 Dejagah playing for VfL Wolfsburg in 2008 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Seyed Ashkan Dejagah[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 5 July 1986 | ||
| Place of birth | Tehran, Iran | ||
| Height | 1.81 m (5 ft 11 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Winger / Attacking midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Fulham | ||
| Number | 24 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Reinickendorfer Füchse | |||
| 1999–2000 | Tennis Borussia Berlin | ||
| 2000–2004 | Hertha BSC | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2004–2007 | Hertha BSC II | 56 | (21) |
| 2004–2007 | Hertha BSC | 26 | (1) |
| 2007–2012 | VfL Wolfsburg | 131 | (18) |
| 2012– | Fulham | 24 | (1) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2001–2003 | Germany U17 | 10 | (4) |
| 2003–2004 | Germany U18 | 4 | (2) |
| 2004 | Germany U19 | 11 | (3) |
| 2004–2005 | Germany U20 | 5 | (2) |
| 2005–2009 | Germany U21 | 20 | (4) |
| 2012– | Iran | 10 | (4) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 10:36, 5 December 2013 (UTC).
† Appearances (Goals).
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 05:52, 19 November 2013 (UTC) | |||
Ashkan Dejagah (Persian: اشكان دژآگه, born 5 July 1986), commonly known as Ash, is an Iranian-Germanfootballer who plays for Fulham, usually as an attacking midfielder or a right winger. He has representedGermany at youth levels, and currently plays for the Iranian national team.
Club career
Hertha
Dejagah made his pro debut for Hertha BSC against VfL Bochum in the opening match of the 2004–05 season, playing the last five minutes in a 2–2 home draw in his only first team appearance that year, thus becoming the youngest player to ever play for the club since it was founded in 1892. In his three years at Hertha, he also played in the regional league. Despite starting out as a central defender, he was quickly moved to the forward position and finished as the team's top scorer in 2005–06, with twelve goals in 23 appearances. Hertha's manager, Falko Götz, showed continuous faith in Dejagah by gradually giving the youngster playing time in the Bundesliga, as well as three UEFA Cup showdowns in 2005–06, playing the following season in the Intertoto Cup against FC Moscow.
Wolfsburg
In 2007, Dejagah joined VfL Wolfsburg. In his first season at Wolfsburg, he showed himself as a talent by scoring eight goals and in his second season, he was a regular part of the Bundesliga winning team. In the 2009–10 season, after the selection of Armin Veh as club manager, he lost his place in the starting line up and he could not return to the starting team under Steve McClaren. With the return of Felix Magath, he found his form and in the 2011–12 season, he showed himself as a key player by scoring and assisting several goals for his club.[2] After Askhan stated a desire to join Fulham FC in order to fulfill his childhood dream of playing in the Premier League, Magath stated that he wanted Ashkan to stay at Wolfsburg; however, he later sided with the player's wishes to play at Fulham.[3] Dejagah ended his career in the Bundesliga with 19 goals and 25 assists.[4]
Fulham
2012–13 season
On 31 August 2012, Dejagah joined Fulham on a three-year deal with an additional year's option, reportedly for €2.5 million, reuniting with his former Wolfsburg teammate Sascha Riether.[5] He became only the thirdIranian, after Andranik Teymourian and Karim Bagheri, to play in the Premier League. He made his league debut on 20 October, in a 1–0 home win against Aston Villa, coming off the bench for Fulham with 20 minutes remaining. He made his first start at Arsenal on 10 November, less than a month after his debut, in a 3–3 draw. His first assist came on New Year's Day to Dimitar Berbatov in a 2–1 win at West Brom. His season ended early due to an ankle injury on 1 April against QPR.
2013–14 season
Dejagah missed the first matches of the season due to a calf injury. He played his first game of the season for Fulham in a League Cup win over Burton Albion, and started his first league match of the season against Manchester Unitedon 2 November. On 4 December, Dejagah scored his first goal for Fulham in Rene Meulensteen's first game as manager.[6]
International career
Germany
In 2004, upon being called up to the German U-19 team, Dejagah managed to score seven goals in 15 international games, including two against the Netherlands after his team was down 2–0. In 2005, he was invited to play for Germany's U-21, and was given the coveted number 10 shirt.
Iran
It had been suggested that Dejagah might play for Iran at the international level rather than Germany, but he claimed to have never really considered it an option.[7] Having played for Germany at the age of 21, he was originally no longer eligible to play for Iran,[8] however, FIFA rule changes in July 2009 meant that he could then play for Iran.[9] In late December, Iran's coach Afshin Ghotbi approached Dejagah in regards to playing for Iran at the upcoming 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar, but his playing for Iran was placed on hold as he wanted to pursue first team football with his club VfL Wolfsburg instead.[10] On 21 September 2011, he was invited to the Iranian national team by Carlos Queiroz.[11] He scored twice on his debut for Iran against Qatar on 29 February 2012 in a World Cup qualifier.[12] Due to his outstanding performance, he was the runner-up for the AFC Player of the Month in February. On 6 February 2013, Dejagah assisted Reza Ghoochannejhad and won two penalties in a 5–0 Asian Cup qualifier win over Lebanon. His next international goals came on 15 and 19 November in Asian Cup qualifying wins over Thailand and Lebanon, sealing Iran's place in the 2015 Asian Cup.
