Sirous Ghayeghran

Sirous Ghayeghran

Personal information
Full name	Sirous Ghayeghran
Date of birth	(1962-01-22)January 22, 1962
Place of birth	Bandar Anzali, Iran
Date of death
Height
Position(s)	Midfielder
Youth career
1970–1980	Malavan
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1980–1987	Malavan
1987–1989	Al-Ittihad
1989–1990	Esteghlal Anzali
1990–1991	Malavan
1991–1995	Keshavarz
International career
1986–1993	Iran	43	(6)
Managerial career
1994–1996	Keshavarz
1997–1998	Masoud Hormozgan
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Sirous Ghayeghran (Persian: سيروس قايقران‎‎) (January 22, 1962 – April 7, 1998) was a famous Iranian footballer and former captain of Iran national football team. He is notably referred as the legendary player of Malavan Bandar Anzali Football Club, and is one of the most popular icons in the city of Bandar Anzali.

Playing career

Club career

He played most of his club career for Malavan FC. In 1990 he signed for Ai-Ittihad of Qatar. He did not forget his roots and soon returned to Malavan, helping the club win the Hazfi Cup and participate in the Asian Club Championship. In 1993 he moved to the big spending team of the time Keshavarz FC, where he was also a coach. The team obtained respectable results but Ghayeghran moved to second division team Masoud Hormozgan where he coached once again. In 1997 and 1998 Ghayeghran stated numerous times that he would like to be involved with Malavan again, either as a coach or player.

International career

In February 1986 he made his debut for the national team against Pakistan. In 1987 Ghayeghran became the national team captain, after most of the already established national team members who had participated in the Asian tournaments from 1984 to 1986 resigned from playing (these included top stars such as Nasser Mohammadkhani, Hamid Alidoosti, Shahrokh Bayani, etc.) In 1988 thanks to Ghayeghran's leadership an underprepared and inexperienced Iran side finished third in the Asian Cup tournament. He and Mehdi Fonoonizadeh came out as the two players with their trademark long-range shots, which usually compensated for Iran's shortage in the area of teamwork. Two years later the team became the 1990 Asian Games champions, where Ghayeghran scored one of the most memorable goals in Iranian football history against South Korea.

He finished his international career with 43 caps and 6 goals.

Iran national team
Year	Apps	Goals
1985	1	0
1986	7	1
1987	2	0
1988	10	1
1989	8	1
1990	5	1
1991	1	0
1992	8	2
1993	1	0
Total	43	6

Death

On March 26, 1998 as Ghayeghran and some family members were driving towards Tehran during a holiday in Norouz, they collided with a truck, leaving Ghayeghran and his son dead.

Legacy

Ghayeghran's love of football began early, playing with local children in the streets and alleys of his home city. He was soon playing in the youth provincial team of Gilan and also joined his hometown club, Malavan. Even at a young age Ghayeghran was known to be a down to earth person, with a great attitude, and instantly became a fan favorite.

Ghayeghran will always be remembered as one of the finest examples of an athlete in Iran. He helped charities privately, and always had time for his fans. He paved the way for players who were not born or raised in Tehran to make it to the national team and helped Malavan and Bandar Anzali earn a place in Iranian football.

Honors

Club

Malavan

• Hazfi Cup: 1986, 1990
  • Runner-up: 1987

National

Iran

• Asian Games: 1990

External links

• Sirous Ghayeghran at National-Football-Teams.com
• Ghayeghran Biography (Persian)
• Ghayeghran Official Weblog (Persian)
• Sirous Ghayeghran at TeamMelli.com

Sporting positions
Preceded by Mohammad Panjali	Iran national football team captain 1987-1989	Succeeded by Mohammad Panjali
Preceded by Mohammad Panjali	Iran national football team captain 1991-1993	Succeeded by Hamid Derakhshan