It is now almost nine years since the 28-year-old Mahdavikia served notice of his boundless potential during Iran’s qualifying campaign for the 1998 FIFA World Cup™ by scoring two spectacular goals to inspire his team to a famous 4-2 comeback victory over China in their opening match.
The second of his two goals, a stunning long-range drive, was voted by the AFC as the continent’s goal of the year, and his brilliant displays throughout Iran’s hard-fought qualifying campaign also earned the then 20-year-old the AFC Young Player of the Year award.
Having taken Asian football by storm, Mahdavikia gave Iranian football fans a moment to treasure at France 98, scoring the winning goal in a memorable 2-1 victory over the United States - the only triumph registered by any of the four Asian teams participating that summer.
Speed, acceleration, and a nose for goal rank prominently among Mahdavikia’s many talents, and it is these attributes which have helped him carve out a highly successful career in the Bundesliga. It was following the1998 FIFA World Cup that Mahdavikia first moved to Germany, initially with Bochum and then, after an impressive debut season, to Hamburg in the summer of 1999.
Since then, he has succeeded in earning the esteem of every discerning German football fan even if his progress during his first two years at Hamburg was stunted by a catalogue of injuries which forced him on to the sidelines for months on end. However, he bounced back with renewed determination and enjoyed an excellent season in 2002\/03, shining in the Hamburg side which finished fourth in the German top flight to clinch one of the Bundesliga’s UEFA Cup berths.
Mahdavikia had, by this point, established himself as his club’s single most potent creative force, chalking up 14 assists, more than any player had managed in the Bundesliga since the statistic was officially introduced in 1994.
Respected in Germany, Mahdavikia became positively idolised in Iran, all the more so when he became only the second Iranian winner of the Asian Player of the Year award in 2003, after Ali Daei. The man affectionately nicknamed Kia<\/I> remains among Iran’s most influential players and he enjoyed an outstanding qualifying campaign for Germany 2006, his foraging, penetrating runs and timely crosses from the right wing proving vital in ensuring his national team progressed to a third FIFA World Cup finals.
The apple of Iranian fans’ eyes, Mahdavikia has already established himself among the greatest footballers his country has ever produced, though he remains modest about his achievements and retains a lower profile than one might expect. Many believe, however, that quietly spoken ‘Kia’ is about to make a big noise at Germany 2006.
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