Saman Ghoddos

Saman Ghoddos (Persian: سامان قدوس‎; pronounced [sɒːmɒːn ɢoduːs]; born 6 September 1993) is an Iranian professional footballer who plays for Amiens SC in the French Ligue 1 and the Iranian national team as an attacking midfielder, striker, or winger, having previously played for the Swedish national team.

Saman Ghoddos

Ghoddos training with Iran in 2018
Personal information
Full name	Saman Ghoddos (Sweden)[1][2] Seyed Saman Ghoddoos (Iran)[3]
Date of birth	(1993-09-06) 6 September 1993[4]
Place of birth	Malmö, Sweden
Height	1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)[3]
Playing position(s)	Midfielder, forward
Club information
Current team	Amiens
Number	7
Youth career
	BK Vangen
0000–2007	FC Malmö
2007–2011	Limhamn Bunkeflo
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2011–2012	Limhamn Bunkeflo	41	(4)
2013	Trelleborg	18	(1)
2014–2015	Syrianska FC	54	(14)
2016–2018	Östersunds FK	65	(27)
2018–2020	Amiens	32	(5)
National team^‡
2017	Sweden	2	(1)
2017–	Iran	21	(2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 00:46, 24 April 2020 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 20:21, 28 January 2019 (UTC)

Club career

Östersund

2016 season

Saman Ghoddos scored 10 league goals in his first season in the Allsvenskan for Östersunds FK, including their first top-flight goal in his Allsvenskan debut on 4 April 2016 against Hammarby IF.[5] He scored a brace at his hometown club Malmö FF on 22 October in Swedbank Stadion. After his good performances in the 2016 season, Ghoddos drew interest from German club Hertha Berlin and Dutch club Ajax.[6][7]

2017 season

Ghoddos started the 2017 season in fine form, leading Östersund to the Swedish Cup final with six goals in six games, including an acrobatic goal in the quarter-final against Trelleborgs FF and a brace in the semi-final against Häcken.[8] He scored his seventh domestic cup goal of the season in the final, leading Östersund to the second qualifying round of the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League with manager Graham Potter.[9]

In his UEFA debut, Ghoddos scored a goal and provided an assist for a 2–0 win against Galatasaray on 13 July 2017.[10] In the return leg, Ghoddos won a penalty with a dribble past Fernando Muslera.[11] In a league match on 13 August, he scored a long-range goal from 40 meters out against Hammarby IF in Stockholm's Tele2 Arena.[12] On 24 August, Ghoddos scored two goals in the Europa League play-offs against PAOK to qualify his team to the group stages of the competition. He scored the club's first tournament proper goal in their group stage debut on 14 September.[13] He won the attacker of the year award at the end of the 2017 Allsvenskan season.[14] On 23 November, Ghoddos scored the winning goal to send his club to the knockout phase of the Europa League.[15]

2018 season

I believe that the most impressive in the first game was Ghoddos, who is a marvellous player. Technically and tactically, I was impressed by him.

—Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger on Ghoddos, 22 February 2018.[16][17]

Ghoddos provided two assists in his side's 2–1 win in the second leg of the Europa League round of 32 against English Premier League side Arsenal in London, though they were defeated 4–2 on aggregate.[18] He scored his first league goal of the season on 15 April against IFK Göteborg, and scored a free kick on 30 April against Brommapojkarna.[19] On 14 May, he scored from a free kick against AIK in the Friends Arena.[20] He scored another goal in the next game during a derby match against GIF Sundsvall.[21] Upon returning from the World Cup, Ghoddos captained his club side and scored a goal in a 2–1 win at Hammarby.[22] He scored another free kick in the following match on 14 July at Malmö FF.[23] Ghoddos scored a brace in the following match against Trelleborg to become joint-top scorer of the 2018 Allsvenskan.[24] He subsequently won the Allsvenskan player of the month award for his performances in July.[25]

Amiens

On 23 August 2018, Ghoddos transferred to French Ligue 1 side Amiens SC signing a five-year contract. The transfer fee paid to Östersund was reported as 40 million SEK (about €3.8 million) plus bonuses which would make the transfer the third-most expensive in Allsvenskan history after Alexander Isak and Zlatan Ibrahimović.[26][27] However, the transfer was put in doubt by La Liga newcomers SD Huesca contacting FIFA to enquire about the validity of their own agreement to sign Ghoddos. Ghoddos had signed a contract with the Spanish club which also had a written agreement with Östersund. Previously, Stade Rennais had decided against signing Ghoddos.[28]

Ghoddos made his competitive debut for Amiens on 25 August 2018 in the Ligue 1 4–1 home win over Reims, scoring a goal for Amiens in the 58th minute. He thus became the first Iranian player to play in Ligue 1.[29][30]

On 29 August 2019, FIFA suspended Ghoddos from all games for four months plus a €4 million fine for his failed transfer to Huesca.[31]

International career

Sweden

Due to his Iranian heritage, Ghoddos was eligible to be called up by both Iran and Sweden. In December 2016, Ghoddos was called up by Sweden manager Janne Andersson for friendlies against Ivory Coast and Slovakia. He made his debut against the Ivory Coast on 8 January 2017 and scored his first international goal for Sweden in a 6–0 win over Slovakia on 12 January 2017.[32][33]

Iran

In June 2017, Ghoddos revealed that he had been approached by the Iranian federation.[34] In an interview in July 2017, Ghoddos stated that he may accept an invitation to play for Carlos Queiroz's Iran should he be given one.[35][36] He applied for Iranian citizenship on 21 August, stating that it is an honor to play for Sweden and his decision to represent either country is "fifty-fifty".[37][38] He was not called into Sweden's World Cup qualification squad on 23 August, with Janne Andersson opting to choose expatriate footballers and stating that Ghoddos is not far from a call-up if he were to remain with the Swedish national team.[39][40][41]

Ghoddos playing for Iran at the 2018 FIFA World Cup

On 25 August 2017, Ghoddos revealed in an interview that he acquired his Iranian passport from the embassy.[42] The following day, 26 August 2017, he announced on his Instagram page that he would be joining Iran for their 2018 World Cup qualifiers against South Korea and Syria.[43] Ghoddos was called up for the first time for the Iran senior team training camps on 27 August 2017 by coach Carlos Queiroz for Iran's 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches against South Korea and Syria.[44] After Ghoddos couldn't make his debut for Iran due to administrative issues with FIFA, he was called into Sweden's World Cup qualification squad on 27 September for matches against Luxembourg and Netherlands.[45] However, on 29 September, the Swedish Football Association released a statement on their website stating Ghoddos had rejected the offer, choosing to play for Iran instead.[46] He made his debut for Iran in a 2–0 friendly victory against Togo on 5 October 2017.[47][48][49] On 9 November, he scored his first goal for Iran in a friendly match against Panama.[50]

On 13 May 2018, Ghoddos was named in Queiroz's preliminary squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.[51] In an interview with Olof Lundh in May 2018, Ghoddos stated that if the Swedish federation had contacted him earlier, it's very likely for him to have chosen to represent Sweden, though he does not regret his decision to play for Iran.[52] Club teammate Emil Krafth later added that Ghoddos told him he wanted to play for Sweden.[53][54] He was named in Iran's final 23-man squad for the 2018 World Cup on 4 June 2018.[3] Ghoddos made his World Cup debut against Morocco on 15 June 2018, winning a free kick that led to a goal for Iran’s first World Cup win in twenty years.[55] He was used as a substitute in all three World Cup matches against Morocco, Spain and Portugal.[56] After the World Cup in November 2018, Ghoddos faced conscription issues in Iran.[57]

He was named in Queiroz’s final squad for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup on 26 December 2018.[58] In the team's opening match of the tournament, Ghoddos came on as a second-half substitute and scored the final goal in a 5–0 victory over Yemen.[59]

Style of play

Ghoddos plays as an attacking midfielder, striker or winger, and has been praised for his technical ability and clinical finishing.[17]

Outside football

Personal life

Ghoddos was born and raised in Malmö and speaks English, Swedish, and Persian. His parents were born in Iran and hail from the city of Ahvaz.[35]

Sponsorship

Ghoddos has a contract with American sportswear supplier Nike and wears the Mercurial Vapor line.[60]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 26 April 2020[61]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			Cup		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Limhamn Bunkeflo	2011	Division 1	17	0	2	0	—		—		19	0
	2012		24	4	1	0	—		—		25	4
	Total		41	4	3	0	—		—		44	4
Trelleborg	2013	Division 1	18	1	0	0	—		—		18	1
Syrianska	2014	Superettan	29	6	3	1	—		—		32	7
	2015		25	8	4	2	—		—		29	10
	Total		54	14	7	3	—		—		61	17
Östersund	2016	Allsvenskan	27	10	4	2	—		—		31	12
	2017		23	8	6	6	13[lower-alpha 1]	5	—		42	19
	2018		15	9	5	2	—		—		20	11
	Total		65	27	15	10	13	5	—		93	42
Amiens	2018–19	Ligue 1	27	4	0	0	—		1	0	28	4
	2019–20		5	1	1	0	—		1	0	7	1
	Total		32	5	1	0	—		2[lower-alpha 2]	0	35	5
Career total			210	51	26	13	13	5	2	0	251	69

1. Appearances in the Europa League
2. Appearance in the Coupe de la Ligue

International

As of 28 January 2019.[62]

Sweden
Year	Apps^1	Goals
2017	2	1
Iran
Year	Apps	Goals
2017	4	1
2018	11	0
2019	6	1
Total	21	2

• 1.^ Including friendly match against the Ivory Coast that Swedish Football Association counts but is not officially recognized by FIFA.[63]

International goals for Sweden

Scores and results list Sweden's goal tally first.[62]

#	Date	Venue	Cap	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	12 January 2017	Armed Forces Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates	2	Slovakia	6–0	6–0	Friendly

International goals for Iran

Scores and results list Iran's goal tally first.[62]

#	Date	Venue	Cap	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	9 November 2017	Liebenauer Stadium, Graz, Austria	3	Panama	2–0	2–1	Friendly
2.	7 January 2019	Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates	16	Yemen	5–0	5–0	2019 AFC Asian Cup

Honours

Club

Östersunds FK[64]

• Svenska Cupen: 2016–17

Individual

• Allsvenskan Attacker of the Year: 2017[14]
• Allsvenskan Player of the Month: July 2018[25]

References

1. "Saman Ghoddos".
2. "Saman Ghoddos — svenskfotboll.se". 8 December 2015.
3. "2018 FIFA World Cup Russia – List of Players" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 4 June 2018. Retrieved 4 June 2018.
4. "Saman Ghoddos — svenskfotboll.se". svenskfotboll.se.
5. "Allsvensk statistik — svenskfotboll.se". svenskfotboll.se.
6. "Holt Hertha jetzt Schwedens Offensivstar Ghoddos?".
7. "Ajax ryktas visa intresse för Ghoddos: "Inte kommit något bud" - Sillybloggen". blogg.fotbollskanalen.se.
8. "TV: Östersund till cupfinal - Ghoddos sänkte Häcken: "Stolt över killarna"".
9. "Svenska Cupen, Slutspel Matchinformation: Östersund mot IFK Norrköping FK 2017-04-13 (4-1) — svenskfotboll.se". svenskfotboll.se.
10. UEFA.com. "UEFA Europa League - Östersund-Galatasaray". UEFA.com.
11. UEFA.com. "UEFA Europa League - Galatasaray-Östersund". UEFA.com.
12. "Graham Potter: "Visar bara hur dum jag är"".
13. "Östersund tar ledningen mot Zorya Luhansk".
14. "TV: Ghoddos årets anfallare i allsvenskan: "Gått helt okej i år"".
15. "Europa League underdogs Ostersund through to knock-out phase under English coach Graham Potter". The Telegraph. 23 November 2017. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
16. "Arsene Wenger praises Saman Ghoddos". YouTube. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
17. "Prem eye Ostersunds' Ghoddos - sources".
18. Begley, Emlyn (22 February 2018). "Arsenal 1-2 Ostersunds FK (4-2 agg) - BBC Sport". BBC Sport. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
19. "Ghoddos med mästerverk - placerar in 3-0 på frispark". fotbollskanalen.
20. "Ghoddos om VM-chanserna och krysset mot AIK: "Väldigt starkt av oss"".
21. "Förlust i derbyt för Giffarna med 2-3 - GIF Sundsvall - Allsvenskan - SvenskaFans.com". www.svenskafans.com.
22. https://sverigesradio.se/sida/artikel.aspx?programid=78&artikel=6995898
23. https://www.fotbollskanalen.se/allsvenskan/tv-just-nu-ghoddos-satter-kvitteringen-mot-mff-med-lacker-frispark/
24. https://www.fotbollskanalen.se/allsvenskan/tv-ofk-korde-over-tff---nar-ghoddos-hade-stor-show/
25. https://allsvenskan.se/nyheter/nyheter-fran-allsvenskan.se/saman-ghoddos-ar-manadens-spelare-i-allsvenskan
26. Thedéen, Jesper (23 August 2018). "Klart: Ghoddos till Amiens - skriver femårskontrakt". fotbollskanalen (in Swedish). Retrieved 24 August 2018.
27. "Här skriver Ghoddos på för den franska klubben". Expressen (in Swedish). 23 August 2018. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
28. "Transferts : Saman Ghoddos à Amiens, oui mais..." L'Équipe (in French). 24 August 2018. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
29. https://www.ligue1.com/ligue1/feuille_match/84630
30. http://www.persianfootball.com/news/2018/08/24/saman-ghoddos-joins-ligue-1-club-amiens/
31. https://www.fotbollskanalen.se/spanien/beskedet-ghoddos-tvingas-bota-over-40-miljoner-kronor/
32. http://www.espn.com/soccer/lineups?gameId=469147
33. "LIVE Sweden - Slovakia - International friendlies - 12 January 2017". 12 January 2017.
34. "Ghoddos kan spela VM med Iran – "Har haft kontakt" - Sport - SVT.se".
35. http://www.varzesh3.com/news/1430305/قدوس-دوست-دارم-برای-تیم-ملی-ایران-بازی-کنم
36. "Saman Ghoddos @ Östersunds FK - 2016 - Page 95". www.persianfootball.com.
37. "Avslöjar: Ghoddos på väg att byta landslag".
38. Radio, Sveriges. "Ghoddos måste bestämma sig snabbt om spel för Iran - P4 Jämtland".
39. "Fotbollskanalen". www.facebook.com.
40. "Fotbollskanalen". www.facebook.com.
41. "TV: Andersson om Ghoddos: "Är svårt att lova spelare"".
42. TV4Sport (25 August 2017). "Ghoddos dagen efter bragden: "Inte hunnit smälta det som hänt" - TV4 Sport" – via YouTube.
43. "Instagram post by Saman Ghoddos • Aug 26, 2017 at 4:25pm UTC". Instagram.
44. "قدوس و نورافکن اردو اولی های لیست کی‌روش" (in Persian).
45. "Vändningen: Östersunds Saman Ghoddos kan välja Blågult".
46. "Ghoddos tackar nej till svenska landslaget" (in Swedish). Swedish Football Association.
47. "ترکیب تیم ملی ایران برای دیدار با توگو ؛ حضور کاوه رضایی و نیمکت نشینی بیرانوند" (in Persian). Tarafdari. 4 October 2017. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
48. "پاداش تصمیم قاطعانه؛ اولین حضور سامان قدوس در ترکیب ایران" (in Persian). Tarafdari. 4 October 2017. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
49. "ایران 2-0 توگو؛ احیای انصاری فرد در سرمای ورزشگاه آزادی" (in Persian). Tarafdari. 4 October 2017. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
50. "ایران 2-1 پاناما؛ ضعف هایی که باید ترمیم شوند" (in Persian). Tarafdari. 9 November 2017. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
51. "35 named in Iran's preliminary World Cup squad". www.persianfootball.com.
52. "Ghoddos: "Hade förbundet ringt tidigare är det väldigt stor chans att jag hade valt Sverige"".
53. https://www.aftonbladet.se/sportbladet/fotboll/a/0Ed4A6/sjalvklart-hade-ghoddos-velat-spela-for-sverige
54. https://www.fotbollskanalen.se/sverige/landslagsstjarnan-om-att-sverige-missade-ghoddos-han-ville-spela-i-sverige/
55. Emons, Michael (15 June 2018). "World Cup 2018: Iran beat Morocco to win first World Cup finals tie in 20 years". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
56. https://www.fifa.com/worldcup/players/player/411644/
57. https://le11amienois.fr/amiens-sc-saman-ghoddos-prive-de-competition/
58. http://www.persianfootball.com/news/2018/12/26/queiroz-names-final-23-for-asian-cup/
59. "Group D: IR Iran 5-0 Yemen". AFC. 7 January 2019. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
60. "Ghoddos får inte spela i Nike-skor: "Inget politiskt"".
61. Saman Ghoddos at Soccerway. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
62. "Saman Ghoddos". National Football Teams. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
63. https://www2.svenskfotboll.se/landslag/landslagsdatabas/landslagsspelare/?fplid=421107
64. "Iran - S. Ghoddos - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway". us.soccerway.com.

External links

• Saman Ghoddos at Soccerway
• Saman Ghoddos at SvFF (in Swedish)