Player Profile | Reza Ghoochannejhad

They  booked their spot at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, their fourth appearance in football’s showpiece event.

They were confirmed as Asia’s top nation after climbing to the head of the  rankings in November, 2013, a position they have maintained ever since.

And they qualified for their 13th consecutive AFC Asian Cup, remaining undefeated throughout the qualification period.

The side’s recent success cannot be underestimated and much of it can be attributed to one of the nation’s most lethal strikers – Reza Ghoochannejhad.

The speedy forward went on an astonishing run, scoring in six straight international fixtures to ensure his nation would be playing in Brazil midway through 2014 and in Australia in January, 2015.

After such success it is hard to believe the 26-year-old may not have played for Iran at all.

Ghoochannejhad emigrated to the Netherlands with his family at the age of eight and wore the Oranje as a part of a host of Dutch youth international teams from U/16 to U/19.

He signed his first international contract with Herenveen, making his debut in 2006 before stints with fellow Dutch sides Go Ahead Eagles and Emmen.

The youngster then made the move to Cambuur where he put his name in the record books alongside one of the nation’s greats.

On debut he made an immediate impact for his new side scoring in just nine seconds to equal Johan Cruyff’s record for the fastest ever goal in a professional match in the Netherlands.

After a strong second season for the club where he found the back of the net 13 times he moved to Belgium midway through 2011 to play for Sint-Truiden and eventually high-flying Standard Liege.

It was during this period that he caught the eye of Team Melli manager Carlos Queiroz, who handed him his first senior international cap when he took on South Korea for Iran in a World Cup qualifier in late 2012.

Ghoochannejhad soon became key to Iran’s success and began to find the net more often then not in the Iranian jersey.

With three matches to play in Iran’s World Cup qualifying campaign, Ghoochannejhad scored the lone goal in his side’s 1-0 victory over Qatar and then netted in their  4-0 home win over Lebanon.

Knowing that a loss would force Iran into a playoff against the fifth- placed South American nation, Ghoochannejhad was again the only scorer as Iran claimed a famous 1-0 away win over Korea Republic.

The goals continued to flow against Thailand in back-to-back wins and then against Lebanon to finish a run of six games straight with his name on the scoresheet as Iran confirmed their spot at the 2015 AFC Asian Cup.

A move to England followed as Charlton Athletic looked to bolster their squad, with Ghoochannejhad one of five new players welcomed to the club during the 2014 January transfer window.

With Charlton sitting one spot above the relegation zone, the Iranian’s immediate focus is ensuring his side will not drop into England’s third tier next season.

He is all but a certainty to make his World Cup debut when Iran heads to Brazil midway through 2014 to take on the world’s best.

Iran have drawn Argentina, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Nigeria and despite some formidable opponents Asia’s top-ranked nation will be confident they can sneak out of the group and through to the knockout phase of the competition.

The next major international assignment will then be the 2015 AFC Asian Cup when Iran will look to equal Japan’s record of four Cup triumphs.

Team Melli has drawn UAE, Qatar and Bahrain, and if Ghoochannejhad can lead his side to the top of the group the Iranians will likely avoid 2011 Champions Japan in the quarter-finals.

As equal top scorer in the tournament’s qualification phase, Ghoochannejhad will be one of the favourites to win the golden boot.

With a World Cup campaign and years of European club experience, the striker will be looking to return Iran to the promised land of Asian football in early 2015.