Alipour aiming high after reunion with Reds
Iranian striker Ali Alipour said he will be looking to repeat his good old days in the Persepolis shirt and receive an international call-up after signing a two-year contract with the Persian Gulf Pro League champion as a free agent.
Alipour, 28, left the Theran Reds in 2020 to join C.S. Marítimo but his time in the Portuguese top flight was hit by a couple of sidelining injuries as he only managed 17 goals across four seasons – including two in 19 appearances for Gil Vicente last term.
Alipour bagged 72 strikes – 56 of which makes him the Reds’ all-time top scorer in the Iranian Pro League – and 33 assists in 212 games for Persepolis, winning four league titles and a domestic cup trophy, while he was part of the team that reached a first AFC Champions League final in 2018.
“Thank God I’m back in Persepolis. The club has always been like a home to me and I have fond memories of my pervious spell here,” Alipour said upon signing the contract.
Persepolis archrival Esteghlal, as well as a couple of Turkish clubs, reportedly approached the Iranian in recent weeks but Alipour said it was “hard for me to turn down the offer from the team that I had won all my trophies and top-scorer awards with.”
on his future aspirations, Alipour said: “I just hope the teammates and supporters will help me convince [Iran head coach] Amir Qalenoei to give me an opportunity in the national team.”
Despite an impressive goal-scoring record in club football, Alipour only has three international caps under his belt – the last of which came as a cameo under Belgian Marc Wilmots in a friendly against South Korea back in 2019.
Alipour is the third summer signing for Persepolis under new Spanish manager Juan Carlos Garrido – following ex-Sepahan winger Farshad Ahmadzadeh and Moroccan fullback Ayoub El Amloud, who joined from Wydad AC.
Persepolis, however, has had to part ways with three instrumental figures of its back-to-back title winning squad as Iranian goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand and his international teammate Mahdi Torabi, as well as right-back Danial Esmaeilifar all left the Reds to join Tractor as free agents.