Ali Fathollahzadeh

PLDC - Ali Fathollahzadeh has been appointed as general manager of Esteghlal to mark his return to the club after more than two years. 

The Tehran-based club’s board decided to end Mostafa Ajorlou in a session that was reportedly held at Iran’s sports ministry on Saturday evening. 

During Ajorlou’s tenure, Esteghlal won the Iranian league title in the 2021-2022 season. 

Reports published in Iranian media name various reasons for this decision. Some say the team lost a golden opportunity to hire a coach after Farhad Majidi parted ways with the club and this has affected the team’s performance. Some others believe that Ajorlou’s fight with the state TV for safeguarding the club’s broadcast rights has ramped up pressure on him. 

Fathollahzadeh has managed Esteghlal in separate tenures. Under his management, the team won two league titles, four Hazfi Cup trophies, and a runner-up in the Asian club championship.  

Esteghlal now rank second in the league after arch-rivals Persepolis as both teams have 18 points.

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