Tag: FC Porto

Smiles all across with Team Melli European competitions.

in the first round of this season’s UEFA club competitions, five out of six Iranian players were involved with their teams which all resulted in victories.

On Tuesday, Mehdi Taremi led his club Porto to a 3-1 win against Shakhter in Hamburg. Taremi scored one goal and was influential in another to start his campaign in a positive manner.

On the same night, Alireza Jahanbakhsh came in as a substitute and contributed a goal for his team Feyenoord in a 2-0 win against the Scottish champions Celtic.

Both the goals of Taremi and Jahanbakhsh were of high quality being praised by pundits.

On Thursday, AEK Athens with the presence of Team Melli Captain Ehsan Hajsafy who started the match, but was replaced by Milad Mohammadi, created the first shock of Europa League competition when they beat the south coast English Premier side Brighton 3-2 in a thrilling and eventful match.

In this match, Hajsafy was a major influencer as he gave away a penalty that Brighton scored, but then redeemed himself by providing an assist for the second AEK Athens goal. Hajsafy suffered a head injury and was replaced by Milad Mohammadi on the hour. Interestingly, when Mohammadi entered, the British TV commentator mentioned the AEK Players, nicknamed Milad “peep..peep” in reference to the speedy cartoon character “Road Runner”.

Due to the injury to Hajsafy in the second half, 14 extra minutes were added.

Sadegh Moharrami enjoyed the biggest win of the first round with Dinamo Zagreb after they defeated FC Astana 5-1 in Zagreb. Moharrami played the full 90 minutes and was one of the top-rated players of the match.

The surprise of the day, however, was the absence of Sardar Azmoun from the match sheet of AS Roma against FC Sherif. MOurinho’s team won that close match 2-1 away in Moldova with the winning goal coming from Lukaku.

The absence of Azmoun and Kristensen is due to restrictions imposed on AS Roma within the context of UEFA. For several years now, Roma has had to deal with the tight restrictions of the settlement agreement with UEFA over Financial Fair Play.

That includes the ‘transfer balance’ – so the current squad must be worth the same or less than last season’s group.

If that value is off balance, then the one way to get it back onto the right level is by leaving out new signings rather than those who were already part of the team.

Therefore, in order to make room for Lukaku, Roma has to leave out fellow new signings Azmoun and Kristensen.

So, it was a perfect week for Team Melli players with Taremi and Jahanbakhsh scoring while Hajsafy provided an assist.

Milan ready new offer for Porto striker Taremi

By Oliver Fisher – 

AC Milan have agreed personal terms with Porto forward Mehdi Taremi and are now working on a deal with the club, according to reports.

The Rossoneri are on the hunt for a new center-forward to complement Olivier Giroud and fill the void left behind by Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s departure.

Belgian journalist Sacha Tavolieri is reporting that Taremi has an agreement in principle with Milan over a four-year contract that would therefore run until June 2027.

Talks are now ‘concretely ongoing’ with FC Porto in order to find the right deal for the Iranian striker, with an official offer expected soon and more news to follow in due course.

Meanwhile, Claudio Raimondi has reported to SportMediaset (via MilanNews) that Milan has indeed agreed terms with Taremi, who is the Rossoneri’s first-choice target for the attack.

They say a three-year contract worth €3m net per year is ready, which is a pay rise compared to what he gets at Porto (€1.8m). However, there is still no agreement with the Portuguese club who are asking for €25m.

The club already made an offer for Taremi, proposing a deal worth around €13m, but this was swiftly rejected by Porto, who made it clear that they wanted around €20-25m for the Iranian striker.

The Milan management is willing to offer €20m maximum, while Jorge Mendes – who is the striker’s agent and also an intermediary in the operation – is working to try to find a meeting point.

The move could be the difference maker in securing the 30-year-old’s signature, considering that he’s entered the last year of his contract with the Portuguese side.

Last season, Taremi scored 31 goals and provided 14 assists in 51 appearances across all competitions.

Mehdi Taremi claims top scorer title while Porto loses the league title to Benfica.

Team Melli and FC Porto forward, Mehdi Taremi claimed his first top-scorer title in one of the top Europe leagues to become the third Iranian after Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Sardar Azmoun winning such accolades in the Eredivisie and Russuan premiere leagues respectively. Taremi ended the season 2022/23 with 22 goals, 3 more than second-place Goncalco Ramos of Benfica.

Meanwhile, FC Porto have failed in their defense of the Primeira Liga title after Benfica’s home win versus Santa Clara secured the championship, this Saturday, despite the Dragons’ 3-0 triumph at home to Vitória.

Sérgio Conceição’s men were in need of a huge favor from bottom-of-the-table Santa Clara in order to leapfrog Benfica at the top of the table, as Vitória came to town.

Porto held up their end of the bargain with a 3-0 victory, complete with goals from Mehdi Taremi, Otávio, and Evanilson, but an equally-proficient night in front of goal for the Eagles meant the Blue & Whites were kept at bay, trailing top-spot by two points on the final day of the season.

Conceição pulled up no surprises with his XI at the Estádio do Dragão, filled to the brim with hopefuls roaring their team on to a potential back-to-back conquest of the Primeira Liga title. Things began to look very favorable for the Northern giants after their regional heavyweights Vitória found themselves reduced to ten men just two minutes in, following Tomás Händel’s red card for a poor challenge on Matheus Uribe.

Just five minutes later, an incredible run on the counter from Pepê enabled the Brazilian to set Taremi up for the opener, with the Iranian requiring little more than a side-foot toward the goal to break the deadlock.

Unfortunately for the Dragons, the Eagles had also taken the lead via Gonçalo Ramos before doubling their advantage through Rafa Silva, just as Otávio’s strike across goal landed a second blow to Vitória in the 32nd minute.

In the 39th minute, Evanilson made it 3-0 with a classy finish on the half-volley, adding comfort to the scoreline before the half-time interval.

For the second half, the protagonists were the same but the intensity wasn’t quite at the levels demonstrated in the first period, with Vitória holding back Porto’s waning forcefulness and appetite.

The Primeira Liga’s top scorer Taremi neared a brace in the 67th minute with a chipped attempt on Bruno Varela, stopped by the ex-Benfica man before Ibrahima Bamba’s risqué clearance off the line, using his shoulder.

Porto left it a 3-0 – a score matched by Benfica at the Estádio da Luz – as the Dragons bowed out to a second-placed finish behind their bitter rivals, lifting the title for the first time in four years.

 

MEHDI TAREMI SCORING RECORD IN PORTUGAL

 

Season Team Comp Minutes played Appearances Lineups Substitute in Substitute out Substitutes on bench Goal Yellow card Yellow 2nd/RC Red card
2022/2023 Porto PRL 2636 33 31 2 22 2 22 7 0 0
2021/2022 Porto PRL 2434 32 27 5 13 5 20 4 1 0
2020/2021 Porto PRL 2226 34 26 8 20 8 16 1 0 1
2019/2020 Rio Ave PRL 2352 30 26 4 11 4 18 2 0 1

Taremi shines again and leads Porto to top the group

FC Porto and Team Melli striker, Mehdi Taremi, once again made the headlines as the Portuguese club defeated Atletico Madrid 2-1 in the last game of Group B of the UEFA Champions League.

Porto went ahead in the fifth minute when forward Taremi tapped in a cross from Evanilson, registering his fifth goal in the Champions League this season. Porto had already qualified for the last 16 but leapfrogged Club Brugge to finish as group winners with 12 points, one point ahead of the Belgians who also went through.

Taremi, for the second match in a row, managed to finish as the MVP of the difficult encounter against the powerful Diego Simeone players. Atletico Madrid failed to qualify from the group.

The five goals that Mehdi Taremi has scored so far is the highest number that has been achieved by any Iranian player in the history of the UEFA Champions League. The Iranian player from the Persian Gulf port city of Bushehr thus ensured that his name will be in the record books for many years to come. With 5 goals scored in five games, Taremi is on par with Manchester City’s Erling Haaland and Barcelona’s Robert Lewandowski in the list of top scorers of the UCL this season. Mohammed Salah (Liverpool) with 7 goals leads the table followed by Kylian Mbappe (PSG). Taremi finds himself amongst the elite of European elites to the delight of the Iranian fans.

Arsenal ‘interested in Mehdi Taremi transfer’ with Porto willing to sell Iran striker after World Cup as Jesus back-up

ARSENAL are reportedly interested in signing Mehdi Taremi as back-up for Gabriel Jesus.

And a deal could be on in January with Porto willing to sell the striker after the World CupA Bola claims Taremi, 30, has fired his way onto Mikel Arteta’s shortlist with seven goals and six assists in 11 games.

The Iran international is in his third season with Porto. And Taremi, who has a total of 56 strikes for the Portuguese giants, has already been linked with a move to Chelsea.

But it’s Arsenal who are reportedly leading the race this winter.

Sporting director Edu Gaspar usually only targets players under the age of 30.

But he is apparently willing to break his own rule this once in order to sign Taremi for title-chasing Arteta.

The Brazilian has five goals and four assists since his £45million switch from Manchester City.

And Arteta reckons only Taremi would be able to carry the torch in case of a setback in the second half of the campaign.

The striker’s representatives have already told Porto he is considering a change of scenery at the start of 2023. Sergio Conceicao’s side are no strangers to doing business in the winter market, with Luis Diaz joining Liverpool last January. And Porto are open to letting Taremi go for the right price.

But the ace will first strut his stuff for Iran at the World Cup, with their opening match in Group B against none other than Gareth Southgate’s England. Arsenal currently sit top of the table after beating Liverpool 3-2 on Sunday.

Taremi on the move as Arsenal ‘committed’ to winter move for Porto man.

Arsenal are preparing to make a bid for FC Porto and Team Melli striker Mehdi Taremi, according to Portuguese newspaper A Bola.

After a season of Mikel Arteta choosing between Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette, and Eddie Nketiah, the Spaniard now has Gabriel Jesus leading the line.

The Brazilian’s Gunners career has got off to a tremendous start, while Nketiah plays second fiddle in the Premier League. Nketiah is expected to get the nod in the Europa League and Carabao Cup, however.

The young Englishman was actually expected to depart Arsenal in the summer with his contract expiring, but he had a change of heart and decided to commit his future to his boyhood club. He was given the famous No. 14 shirt and always knew that Arteta was on the search for a new striker who would likely be his first choice.

 Nketiah doesn’t see it as him versus Jesus and knows there will be a lot of “opportunities” to play this season. “He’s (Jesus) a great player,” Nketiah said. “He’s good to play alongside and watch. He’s had a really good start and he’s a great guy off the pitch so I’m really happy for him.

You would not expect Arteta to delve into the transfer market in January to sign a new striker, barring an injury crisis.

However, it has been reported that the Gunners are keen on Porto’s Mehdi Taremi.

The Iranian has started 2022/23 very well, netting seven and assisting a further six in 11 appearances across all competitions. He is yet to get off the mark in the Champions League this term after being sent off against Atletico Madrid on matchday one.

The 30-year-old did assist both of his side’s goals against Bayer Leverkusen on Tuesday night, though. It is according to Portuguese newspaper A Bola (via Sport Witness) that Arsenal are ‘committed’ to signing Taremi in the January transfer window. It is said that English clubs were keen on signing the experienced striker in the summer.

Taremi’s representatives are keen for their client to move on after he plays in the World Cup for Iran. Porto are ‘willing to negotiate and are hoping for a similar transaction to last year when they sold Luis Diaz to Liverpool.

Chelsea are also given a mention by the newspaper.

The football battle of Azmoun and Taremi in UEFA Champions League.

Porto
04. Oct.2022

The much-anticipated clash between the two forwards of Team Melli in the UEFA Champions League ended as a one-sided affair in favor of Mehdi Taremi.

Sardar Azmoun simply did not turn up!

Mehdi Taremi played for 90 minutes in Stadio Dragao for FC Porto against Azmoun’s Bayer Leverkusen on Day 3 of the UCL, while Azmoun was an unused substitute. Taremi continued his splendid form and continued where he left off against Braga in the league where he provided 3 assists in a 4-1 win for Porto.

Against Leverkusen, he provided both the assists for his team’s goals and was denied by VAR for a splendid goal in the second half. There was nothing wrong with the goal with a counter-attacking move started by Taremi and finished by him. which came from a quick counter-attack as Porto’s keeper cleverly found Taremi. The Team Melli forward ran at least 30 yards before passing to his winger and receiving it back via another Porto player. Taremi scored past Hradecky inside the six-yard box with a lunging finish. The English referee Anthony Taylor disallowed the goal as a handball was committed in Porto’s box by a defender before reaching the ball to Diogo Costa in Porto’s goal.

in the 69th minute, Taremi receives the ball out wide from Galeno, lifts his head, and sends an inch-perfect cross to Zaidu at the far post. The Porto defender uses his pace in the cross to score 1-0 Porto.

Minute 86 Taremi drives with the ball in the box for a few yards before sliding Galeno through for a brilliant goal-scoring chance. The Porto winger did not have even to take a touch to settle himself before shooting due to the accuracy and perfect pace of the pass. 2-0 for Port and that was the end result. MEDI TAREMI with two clinical assists.

Taremi has been involved in four goals in his last five UEFA Champions League appearances at the Stadio Dragao (two goals and two assists), including assisting the winner for FC Porto’s last home win in UCL against AC Milan in Oct 2021.
Taremi was absent from his side’s 4-0 drubbing at home to Club Brugge last time out through suspension,

As for Azmoun, the face-to-face with Taremi did not materialize as he has been a peripheral player under coach Gerardo Seoane who much prefers Schick up front.

This one battle was settled for Taremi. The next round is the reverse fixture where Leverkusen will host Porto on Wednesday 12th Oct. Barring exceptional circumstances like injury, Taremi will be a starter for FC Porto. Now that the Czech forward Patrik Schich is suspended for that fixture, Azmoun might have shot in starting.

We shall see.

 

Taremi is pursued by Chelsea.

The Sun Newspaper
London 31.Aug.2022

CHELSEA are lining up a beat-the-deadline move for Porto strike sensation Mehdi Taremi, according to reports.

The Iran international bagged 26 goals in 48 games as his club won the Portuguese league and cup double last season.

Mehdi Taremi's stunning bicycle kick goal against Chelsea came second in the 2021 Puskas awards

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Mehdi Taremi’s stunning bicycle kick goal against Chelsea came second in the 2021 Puskas awards

Stamford Bridge boss Thomas Tuchel is desperately seeking reinforcements following the Blues’ poor start to the season.

They lost 2-1 at Southampton on Tuesday to slump to eighth in the Premier League. And Lisbon sports daily A Bola claims the German has targeted 30-year-old Taremi.

Under contract until 2024, the frontman is valued at £22million. The Iran ace is likely to face England at the World Cup finals in November.

He has 58 caps and 27 goals for his country.

All told Taremi has an impressive 53 goals from 101 Porto appearances.
He hit a stunning bicycle-kick winner as Porto beat Chelsea 1-0 in the Champions League in April 2021, although the Blues won the quarter-final 2-1 on aggregate.

The Persian goal machine was a bargain £4.25m buy from Portuguese side Rio Ave in 2020.
He previously played for three Iranian clubs and Qatari side Al-Gharafa.

Meanwhile, a Portuguese source claimed that Concesaou, the Porto Head Coach has threatened to resign if yet another of his strikers is sold.

Mehdi Taremi scores a hat-trick against Niazmand in a 7-0 win

Mehdi Taremi achieved a special achievement by recording his second hat-trick in the Portuguese league with his team Porto scoring an emphatic win against Portimonense.

In the 30th round of the Portuguese Football League Porto played against Portimonense who had TeamMelli’s reserve keeper Payam Niazmand in goal. Port won  7: 0. Taremi excelled in this match and managed to score a hat-trick with his dazzling performance. He scored in the 19th, 34th, and 47th minutes and also provided an assist.

Hattrick: Mehdi Taremi scored his second hat-trick of the season in this match. Benfica Uruguayan striker Darwin Nunz has the most hat-tricks in the Portuguese league this season three times.

Top scorers chart: The Iranian striker scored 18 goals in the league this season and is currently ranked second in the scorers’ table. Benfica’s Uruguayan striker is still in the lead. Darwin Nunes is the top scorer in the Portuguese league with 24 goals.

Assists: Taremi has the most assists with a goal against Portimonense, reaching a record of 13 assists, and after the Benfica player, Rafa Silva, The Team Melli forward lies in the second place in this category.

Taremi saves Porto from Home defeat

The top of the Portuguese League clash between the leaders Porto and second-placed Sporting Club was played at Dragao Stadium in Porto.

That important match for the Portuguese fans was also the center of interest for the Iranian as the Team Melli central forward Mehdi Taremi was starting and the stage was open for him to prove his worth especially after the rumored interest by Arsenal to sign him in the summer. Taremi did not disaaponit. Not only he was the man of the match, but he also scored a brilliant header to save his team from defeat from their fiercest rival.

In this ill-tempered match, Porto was stunned early in the game when the host Sporting scored the opener with a nice close-range header by Paulinho in the 8th minute. As that was not bad enough, the guests Sporting, managed to score the second goal of the game in the 34th minute by Nono Santos from an error committed by Porto Captain Pepe. Sergio Conceiço’s team was able to score their first goal on Mehdi Taremi’s assist to Vieira in the 38th minute.

The first half ended 1-2 to Sporting.

The physical play of both teams caused the referee to brandish many yellow cards, and by the 49th minute, the color of this card turned red for Sporting player Sebastian Coates, with Sporting having to play most of the second half with 10 players. Porto’s pressure was immense in the second half until finally, Mehdi Taremi raised majestically to head a cross into the far corner of Sporting keeper, scoring the equalizer in the 78th minute with his exceptional header.

After the goal, there were many clashes between the players and some also involved the bench. Some ugly scenes were witnessed with the Referee unable to control the match. Not only there were individual pockets of fights everywhere on the pitch which saw an invasion from everyone including the whole bench of both teams. The melee continued until the match was prematurely ended.

It was pandemonium and ugly. Pepe and another player sporting player were dismissed.

The bright side of these ugly scenes is that, for once, Mehdi Taremi took a distance from all these trouble spots. He hardly got himself involved with the opposition players and did not go to the referee and blab his mouth like he usually does. Is this a sign of maturity? We hope that Taremei, a star on his own right now at the world level, maintains this attitude and calm. Indeed it was a truly admirable act by rational Mehdi.

With this draw, Porto reached  60 points to remain at the top of the standings of the Portuguese Premier League.