Tag: Bundesliga

Sardar Azmoun left out of Bayer Leverkusen squad after returning from Roma loan

Sardar Azmoun has been reportedly excluded from Bayer Leverkusen’s squad. Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso has withdrawn Azmoun from first-team training. The reason is that the Iranian, who spent last season on loan at Roma, turned up late for training preparations for the new season and was in poor physical condition.

Having returned from his loan to Roma, in fact, the Iranian striker’s new adventure in Leverkusen did not start in the best of ways.

According to Bild, the former Giallorossi player missed a training session, justifying his absence only after the end of the session.

This angered Xabi Alonso, who immediately decided to take him out of the squad. In the next few days, therefore, Azmoun will train individually.

In an interview, Simon Rolfes, Leverkusen sporting director, commented on the incident: “We need to clarify what happened. It’s not enough to do performance analysis, you also need to train. Yesterday it was there, today it wasn’t. We’ll see in the next few days.”

Azmoun’s late report to the training camp of Bayer Leverkusen was taken without prior permission of the club. The Team Melli forward is already on a shakey ground with Xabi Alonso who does not see the Iranian fitting into his squad.

The player has been linked with Sevilla, who seem more interested in a loan move. In German media, there is also talk of interest from teams in Qatar and Saudi Arabia Azmoun joined Leverkusen in 2022 from Zenit St. Petersburg for 2.5 million euros.

The high asking price for Azmoun by Leverkusen deters many clubs from taking him on board including Fenerbahce and Sevilla.

The only chance of Azmoun making the squad and gaining the confidence of Alonso is by doubling his effort in training, or else he will stay a bench warmer or make a cameo appearance with the defending champions of the Bundesliga.

Sardar Azmoun’s Future: Roma and Bayer Leverkusen Clash

Sardar Azmoun, Team Melli striker, made a significant move at the beginning of the season by leaving Bayer Leverkusen on a one-season loan contract to continue his football journey in Italy’s Serie A.

Roma secured a one-season contract with Sardar Azmoun, but the situation is far from settled. The Iranian player’s fate hinges on whether the permanent purchase clause will be activated by Roma. If not, he will return to Bayer Leverkusen. Recent meetings between the clubs’ managers have shed light on the financial aspects of this transfer. However, due to Bayer Leverkusen’s high asking price (12.5 million euros) for Azmoun’s departure, Roma’s leadership hesitates to commit to a permanent deal. According to the Italian website “ilromanista,” Sardar Azmoun is likely to part ways with Roma at the end of the season.

Europa League Showdown

The drama continues on the field as Roma and Bayer Leverkusen prepare for the second leg of the Europa League semi-finals. The match is scheduled for Thursday evening, May 9th, at the Bay Arena. In the first leg, held at the “Olympic” Stadium, Bayer Leverkusen secured a convincing 2-0 victory over their hosts.

Roma’s Challenges and Ambitions

Despite the setback in the first leg, Roma remains determined. Manager Daniele Del Rossi’s focus is unwavering as the team aims to overturn the result in Germany. Remy, one of Roma’s key players, regrets missed opportunities from the previous match against Bayer Leverkusen.

As the season unfolds, Roma faces uncertainties regarding their European Champions League qualification. Their performance in Serie A will ultimately determine their fate. Will they secure a spot in the prestigious tournament, or will they face disappointment? Only time will reveal the answer.

As far as Azmoun is concerned, it seems much better for him to return to Germany as a title holder of the Bundesliga while assured of playing in the UEFA Champions League. While his sterling performances at Zenit St. Petersburg and prolific scoring were not repeated with Leverkusen, he was still considered a main player until his long-term layoff due to injury losing his starting place and eventual loan to Jose Mourinho’s Roma.

Xabi Alonso appointed as head coach of Bayer Leverkusen.

Former Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso has been officially appointed as head coach of Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen, and as such, he will be the coach of Team Melli forward Sardar Azmoun.

After speculation throughout today, Liverpool legend Xabi Alonso has now been confirmed as the new head coach of Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen.

The German side has had a disastrous start to the 2022/23 campaign, with the team currently sitting 17th in the league table.

Just one place above rock bottom, Bayer 04 has only taken five points from the first eight league games. Coinciding with their league form, performances in Europe also haven’t set the world alight, with yesterday evening’s 2-0 defeat at Porto being the straw that broke the camel’s back.

Under the former Swiss coach, Sardar Azmoun had little playing time.

Sardar Azmoun: Bayer Leverkusen Add Goals And Depth Below Market Value

Manuel Veth

Manuel Veth: Contributor SportsMoney
It is one of the more exciting transfers of this Bundesliga transfer window. On the day before deadline day, Bayer Leverkusen signed Sardar Azmoun for $4.4 million from Russian club Zenit St. Petersburg. The 27-year-old Iranian had previously agreed on a free summer transfer with Die Werkself. Overall it is a brilliant deal for Leverkusen, who signed the forward in a deal significantly below Azmoun’s $27.5 million Transfermarkt market value.

“We’re delighted to have completed this transfer,” Bayer Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes said in a club statement. “Sardar Azmoun has been one of Russian football’s top goalscorers for several years. He’s been champion three years in a row there with Zenit, regularly played in the Champions League, and shown himself to be of international class at the highest level. Our attack gains extra quality with him. Sardar will make our attack even more unpredictable and powerful.”

Azmoun, without a doubt, brings added depth to Leverkusen’s attack. The 27-year-old has been a star in Russia for some time and joined Zenit from Rubin Kazan in February 2019 in a deal worth $13.2 million. It was Kazan who found the striker in Iran, where he played for Sepahan’s youth academy. But it would be at Rostov where Azmoun made a name for himself, scoring 25 goals and six assists in 77 games. Two of those goals came against Bayern Munich and Atlético Madrid in Rostov’s memorable 2016/17 Champions League campaign.

Rostov had bought the striker for just $2.53 million in 2016 from Rubin Kazan. But Russian football is not always that straightforward. Like many Russian clubs, Rostov always struggled with finances, and Azmoun wanted out of the club. Around that time, Azmoun was consistently linked with a move to one of the top four leagues; reports suggested links to Liverpool, several Italian clubs, but also Borussia Dortmund.

Instead, what happened was so very typical for business practices of clubs in the post-Soviet space. Only very few institutions in the region are able to develop players and sell them at the right time. Also, players often fail to find the right move, add agents to the mix, and it becomes a difficult proposition all around. Azmoun, for example, did not move to Europe but instead back to Rubin Kazan in 2017, where the owner, the Republic of Tatarstan, was once again on a spending spree.

Those spending sprees, however, also come and go; Rubin as a club has always been between very rich and very poor; there is no middle ground. As a result, Azmoun was sold to Zenit in 2019. For most talented players based in Russia, the story would have ended here—Zenit, owned by Gazprom, can pay wages at a tax rate that is often impossible to match for the big clubs in Europe and, as a result, players are unlikely to move on.

The same was thought of Azmoun, but instead, the Iranian has made the move to a top-four league after all. What remains to be seen is whether the move comes at the right time; Azmoun is no longer a talent but, at 27, a veteran. At the same time, that can be an asset too; Leverkusen receives a player with significant experience in the ups and downs of a football career.

But how will Azmoun fit in the squad? At first glance, Azmoun is a clear-cut number 9, and in that position, Leverkusen has Patrik Schick, one of the most productive strikers in European football. But Schick has been heavily linked with a move to Borussia Dortmund, where he could replace Erling Haaland. Azmoun could be an investment for the future, a possible replacement for the Czech goalscoring machine.

There is, however, also room for Schick and Azmoun to play together. Although most commonly employed as a lone-striker in a 3-4-3 system by Zenit this season, Azmoun has also played with a Schick type of number 9 in Artem Dzyuba this year. Azmoun can add more tactical depth to Gerardo Seoane’s side at Leverkusen. In fact, the Swiss head coach previously preferred a 4-4-2 system rather than the 4-2-3-1 system used by Leverkusen this year, adding Azmoun now.

Manuel Veth is the host of the Bundesliga Gegenpressing Podcast and the Area Manager USA at Transfermarkt. He has also been published in the Guardian, Newsweek, Howler, Pro Soccer USA, and several other outlets. Follow him on Twitter: @ManuelVeth 

Follow me on Twitter. 
Manuel Veth

Striker Azmoun moves to Leverkusen earlier than planned.

Leverkusen (DPA)

Football Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen has brought forward the signing of Iranian national striker Sardar Azmoun.

Sunday, 30.01.2022, 16:21 hrs

Sardar Azmoun (r) will move to Leverkusen in the winter. Photo: Dmitri Lovetsky/AP/dpa

Both clubs announced that the 27-year-old will move to the Rhineland in the winter transfer period. “We are happy about the constructive agreement with Zenit and that we can now rely on Sardar’s qualities at an early stage,” said sporting director Simon Rolfes. A week ago, the club had reported the actually transfer-free transfer Azmoun’s for summer as perfect. The goalscorer, who scored 39 goals in 60 international matches and became champion three times in a row with Zenit, signed a contract until 2027 with Bayer Leverkusen.

Meanwhile, Zenit has officially confirmed through their Twitter account. that Sardar will be leaving the club with immediate effect. The club wishes to thank Sardar Azmoun for all the work and dedication that he displayed as a valuable member of the team.

Presenting Sardar’s statistics in the Zenit team, the club wrote: “The striker scored 62 goals and provided 17 assists in 104 games for Zenit. Taking into account the goals he scored for FC Rostov and Rubin Kazan, this striker, along with Wagner (85 goals each), are the top foreign players/scorer in the history of the Russian championship.”
The final part of the message reads: “Zenit Club thanks Sardar Azmoun for his incredible performance, the joy of our joint victories, and the love for Zenit and its fans. “Thank you for everything, Sardar!“

Sardar Azmoun finalized the transfer details for the end of the season with Bayer Leverkusen a few days ago and the player was supposed to play in the German Bundesliga at the start of season 2022/23 in a 5-year contract. However, the news of the Azmoun agreement with Leverkusen spread in the media, angering Zenit managers and making them think of selling the striker to Leverkusen in the same winter transfers window. The 20-year-old striker of the Brazilian International team, “Yuri Alberto”, will replace the Azmoun in Zenit.

Sardar Azmoun may join Bayer Leverkusen as early as next week!

A French journalist claimed that the Iranian striker would terminate his contract this winter and will immediately join the Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen in the winter transfer window.

Zenit striker Sardar Azmoun will terminate his contract with Zenit St Petersburg ahead of schedule and join Leverkusen this winter, RMC Sports correspondent Luis Tanzi reported on Twitter, according to RMC. The German club will most likely pay for the Azmoun contract period.

One week ago, Azmoon signed a contract with Bayer until 2027. The player’s current contract is with Zenit is valid until the summer of 2022. Azmoun has scored 10 goals and provided 4 assists in 21 games for Zenit this season. The Zenit club announced that the player will not attend Zenit training for two weeks and will be in quarantine so that he can regain his health. Thus, the striker of Bayer Leverkusen next season will be absent for two weeks, even in the training sessions of his club team, and will not be available for the Team Melli game against the UAE in FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 qualifiers on Tuesday 1st February.

Sardar Azmoun signed by Bayern Leverkusen in the summer

Bayer Leverkusen have confirmed the signing of Sardar Azmoun from the summer of 2022, with the Iranian international joining from Zenit St. Petersburg on a five-year contract.

Azmoun, a 27-year-old forward with an eye for goals and assists, will compete for a place in Leverkusen’s starting attack with Patrik Schick and Lucas Alario when he makes his move to Bundesliga football in the summer.

“[It is] a step from the best club in Russia to one of the best leagues in Europe,” he told the Bundesliga club’s website.

“Bayer Leverkusen have a really great squad. I’ve been keeping an eye on the club for a long time and am impressed by the team’s style of play. It’s incredibly exciting for me soon to be able to play in the Bundesliga. And I’m convinced I’ll make the team even better with my footballing ability.”

Capped 60 times by Iran, an impressive 39 goals for his country compliments his selection for the World Cup in 2018 and two Asian Cup squads in 2015 and 2019.

As well as being the youngest Iranian to score in a UEFA Champions League game, he is also the Iranian record-holder for the most goals scored in the competition with six goals.

He has spent his professional career entirely in the Russian top flight with two spells each at Rubin Kazan and Rostov preceding his transfer to Zenit in 2019.

In St. Petersburg, he has found the net 62 times in 104 appearances across all competitions. He was named Russia’s Footballer of the Year for 2021 and his impressive goal stats have continued into this season, in which he has scored 10 goals in 21 games – including two strikes in the Champions League.

“We’re delighted to have completed this transfer,” said Leverkusen’s sporting director Simon Rolfes.

“Sardar Azmoun has been one of Russian football’s top goalscorers for several years. He’s been champion three years in a row there with Zenit, regularly played in the Champions League, and shown himself to be of international class at the highest level. Our attack gains extra quality with him. Sardar will make our attack even more unpredictable and powerful.”

Managing director for sport, Rudi Völler added: “He’s very quick, good in the air and has a good sense for space. But he’s not just a goalscorer. Sardar Azmoun also sets up a lot of goals and is an outstanding fit for the Werkself as a player who combines well with others.”

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.

© 2024 Team Melli
Designed by ThemeBoy