6. Ali Daei
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The pinnacle of Iranian football was when Ali Daei played for his national team. The forward went on to score 109 goals for his country, the most by any player ever in international football. Not only did Ali turn up for the big games, but he also topped scoring charts regularly – be it the Asian Cup in 1996 or the 1998 FIFA World cup qualifiers. One of his most memorable games was a 4-goal haul against South Korea in the 1996 AFC Asian Cup quarterfinals.
Ali’s exploits in the Asian Cup did not go unnoticed; he earned a move to German outfit Arminia Bielefeld in 1997/98 before making the ‘big move’ to Bayern Munich the following season. Ali also became the first Asian player to feature in the UEFA Champions League.
Despite Bayern doing the double (league and DFB Pokal) and ending the season as UCL runners-up, his stint at the Bavarian club was not personally fruitful for the ‘goal machine’. Ali moved to Hertha BSC the following season and he scored 12 goals for the club, of which 6 came in Europe, during his three seasons in Berlin.
In 2002, Ali moved back to Asia and continued playing for clubs in the continent before going on to feature for Iran at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He has coached the Iranian national team and several clubs in his home country.
