2011–12 Azadegan League

The 2011–12 Azadegan League was the 21st season of the Azadegan League and 11th as the second highest division since its establishment in 1991. The season featured 21 teams from the 2010–11 Azadegan League, three new teams relegated from the 2010–11 Persian Gulf Cup: PAS Hamedan, Paykan and Steel Azin and three new teams promoted from the 2010–11 2nd Division: Saipa Shomal as champions, Niroye Zamini and Parseh Tehran. Esteghlal Khuzestan replaced Esteghlal Jonoub Tehran. Damash Lorestan changed their name into Gahar Zagros while Hamyari Arak changed their name into Shahrdari Arak. The league started on 14 September 2011 and ended on 19 April 2012. Paykan won the Azadegan League title for the first time in their history. Paykan, Aluminium Hormozgan and Gahar Zagros promoted to the Persian Gulf Cup.

Azadegan League
Season2011–12
ChampionsPaykan
1st Azadegan League title
PromotedPaykan
Aluminium Hormozgan
Gahar Zagros
RelegatedSanat Sari
Payam Mokhaberat
Sanati Kaveh
Bargh Shiraz
Matches played364
Goals scored689 (1.89 per match)
Top goalscorerBahman Tahmasebi
(13 goals)
Biggest home winIranjavan 4–0 Mes Rafsanjan
(10 November 2011)
Biggest away winPayam Mokhaberat 1–7 Paykan
(3 November 2011)
Highest scoringPayam Mokhaberat 1–7 Paykan
(3 November 2011)
Highest attendance15,000[1]
NassajiNaft MIS
(5 April 2012)
Lowest attendance0 (spectator ban)
Aluminium Hormozgan – Gol Gohar[2]
(15 September 2011)
Sanat Sari – Saipa Shomal[2]
(15 September 2011)
Parseh Tehran – Sh. Arak[3]
(14 October 2011)
Shirin Faraz – Nassaji[4]
(27 December 2011)
Naft MIS – Sh. Yasouj[5]
(27 January 2012)
Aboumoslem – Paykan[6]
(16 February 2012)
Nassaji – Tarbiat Yazd[7]
(8 March 2012)
Aluminium Hormozgan – Tarbiat Yazd[1]
(6 April 2012)
Est. Khuzestan – Nassaji[8]
(10 April 2012)
Naft MIS – Bargh Shiraz[9]
(13 April 2012)
Total attendance831,800
Average attendance2,350

Teams

The league featured three clubs relegated from Iran Pro League: Steel Azin and Paykan both returned to the Azadegan League after two seasons in the top division. The third team Pas Hamedan, were relegated for the first time in that club's history to a lower league.

Group A

TeamCityVenueCapacityHead CoachNote
AboomoslemMashhadSamen35,000 Khodadad Azizi
Parseh TehranTehranKargaran5,000 Mehdi DinvarzadehChanged name from Damash
EtkaGorganKarim Abad15,000 Hamid Kolalifard
Foolad YazdYazdNassiri6,000 Zoran Smilevski
IranjavanBushehrShahid Beheshti15,000 Abdolrahim Kharazmi
Gostaresh FooladTabrizBagh Shomal20,000 Mohammad H Ziaei
Mes RafsanjanRafsanjanNoushabad10,000 Akbar Zabardast
Payam MokhaberatShirazHafezieh20,000 Asghar Akbari
PaykanTehranIran Khodro5,000 Farhad Kazemi
Saipa ShomalQa'em-ShahrVatani15,000 Samvel Darbinyan
Sanat SariSariShohada Stadium15,000 Nader Dastneshan
Shahrdari ArakArakImam Khomeini15,000 Hamid KolalifardReplaced for Hamyari Arak
Shahrdari Bandar AbbasBandar AbbasTakhti10,000 Acácio Casimiro
Steel AzinSemnanTakhti10,000 Faraz Kamalvand

Group B

TeamCityVenueCapacityHead CoachNote
Aluminium HormozganBandar AbbasTakhti10,000 Akbar Misaghian
Bargh ShirazShirazHafezieh20,000 Mehrdad Shekari
Esteghlal KhuzestanAhvazTakhti Ahvaz30,000 Majid BagheriniaReplaced for Esteghlal Jonub
Gahar ZagrosDoroodTakhti10,000 Davoud Mahabadi
Gol GoharSirjanImam Ali2,000 Mehdi Mohammadi
Machine SaziTabrizBagh Shomal20,000 Rasoul Khatibi
Naft Masjed SoleymanMasjed SoleymanTakhti Ahvaz30,000 Siavash Bakhtiarizade
NassajiQa'em-ShahrVatani15,000 Davoud Mahabadi
Nirooye ZaminiTehranJey Stadium Ali Rouzbahani
PAS HamedanHamedanShahid Mofatteh10,000 Vinko Begović
Sanati KavehTehranAliaf Stadium5,000 Majid Namjoo-Motlagh
Shahrdari YasujYasujTakhti Yasuj5,000 Abdollah Chamanian
Shirin FarazKermanshahAzadi Stadium7,000 Majid Aghajari
Tarbiat YazdYazdNassiri6,000 Hadi Bargizar

Managerial changes

TeamOutgoing managerManner of departureDate of vacancyPosition in tableReplaced byDate of appointment
Aboomoslem Ali HantehResigned2011 Kazem Ghiasian2011
Sanati Kaveh Saket Elhami[10]Resigned20 October 201114 Ahmad Sanjari29 October 2011
Aboomoslem Kazem GhiasianSacked19 November 20118 Khodadad Azizi19 November 2011
Sanati Kaveh Ahmad SanjariResignedNovember 201114 Morteza YekehNov 2011
Sanati Kaveh Morteza Yekeh17 November 201114 Mehdi DinvarzadehNov 2011
Sanati Kaveh Mehdi DinvarzadehResigned1 December 201114 Ali Nazarzadeh1 December 2012
Sanati Kaveh Ali NazarzadehEnd of caretaker spell2 December 201114 Majid Namjoo-Motlagh3 December 2011
Pas Hamedan Faraz KamalvandResigned12 January 20125 Jalal Cheraghpour[11]12 January 2012
Parseh Hossein PeyrovaniResigned19 January 2012 Edmond Yunanpour[12]25 January 2012
Pas Hamedan Jalal CheraghpourEnd of caretaker spell22 January 2012 Vinko Begović[11]22 January 2012
Gostaresh Hossein ZiaeiSacked31 January 201212 Hadi Bargizar[13]31 January 2012
Parseh Edmond YunanpourFeb 2012 Mehdi Dinvarzadeh[14]5 February 2012
Steel Azin Human AfazeliResigned18 February 201211 Faraz Kamalvand[15]18 February 2012
Sanat Sari Reza Taghavi[16]Sacked18 February 201214 Farshad Pious19 February 2012
Shahrdari Arak Nader Dastneshan[17]Sacked27 February 20127 Ali Hanteh27 February 2012

Standings

Group A

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion or relegation
1Paykan (P)2614844426+1850Promotion to 2012–13 Persian Gulf Cup
2Iranjavan (Q)2613943116+1548Azadegan League 2011–12 Play Off
3Sh. Bandar Abbas2610882627−138
4Sh. Arak2691071917+237
5Foolad Yazd269982523+236
6Aboumoslem2681082118+334
7Etka Gorgan2697102120+134
8Saipa Shomal268992626033
9Gostaresh2671182530−532
10Steel Azin26101062922+728[a]
11Parseh Tehran2684142029−928
12Mes Rafsanjan2668122228−626
13Sanat Sari (R)2675142034−1426Relegation to 2012–13 Iran Football's 2nd Division
14Payam Mokhaberat (R)26510111528−1325
Updated to match(es) played on 7 May 2012. Source: Foolad FC
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(P) Promoted; (Q) Qualified for the phase indicated; (R) Relegated
Notes:

Group B

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsPromotion or relegation
1Aluminium Hormozgan (P)2615742812+1652Promotion to 2012–13 Persian Gulf Cup
2Gahar Zagros (P, Q)2611962316+742Azadegan League 2011–12 Play Off
3Machine Sazi2611873225+741
4PAS Hamedan2610972925+439
5Nassaji Mazandaran2610792626037
6Est. Khuzestan269892823+535
7Sh. Yasouj26105112427−335
8Naft Masjed Soleyman2681082526−134
9Gol Gohar2696112828033
10Niroye Zamini2671182324−132
11Shirin Faraz2671182227−532
12Tarbiat Yazd2679102126−530
13Sanati Kaveh (R)2678112423+129Relegation to 2012–13 Iran Football's 2nd Division
14Bargh Shiraz (R)2646161237−2518
Updated to match(es) played on 7 May 2012. Source: Foolad FC
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(P) Promoted; (Q) Qualified for the phase indicated; (R) Relegated

Results table

Group A

Home \ AwayABUPATETKFOYGOSIRJMSRPMSPAYSAISANSHASHBSTL
Aboumoslem1–00–21–03–10–01–00–01–20–13–00–00–12–2
Parseh Tehran0–00–03–02–10–01–00–01–22–11–40–11–21–2
Etka Gorgan0–03–00–10–00–10–10–21–01–02–12–12–01–2
Foolad Yazd2–12–12–00–02–21–02–11–10–02–00–01–00–0
Gostaresh1–11–01–11–40–01–21–12–10–01–01–00–12–0
Iranjavan1–00–22–12–12–04–03–11–02–01–00–02–00–2
Mes Rafsanjan1–12–00–02–00–01–20–01–24–11–01–20–01–2
Payam Mokhaberat0–11–22–11–11–10–00–01–70–01–00–10–01–0
Paykan1–01–01–11–11–10–03–21–02–14–20–04–12–1
Saipa Shomal0–12–01–02–10–11–11–12–02–12–22–11–11–2
Sanat Sari1–11–01–21–01–21–32–11–00–10–31–00–01–0
Sh. Arak1–02–10–11–01–12–11–00–12–21–10–00–10–0
Sh. Bandar Abbas1–10–10–02–14–32–13–11–02–32–10–00–11–1
Steel Azin0–20–11–00–04–20–00–03–11–10–03–01–12–1
Updated to match(es) played on 18 April 2012. Source: [citation needed]
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Group B

Home \ AwayALHBGHESKGZAGOLMSTNFTNSJNROPASKAVSHYSFZTAR
Aluminium Hormozgan2–01–11–01–10–02–01–02–00–0
Bargh Shiraz0–10–02–11–10–00–31–21–00–1
Est. Khuzestan1–12–01–10–01–00–23–11–1
Gahar Zagros0–11–01–03–11–10–01–13–13–1
Gol Gohar1–23–03–10–02–23–03–20–12–1
Machine Sazi1–12–12–12–02–23–23–11–11–2
Naft Masjed Soleyman1–11–02–31–11–21–01–11–0
Nassaji Mazandaran0–11–01–01–01–30–02–11–11–0
Niroye Zamini1–01–11–00–11–01–11–01–02–2
PAS Hamedan1–12–11–21–22–10–12–12–11–1
Sanati Kaveh1–20–10–00–12–11–11–12–01–1
Sh. Yasouj2–00–01–20–11–01–32–01–02–2
Shirin Faraz1–11–00–01–01–12–02–11–11–0
Tarbiat Yazd0–22–02–02–11–10–01–30–02–1
Updated to match(es) played on 9 February 2012. Source: [citation needed]
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Play Off

First leg played on 1 May 2012; return leg to be played on 8 May 2012
Team 1Agg.Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
Iranjavan1–1Gahar Zagros1-10-0

Winner is promoted to the Persian Gulf Cup

Final

The Final scheduled to play on 2 May 2012
Team 1ScoreTeam 2Notes
Paykan(w/o)[18]Aluminum Hormozgan

Player statistics

Top scorers, Group B

RankPlayerClubGoals
1 Bahman TahmasebiAluminum H13
2 Rasoul AlizadehMashin Sazi8
Ambuno AchilleShirin Faraz8
3 Meghdad GhobakhlouShahrdari Yasuj7
Mousa ShahbaziNiroye Zamini7

Attendance

Average home attendance

PosTeamTotalHighLowAverageChange
1Naft MIS100,00010,00009,091+1.0%
2Gahar Zagros80,00010,0002,0006,154+79.7%
3Nassaji69,50015,00005,792−54.6%
4Aluminium Hormozgan55,60010,00005,055+66.4%
5Sh. Yasouj52,5007,0002,0004,038−27.1%
6Sh. Arak47,0007,0001,0003,615+151.4%
7Machine Sazi42,5005,0001,0003,269+312.8%
8Sh. Bandar Abbas41,2007,0002003,169+75.3%
9Steel Azin36,0004,0001,0002,769−29.7%
10Mes Rafsanjan30,5003,0005002,346−9.0%
11Gol Gohar27,5003,0001,5002,115−6.8%
12Iranjavan27,0005,0001,0002,077+7.0%
13PAS Hamedan25,5003,0001,0001,962−56.7%
14Saipa Shomal24,3003,5001001,869n/a
15Shirin Faraz22,5003,00001,875−28.3%
16Foolad Yazd23,4004,0001001,800−33.1%
17Sanat Sari16,2003,00001,350−67.5%
18Etka Gorgan17,0002,3001001,308+0.3%
19Est. Khuzestan15,5002,00001,292n/a
20Aboumoslem11,1502,5000929−31.2%
21Tarbiat Yazd11,7002,000200900−78.8%
22Paykan11,6503,000100896−53.8%
23Bargh Shiraz11,0002,000100846−26.7%
24Gostaresh10,9502,00050842−83.1%
25Niroye Zamini7,8003,000100600n/a
25Payam Mokhaberat7,8001,500100600+29.9%
27Parseh Tehran3,4501,0000288n/a
28Sanati Kaveh2,6001,000100200+6.4%


League total831,80015,00002,350−14.0%

Updated to games played on 19 April 2012
Source: iplstats.com
Notes:
Matches with spectator bans are not included in average attendances
PAS Hamedan, Paykan and Steel Azin played last season in Persian Gulf Cup
Niroye Zamini, Parseh Tehran and Saipa Shomal played last season in Iran 2nd Division
Esteghlal Khuzestan replaced Esteghlal Jonoub Tehran
Damash Lorestan changed their name into Gahar Zagros
Hamyari Arak changed their name into Shahrdari Arak

Highest attendance

RankHome teamScoreAway teamAttendanceDateWeekStadium
1Nassaji0–0Naft MIS15,0005 April 2012 (2012-04-05)24Vatani
2Naft MIS1–2PAS Hamadan10,00017 November 2011 (2011-11-17)7Behnam Mohammadi
Naft MIS2–3Nassaji10,00016 December 2011 (2011-12-16)11Behnam Mohammadi
Naft MIS1–1Aluminium Hormozgan10,00027 December 2011 (2011-12-27)13Behnam Mohammadi
Naft MIS1–0Tarbiat Yazd10,00012 January 2012 (2012-01-12)14Behnam Mohammadi
Gahar Zagros0–1Aluminium Hormozgan10,00027 January 2012 (2012-01-27)16Takhti Doroud
Naft MIS0–0Gol Gohar10,0003 February 2012 (2012-02-03)17Behnam Mohammadi
Naft MIS1–0Gahar Zagros10,00016 February 2012 (2012-02-16)19Behnam Mohammadi
Aluminium Hormozgan1–0Niroye Zamini10,00016 February 2012 (2012-02-16)19Khalij-e Fars
Naft MIS2–1Sanati Kaveh10,00029 February 2012 (2012-02-29)21Behnam Mohammadi

Notes:
Updated to games played on 19 April 2012. Source: iplstats.com

See also

References