Wikipedia

Behrang Safari

Behrang Safari (Persian: بهرنگ صفری, Persian pronunciation: [behræŋɡ sæfæriː]; born 9 February 1985) is a Swedish former professional footballer who played as a defender.[1] Starting off his professional career with Malmö FF in 2004, he went on to represent FC Basel and RSC Anderlecht before retiring at Malmö in 2020. A full international between 2008 and 2013, he won 31 caps for the Sweden national team and was named in their UEFA Euro 2012 squad.

Behrang Safari
Safari warming up for Basel in 2011
Personal information
Full name Behrang Safari
Date of birth (1985-02-09) 9 February 1985 (age 39)
Place of birth Tehran, Iran
Height 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s) Left-back, centre-back
Youth career
1992–2001 Lunds SK
2001–2004 Malmö FF
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2004–2008 Malmö FF 59 (2)
2008–2011 FC Basel 94 (1)
2011–2013 Anderlecht 44 (0)
2013–2016 FC Basel 64 (0)
2016–2020 Malmö FF 82 (1)
2021 Lunds SK 6 (1)
Total 349 (5)
International career
2008–2013 Sweden 31 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17 June 2022

Early life

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Behrang Safari emigrated to Sweden as a two-year-old from Tehran, Iran, with his family. They settled in the small town of Höganäs, and later moved to Lund when he was five.[2]

Club career

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Malmö FF

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Safari came through the ranks at Malmö FF and played his first game in the Allsvenskan in July 2004 when he came on as a substitute. He made his UEFA debut in the 2004 UEFA Intertoto Cup on 19 June 2004 against Cork City F.C.[3] He won the Allsvenskan in his first season and became a first-team regular the following season.[4]

FC Basel

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On 15 June 2008, Malmö announced that Safari had been sold to FC Basel in Switzerland.[5] This was confirmed one day later by FCB Online and they stated that he signed a three-year contract.[6][7] He joined Basel's first team for their 2008–09 season under head coach Christian Gross. To the beginning of the season Safari was member of the Basel team that won the Uhrencup. They beat Legia Warsaw 6–1 and played a 2–2 draw with Borussia Dortmund to end the table on top slot above Dortmund and Luzern.[8] After playing in seven test games, Safari played his domestic league debut for the club in the home game in the St. Jakob-Park on 23 July 2008 as Basel won 1–0 against Grasshopper Club Zürich.[9]

Basel joined the 2008–09 UEFA Champions League in the second qualifying round. Safari played his first European game in a Basel shirt on 30 July 2008 in a 1–1 Champions League qualifying match draw with IFK Göteborg at Ullevi. With an aggregate score of 5–3 they eliminated Göteborg. The next round would have Basel overtake Vitória de Guimarães despite a first leg goalless draw, succeeding with a second leg 2–1 win. They advanced to the group stage. Basel would be matched with Barcelona, Sporting CP and Shakhtar Donetsk, but would end the string in last position winning just one point after a 1–1 draw in Camp Nou.[10] At the end of the 2008–09 Super League season Basel were third in the table, seven points behind new champions Zürich and one adrift of runners-up Young Boys.[11] In the 2008–09 Swiss Cup Basel advanced via Schötz, Bulle, Thun and Zurich to the semi-finals. But here they were stopped by Young Boys. After a goalless 90 minutes and extra time YB decided the penalty shoot-out 3–2 and advanced to the final to become runners-up, as Sion became cup winners.[12]

For their 2009–10 season Basel appointed Thorsten Fink as their new head coach. Safari scored his first goal for the club on 7 February 2010 in the home game in the St. Jakob-Park as Basel won 4–0 against BSC Young Boys.[13] Basel joined the 2009–10 UEFA Europa League in the second qualifying round. Basel advanced to the group stage, in which despite winning three of the six games the ended in third position and were eliminated. They finished four points behind group winners Roma and one behind Fulham, against whom they lost 3–2 in the last game of the stage.[14] At the end of the 2009–10 season he won the Double with his club. They won the League Championship title with 3 points advantage over second placed Young Boys.[15] The team won the Swiss Cup, winning the final 6–0 against Lausanne-Sport.[16]

Basel started in the 2010–11 UEFA Champions League third qualifying round and advanced to the group stage, but ended the group in third position. Therefore they dropped to the 2010–11 Europa League knockout phase, but here they were eliminated by Spartak Moscow due to a last minute goal against them. Safari played in all 12 matches.[17] With Basel, Safari won the Swiss Championship for the second time at the end of the 2010–11 season, topping the table just one point clear of rivals Zürich.[18]

On 30 May 2011 it was announced that Safari would leave the club. Safari played 94 league games for Basel during his three-year contract.[19]

Anderlecht

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On 30 May 2011, Behrang signed a contract for the Belgian club Anderlecht. He had his debut for Anderlecht on 29 July 2011 in the 2–1 away defeat against Oud-Heverlee Leuven. He played his first European game for the team in the Europa League qualifying away match over Bursaspor in the Bursa Atatürk Stadium on 18 August 2011.[20] He won the league in his first season with Anderlecht.

Return to Basel

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After Safari's return to Basel, he featured in their 2013-14 Champions League campaign.[21] At the end of the 2013–14 Super League season Safari won his third league championship with Basel.[22] They also reached the final of the 2013–14 Swiss Cup, but were beaten 2–0 by Zürich after extra time. During the 2013–14 Champions League season Basel reached the group stage and finished the group in third position. Thus they qualified for Europa League knockout phase and here they advanced as far as the quarter-finals.

The next season, Safari started for Basel as a left-back where they made it to the knockout stages of the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League.[23] He also won the 2014–15 Swiss Super League, his sixth consecutive league title and seventh overall. Safari and his Basel teammates attended a charity event in June 2015.[24] He continued in the left back position the following season in the Champions League, Europa League and Swiss Super League.

The season 2014–15 was a successful one for Safari and for his club Basel. The championship was won for the sixth time in a row that season[25] and in the 2014–15 Swiss Cup they reached the final. But for the third season in a row, they finished as runners-up, losing 0–3 to FC Sion in the final. Basel entered the Champions League in the group stage and reached the knockout phase as on 9 December 2014 they managed a 1–1 draw at Anfield against Liverpool.[26] But then Basel lost to Porto in the Round of 16. Basel played a total of 65 matches (36 Swiss League fixtures, six Swiss Cup, eight Champions League and 15 test matches). Under trainer Paulo Sousa, Safari totaled 41 appearances, 24 League, two Cup, seven Champions League, as well as 13 in test games. Safari scored one goal in these matches during a friendly game against FC Schaffhausen.[27]

Under trainer Urs Fischer Safari won the Swiss Super League championship at the end of the 2015–16 Super League season for the fifth time with Basel. For the club it was the seventh title in a row and their 19th championship title in total.[28]

During the 2015–16 FC Basel season Safari decided to return to Sweden due to family reasons at the end of the season. He signed for Malmö FF.[29] Between the years 2008 to 2011 and again from 2013 to 2016_ Safari played a total of 291 games for Basel scoring a total of 3 goals. 157 of these games were in the Swiss Super League, 14 in the Swiss Cup, 59 were in a UEFA European-competitions (Champions League and Europa League) and 61 were friendly games. He scored one goal in the domestic league, the other two were scored during the test games. During his six seasons with FCB Safari won the Swiss championship five times and the domestic cup once.[30]

Return to Malmö FF

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On 18 January 2016 it was announced that Safari would return to Malmö FF when his contract with FC Basel expired at the end of the 2015–16 season. Safari signed a contract with Malmö that extends over the 2020 season and allows him to join the team halfway through the 2016 season.[31] He scored a goal in the Allsvenskan on 11 April 2017 against GIF Sundsvall and was named vice-captain after Markus Rosenberg. He won his tenth league title after winning the 2017 Allsvenskan, making Zlatan Ibrahimović the only Swede with more league titles.[32] Safari became a regular starter for MFF as they qualified for the 2018–19 UEFA Europa League on 30 August 2018.[33] On 28 September 2020, Safari announced that he would retire from professional football after the 2020 season.[34] On 8 November 2020, Safari and Malmö won the 2020 Allsvenskan.[35] Safari played his final professional match on 6 December 2020 in a 4–0 win over Östersund, raising the Lennart Johansson Trophy afterwards and receiving a tribute from the likes of Walter Samuel and Roger Federer.[36]

Return to Lunds SK

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On 13 December 2020, Safari returned to his boyhood club Lunds SK in the Swedish Division 5 for their 2021 season.[37][38][39] Safari and Lunds SK became champions of Division 5 Skåne sydvästra by the end of the 2021 season.[40]

International career

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Safari was called up to the Sweden national team for their friendly match tour in January 2008.[41] He played in all of the matches, which were a 1–0 win over Costa Rica, a 2–0 defeat to the United States, and a 0–0 draw with Turkey. During his debut game against Costa Rica, Safari set up the only goal of the game with a cross to Samuel Holmén, who volleyed the ball into the back of the net.[42]

Safari featured in Sweden's Euro 2012 qualifiers and was called up to their UEFA Euro 2012 squad by manager Erik Hamrén.[43]

Style of play

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Safari has been praised for his crosses and ability to adapt to both defensive and attacking roles on the left side of play.[44][45]

Outside football

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Personal life

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Safari is the main character of a children's book that intends to promote autism awareness after his sons Emiliano and Leon were diagnosed.[46] The book has been ordered by some teachers and schools in Sweden.[47]

During his professional playing career, Safari's agent was Martin Dahlin.[48]

Sponsorship

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Safari is outfitted by German sportswear manufacturer Puma.[49][50]

Post-professional career

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Football agent

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After retiring from playing professional football with Malmö FF, Safari announced in December 2020 that he would begin his career as a football agent along with former teammate Markus Rosenberg, with their agency being called Full Potential Agency.[51][52][40]

Broadcasting career

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In 2022, Safari joined Swedish television broadcaster C More as a studio analyst during the UEFA Champions League.[53][54]

Career statistics

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Club

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Safari playing for Sweden in 2010.
As of 19 April 2022[55][56]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup Continental Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Malmö FF 2004 Allsvenskan 3 0 0 0 1 0 4 0
2005 Allsvenskan 3 0 1 0 1 0 5 0
2006 Allsvenskan 18 2 2 0 — 20 2
2007 Allsvenskan 24 0 1 0 — 25 0
2008 Allsvenskan 11 0 1 0 — 12 0
Total 59 2 5 0 2 0 66 2
FC Basel 2008–09 Swiss Super League 34 0 5 0 9 0 48 0
2009–10 Swiss Super League 32 1 3 0 10 0 45 1
2010–11 Swiss Super League 28 0 0 0 12 0 40 0
Total 94 1 8 0 31 0 133 1
Anderlecht 2011–12 Belgian Pro League 24 0 1 0 9 0 34 0
2012–13 Belgian Pro League 20 0 4 0 5 0 29 0
Total 44 0 5 0 14 0 63 0
FC Basel 2013–14 Swiss Super League 21 0 3 0 10 0 34 0
2014–15 Swiss Super League 25 0 2 0 7 0 34 0
2015–16 Swiss Super League 18 0 1 0 11 0 30 0
Total 64 0 6 0 28 0 98 0
Malmö FF 2016 Allsvenskan 11 0 0 0 — 11 0
2017 Allsvenskan 21 1 1 0 0 0 22 1
2018 Allsvenskan 21 0 6 0 13 0 40 0
2019 Allsvenskan 16 0 2 0 16 1 34 1
2020 Allsvenskan 13 0 3 0 3 0 19 0
Total 82 1 12 0 32 1 126 2
Lunds SK 2021 Division 5 Skåne sydvästra 1 — — 6 1
Career total 349 5 36 0 107 1 492 6

International

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Appearances and goals by national team and year[55]
National team Year Apps Goals
Sweden 2008 5 0
2009 7 0
2010 8 0
2011 3 0
2012 6 0
2013 2 0
Total 31 0

Honours

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Malmö FF

Basel

Anderlecht

Lunds SK

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Swedish Iranians Fan Thread". PersianFootball.com. Archived from the original on 2 September 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
  2. ^ Malmström, Håkan (15 June 2008). "Behrang Safari går till schweiziska Basel" [Behrang Safari goes to Basel]. Sport. Sydsvenskan (in Swedish). Bonnier Group. Archived from the original on 15 August 2018. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  3. ^ "Behrang Safari – UEFA.com". Archived from the original on 17 July 2014. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  4. ^ "Malmö säljer Behrang Safari till Schweiz". Expressen.se. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  5. ^ "Behrang Safari lämnar Malmö FF". Archived from the original on 16 October 2008. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  6. ^ "FCB verpflichtet mit Gelabert und Safari zwei neue Spieler" (in German). FC Basel 1893. 2008. Archived from the original on 5 April 2012. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
  7. ^ (red) (16 June 2008). "Gelabert und Safari zu Basel" [Gelabert and Safari to Basel] (in German). Neue Zürcher Zeitung. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  8. ^ Garin, Erik (2011). "Coupe Horlogère - Uhren Cup (Switzerland)". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  9. ^ Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv” (23 July 2008). "FC Basel - Grasshopper Club 1:0 (1:0)". Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv”. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  10. ^ Hunter, Graham (4 November 2008). "FC Barcelona - FC Basel 1:1 (0:0)". UEFA.com. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  11. ^ Stokkermans, Karel (2012). "Switzerland 2008/09" (in French). Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  12. ^ Swiss Football Verband (SFV) (9 May 2010). "Swiss Cup 2008/09". Swiss Football Verband (SFV) internet. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  13. ^ Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv” (7 February 2010). "FC Basel - BSC Young Boys 4:0 (0:0)". Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv”. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  14. ^ Homewood, Brian (16 December 2009). "Zamora one-two knocks Basel out". uefa.com. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  15. ^ Stokkermans, Karel (2012). "Switzerland 2009/10" (in French). Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  16. ^ Swiss Football Verband (SFV) (9 May 2010). "FC Basel - FC Lausanne-Sport 6:0 (2:0)". Swiss Football Verband (SFV) internet. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  17. ^ van Poortvliet, Richard. "Spartak shake off Basel revival". UEFA.com. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  18. ^ Zea, Anthony (2012). "Switzerland 2010/2011". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  19. ^ (Keystone-SDA) (30 May 2011). "Behrang Safari wechselt nach Belgien zu Anderlecht" [Behrang Safari moves to Belgium to Anderlecht] (in German). swissinfo.ch. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  20. ^ "Bursaspor Anderlecht lineups". uefa.com. 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  21. ^ "Behrang Safari". UEFA.com (Profile). Archived from the original on 13 October 2013.
  22. ^ Grossenbacher, Sacha (2014). "Fotos vom Spiel gegen Lausanne sowie den anschliessenden Feierlichkeiten" (in German). FC Basel 1893. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 18 May 2014.
  23. ^ "UEFA Champions League - Behrang Safari – UEFA.com". Archived from the original on 19 September 2014. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  24. ^ "Charity from Behrang Safari with FC Basel Players - Style - 03-06-2015 - Basel". Goalgetter.tv. 3 June 2015. Archived from the original on 14 January 2016. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  25. ^ Marti, Caspar (2015). "Der Meisterfreitag im bunten Zeitraffer" (in German). FC Basel 1893. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
  26. ^ "Liverpool 1 Basel 1". BBC Sport. 10 December 2014. Retrieved 10 December 2014.
  27. ^ Zindel, Josef (2015). Rotblau: Jahrbuch Saison 2015/2016. FC Basel Marketing AG. ISBN 978-3-7245-2050-4.
  28. ^ Marti, Casper (2016). "Es ist vollbracht ! Der FCB ist zum 19. Mal Meister". FC Basel 1893. Archived from the original on 30 May 2019. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
  29. ^ FC Basel 1893 (18 January 2016). "Behrang Safari kehrt zu Malmoe FF zurueck". Behrang Safari returns to Malmoe FF. FC Basel 1893 AG. Retrieved 16 November 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  30. ^ Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv” (2016). "Behrang Safari FCB-Statistik". Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv”. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  31. ^ "Välkommen tillbaka till Malmö FF, Behrang Safari". Malmö FF. 18 January 2016. Retrieved 31 May 2016.
  32. ^ "Safari jagar Zlatans guldrekord". Aftonbladet.se. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  33. ^ "MFF-seger i Danmark - klart för Europa League-gruppspel". Fotbollskanalen.se. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  34. ^ "Behrang Safari avslutar karriären efter säsongen". Mff.se. 28 September 2020. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  35. ^ "Safari SM-guldmedaljör igen - pikar nu tränaren: "Hade kanske inte kommit in"". Fotbollskanalen.se. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  36. ^ "Fotboll: Federers hyllning till Safari: "Gjort mitt liv bättre"". SVT Sport (in Swedish). 6 December 2020. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  37. ^ "Officiellt: Behrang Safari är tillbaka där allt började". Sydsvenskan.se. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  38. ^ "Safari återvänder till moderklubben: "Den största vi haft"". Fotbollskanalen. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  39. ^ "Behrang Safari Lunds SK - Lagstatistik". Lagstatistik.se. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
  40. ^ a b c "Behrang Safari: "Det bästa är att jag hittat rätt efter min aktiva karriär som fotbollsspelare"". 3 December 2021.
  41. ^ "Behrang Safari om landslagsplatsen och ryktena". svenskafans.com. Archived from the original on 30 December 2007. Retrieved 28 December 2007.
  42. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "2008 (january 13) Costa Rica 0-Sweden 1 (Friendly).mpg". YouTube.
  43. ^ "Guidetti ruled out of Hamrén's Sweden squad". UEFA.com. 14 May 2012.
  44. ^ "Swedish international Behrang Safari joins RSC Anderlecht on three-year deal m". Goal.com. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  45. ^ "Player Ratings: Basel 2-3 Fulham". Goal.com. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  46. ^ ""Autism är en så liten del av mina pojkar"". Aftonbladet.se. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  47. ^ "Safari tappade kaptensbindeln till Christiansen: "Blev lite märkligt"". Fotbollskanalen.se. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  48. ^ Malmström, Håkan (15 June 2008). "Behrang Safari går till schweiziska Basel" (in Swedish). Sydsvenskan. Archived from the original on 16 June 2010. Retrieved 22 April 2011.
  49. ^ "Alleen Safari kiest voor Puma bij Anderlecht" [Only Safari chooses Puma for Anderlecht]. News. VoetbalNieuws (in Dutch). 21 September 2012. Archived from the original on 5 October 2018. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
  50. ^ "Pumas guldgossar". Resume.se. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  51. ^ "Behrang Safari har spelat sina sista proffsminuter". Aftonbladet.se. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  52. ^ "Safari om avslutet, agentframtiden och petningen: "Glädjen togs ifrån mig i år"". Fotbollskanalen.se. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  53. ^ "TV: Tomori visades ut – domaren sågas: "Fruktansvärt billig"".
  54. ^ "TV: Experterna tolkar bilderna på Salah: "Ingen munter herre"".
  55. ^ a b "Behrang Safari". soccerway.com. Soccerway. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  56. ^ "Spelade matcher". mff.se (in Swedish). Malmö FF. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
  57. ^ "Anderlecht hold off Zulte Waregem to seal title". UEFA.com. 19 May 2013. Retrieved 25 July 2013.
  58. ^ "Everysport.com | Division 5 Skåne sydvästra". www.everysport.com. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
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