azmoun to Bayer Leverkusen!

According to some Italian media, Azmoun is heading towards the Bundesliga. The Team Melli central forward who opened his scoring this season with a goal this weekend is the center of much speculation about his immediate future. The player himself is tight-lipped so is the Russian club, but that does not prevent daily news about his possible transfer out of Zenit.

footballItalia.net has published the following report today:

Roma are expected to miss out on Zenit St Petersburg center-forward Sardar Azmoun, as Bayer Leverkusen are closing on a deal.

The Giallorossi and Germans were both interested in the 26-year-old Iran international.

His contract with Zenit is due to expire in June 2022 and he seems ready to move on for a new experience.

According to Tuttomercatoweb, Roma are not going to pursue Azmoun, as he has already pledged his future to Bayer Leverkusen. The Bundesliga outfit still needs to agree terms with Zenit, who are asking for circa €20m.

However, they are expected to whittle it down and probably get closer to that fee than Roma was prepared to pay.

Azmoun has 34 goals in just 52 senior caps for Iran, playing his club football for Rubin Kazan, Rostov and since February 2019 at Zenit.

He found the net 19 times in 29 competitive games for Zenit St Petersburg last season, as well as setting up six goals for his teammates.