Khazar Lankaran FK

Khazar Lankaran
Full name Xəzər Lənkəran Futbol Klubu
Nickname(s) Gəmiçilər (The Shipbuilders)
Founded 2004 (2004)
Dissolved 27 May 2016 (2016-05-27)
Ground Lankaran City Stadium,
Lankaran, Azerbaijan
Ground Capacity 15,000
Owner Mubariz Mansimov
President Mais Mansimov
League Azerbaijan Premier League
2015–16 10th (relegated)
Website Club home page

Khazar Lankaran FK (Azerbaijani: Xəzər Lənkəran Futbol Klubu) is an Azerbaijani football club based in Lankaran, who last played in the Azerbaijan Premier League during the 2015–16 season. Since the summer of 2016 the club has concentrated on youth football.[1] After the being founded in 2004, they played in the Azerbaijan Premier League for twelve-seasons, winning the title once, and the Azerbaijan Cup three times.[2][3] Khazar were also a member of the European Club Association, an organization that replaced the previous G-14 which consists of major football clubs in Europe.

History

Early years (2004–2012)

The club was founded in 2004 by Azerbaijani entrepreneur Mubariz Mansimov and dubbed by the local media as "Caucasian Chelsea" due Khazar's strong financial position.[4][5] Under Agaselim Mirjavadov club won Premier League title during 2006–07 season as well as clinched 2 Azerbaijan Cups. Khazar also managed to win the CIS Cup in 2008 after defeating Pakhtakor Tashkent in the final.[6][7]

After Mircea Rednic's appointment, who have signed a string of Romanian players and footballers from Liga I, club did not found success in European cups.[8][9] On 4 December 2011, Khazar announced that Rednic had been sacked by the club due to a run of poor performances.[10][11]

Recent years (2012––2016)

In July 2012, the club under Yunis Huseynov earned their first win in European competition by beating Nõmme Kalju.[12] In March 2013, former Liverpool striker John Toshack was appointed as new manager after signing two-year deal with the club.[13][14] In 2012–13 season, Khazar finished in 8th place, the club's lowest finishing position to date.[15] Khazar Lankaran once again featured in European competitions during the 2013–14 season, featuring in the UEFA Europa League, where they were knocked out 10–0 on aggregate after suffering their heaviest European defeat ever, losing 8–0 to Maccabi Haifa.[16] On 23 October John Toshack guided Khazar to their first trophy in two years with victory over Neftchi Baku in the revitalised Azerbaijan Supercup.[17] A month later Toshack resigned from his position after only 14 points from 14 games in the 2013–14 season.[18]

Following the Professional Football League of Azerbaijan's decision to deny Khazar a license for the 2016–17 season, the club announced their withdrawal from professional football.[1]

League and cup history

Season League Azerbaijan Cup Top goalscorer
Div. Pos. Pl. W D L GS GA P Name League
2004–05 1st 2 34 24 6 4 68 15 78 Semi-finals Azerbaijan Samir Aliyev 20
2005–06 1st 7 26 9 9 8 27 18 36 Semi-finals Azerbaijan Samir Aliyev 4
2006–07 1st 1 24 17 5 2 50 16 56 Winners Azerbaijan Zaur Ramazanov 20
2007–08 1st 4 26 14 10 2 44 16 52 Winners Azerbaijan Zaur Ramazanov 11
2008–09 1st 4 26 15 5 6 49 21 50 Quarter-finals Bulgaria Ivan Tsvetkov 15
2009–10 1st 4 42 18 17 7 48 25 71 Runners-up Brazil Mario Sergio 9
2010–11 1st 2 32 16 12 4 38 18 60 Winners Costa Rica Winston Parks 8
2011–12 1st 2 32 17 8 7 44 28 59 Quarter-finals Azerbaijan Branimir Subašić 6
2012–13 1st 8 32 10 10 12 40 37 40 Runners-up Greece Dimitris Sialmas 6
2013–14 1st 6 36 12 13 11 44 49 49 Semi-finals Cameroon Mbilla Etame 11
2014–15 1st 7 32 8 8 16 35 46 32 Quarter-finals Bulgaria Galin Ivanov 6
2015–16 1st 10 36 3 6 27 16 51 15 Quarter-finals Azerbaijan Rahid Amirguliyev 4

European history

As of 17 July 2013.

Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate
2005–06 UEFA Cup 1Q Moldova FC Nistru Otaci 1–2 1–3 2–5
2007–08 UEFA Champions League 1Q Croatia NK Dinamo Zagreb 1–1 1–3 (aet) 2–4
2008–09 UEFA Cup 1Q Poland Lech Poznań 0–1 1–4 1–5
2010–11 UEFA Europa League 1Q Moldova Olimpia 1–1 0–0 1–1
2011–12 UEFA Europa League 2Q Israel Maccabi Tel Aviv 0–0 1–3 1–3
2012–13 UEFA Europa League 1Q Estonia Nõmme Kalju 2–2 2–0 4–2
2Q Poland Lech Poznań 1–1 0–1 1–2
2013–14 UEFA Europa League 1Q Malta Sliema Wanderers 1–0 1–1 2–1
2Q Israel Maccabi Haifa 0–8 0–2 0–10

Crest and colours

The club's crest includes stockless anchor with a football ball. The badge shaped like traditional compass with white-green background elements.

Shirt sponsors and kit manufacturers

Khazar's traditional kit is composed of white shirts, green shorts and white socks. The club's kits are manufactured by Puma and sponsored by Palmali, a multinational shipping company in Istanbul.

Stadium

Main article: Lankaran City Stadium
Lankaran City Stadium
Fırtınalar Meydanı (Arena of Storms)
Location Lankaran,
Azerbaijan
Owner Khazar Lankaran
Operator Khazar Lankaran
Capacity 15,000 seated
Construction
Broke ground 2005
Opened 11 August 2006
Construction cost $15 million
Tenants
Khazar Lankaran (2006–present)

Khazar Lankaran's home ground is Lankaran City Stadium. It has a capacity of 15,000 and is the third largest stadium in Azerbaijan. The stadium also known as Fırtınalar meydanı (Arena of Storms), named after club's local supporters Fırtına fan group.[19][20]

On 17 July 2009, UEFA approved stadium for the usage during international football matches.[21] The stadium hosted its first senior international match on 5 September 2009, between Azerbaijan and Finland.[22]

Supporters

Khazar is one of the best supported clubs in Azerbaijan, having the highest attendance after FC Kapaz in the Caucasus region. Supporters of Khazar Lankaran are drawn from all over the Southern Region and beyond, with supporters' clubs all across the world.[23] The club's supporters are also known as the Fırtına (Storm).[24][25]

Rivalry with Neftchi Baku

Main article: Böyük Oyun

There is often a fierce rivalry between the two strongest teams in the Azerbaijan Premier League, and this is particularly the case in Azerbaijan, where the game between Khazar Lankaran and Neftchi Baku is known as Böyük Oyun (The Great Game).[26][27][28]

Honours

National

Winners (1): 2006–07
Winners (3): 2006–07, 2007–08, 2010–11
Winners (1): 2013

Regional

Winners (1): 2008

Individual records

Lists of the players with the most caps and top goalscorers for the club, as of 30 August 2014 (players in bold signifies current Khazar player). Zaur Ramazanov is the club's all-time top scorer with 33 goals in 69 games.[29]

Rahid Amirguliyev is one of the most capped players for the club.
 Top Ten Highest Goalscorers
Player Period Appearances Goals
1 Azerbaijan Zaur Ramazanov 2005–08; 2011 69 33
2 Bulgaria Ivan Tsvetkov 2008–10 50 22
3 Azerbaijan Rahid Amirguliyev 2006–present 189 20
4 Brazil Mario Sergio 2008–10 58 18
5 Turkey Oktay Derelioğlu 2004–05 17 16
6 Azerbaijan Serbia Branimir Subašić 2011–13 51 14
7 Azerbaijan Rashad Abdullayev 2004–09 116 12
8 Cameroon Mbilla Etame 2013–14 35 11
9 Honduras Allan Lalín 2009–11 43 11
10 Mali Tounkara Sadio 2011–present 81 11
Kamran Agayev is one of the most capped players for the club.
 Top Ten Players With Most Appearances
Player Period Caps Goals
1 Azerbaijan Rahid Amirguliyev 2006–present 189 20
2 Bulgaria Radomir Todorov 2007–10; 2012–13 136 1
3 Azerbaijan Kamran Agayev 2006–13 122 0
4 Azerbaijan Alim Qurbanov 2004–12 121 11
5 Azerbaijan Rashad Abdullayev 2004–09 116 12
6 Azerbaijan Elnur Abdullayev 2011–present 109 10
7 Romania Adrian Scarlatache 2011; 2012–2015 96 11
8 Mali Tounkara Sadio 2011–present 81 11
9 Romania Adrian Piț 2011–14 75 8
10 Azerbaijan Emin Quliyev 2005–09 70 10

Notable managers

For more details on this topic, see List of FK Khazar Lankaran managers.

The following managers have all won at least one trophy when in charge of FK Khazar Lankaran:

Name Period Trophies
Azerbaijan Agaselim Mirjavadov 2007–09 Azerbaijan Premier League, Azerbaijan Cup (2), CIS Cup
Romania Mircea Rednic 2010–11 Azerbaijan Cup
Wales John Toshack 2013 Azerbaijan Supercup

A number of television programmes have included references to Khazar Lankaran over the past few decades. In the sitcom Aramizda Galsin, the character Jasarat is a Khazar supporter.[30] Khazar have also featured on several occasions in meykhana.[31][32]

References

  1. 1 2 "Statement of Khazar Lankaran FC". lankaranfc.com. Khazar Lankaran. 27 May 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  2. ↑ "Хет-трик ХЛ, черный покер Интера". Retrieved 25 May 2011.
  3. ↑ Ibrahimov, Erkin. "Xäzär beat İnter to win Azerbaijani Cup". UEFA.
  4. ↑ Наставник сборной Молдавии отрицает переход в "кавказский "Челси" (Russian)
  5. ↑ Кавказский "Челси": миф или реалность? (Russian)
  6. ↑ "Хазар" выиграл Кубок Содружества (in Russian). Trend News Agency. Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  7. ↑ Лянкаранский Хазар выиграл Кубок Содружества! (in Russian). Bakililar.az. Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  8. ↑ "Azerii au dat afara toti strainii. Rednic, pe faras!". Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  9. ↑ "Probleme mari pentru Rednic in "Tara Focurilor"". Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  10. ↑ ХЛ отправляет Редника в отставку. Azerisport.com (in Russian). Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  11. ↑ "ŞOK! ŞOK! ŞOK! Mirça Rednik istefa verdi". fanat.az (in Azerbaijani). Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  12. ↑ "Xäzär Länkäran earn maiden European win". UEFA. Uefa.com. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
  13. ↑ Тошак возглавил "Хазар-Ленкорань". Footballtop.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  14. ↑ Джон Тошак возглавил азербайджанский футбольный клуб. ua-football.com (in Russian). Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  15. ↑ ""Xəzər Lənkəran"a açıq məktub". futbolpress.az (in Azerbaijani). Retrieved 18 August 2013.
  16. ↑ "Men in Black: an historic 8:0 for Maccabi Haifa against Khazar Lankaran". Maccabi Haifa's Official Site. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
  17. ↑ "Xäzär win revived Azerbaijan Super Cup". UEFA. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
  18. ↑ "Con Toşak istefa verdi" (in Azerbaijani). http://lankaranfc.com/az/. Retrieved 25 November 2013. External link in |publisher= (help)
  19. ↑ "Fırtınalar meydanı"nda qol şousu (Azerbaijani)
  20. ↑ "Fırtınalar meydanı" niyə dolmur... (Azerbaijani)
  21. ↑ Azərbaycan – Finlandiya oyunu Lənkəranda keçiriləcək (Azerbaijani)
  22. ↑ affa.az:Azərbaycan – Finlandiya oyunu Lənkəranda keçiriləcək (Azerbaijani)
  23. ↑ Khazar Lankaran FC’s Baku Fan Club
  24. ↑ "FIRTINA" Fan Club (Azerbaijani)
  25. ↑ “Xəzər Lənkəran”a zərbə yox, dəstək lazımdır! (Azerbaijani)
  26. ↑ Раиль МЕЛИКОВ: «Это главное дерби Азербайджана и его невозможно сравнить с другим матчем»(Russian)
  27. ↑ “XƏZƏR-LƏNKƏRAN”-"NEFTÇİ" DERBİSİ İTV-dən YAYIMLANACAQ (Azerbaijani)
  28. ↑ pfl.az:50 saat qalmış(Azerbaijani)
  29. ↑ "Azerbaijan Premier League Stats". PFL.az. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
  30. ↑ ""Aramızda qalsın"da "Böyük oyun" həyəcanı – VİDEO". korner.az (in Azerbaijani). Retrieved 9 November 2014.
  31. ↑ "Xəzər Lənkəran"ın qapıçısından bədahətən meyxana". avropa.info (in Azerbaijani). Retrieved 9 November 2014.
  32. ↑ "Meyxana ustası: "Xəzər Lənkəran"da türk futbolçular çox olmalıdır"". sportarena.az (in Azerbaijani). Retrieved 9 November 2014.
Grounds
General information
Records
Seasons
Related articles
Premier League
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/29/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.