The first Iranians in Italian football: it’s the story of 2001

Until then, political refugees and carpets arrived from Iran, never footballers. Before Sardar Azmoun, Roma’s new signing, Italy met the first Iranian football professionals in the 2001/02 championship. They were Rahmah Rezaei and Ali Samereh, the former playing defender – a statuesque and rough centre-back – and the latter a forward, decidedly more popular than his colleague. Instead in Serie A their fate turned upside down. In the end, Rezaei made 126 appearances for Perugia, Messina and Livorno, playing six Serie A championships and one Serie B. Di Samereh, on the other hand, disappeared almost immediately. He had arrived with great ambitions, soon silenced by a reality that required a different temper and other characteristics. Samereh arrived first, in the summer; that same winter Rezaei was bought instead.