Esteghlal Football Club, commonly known as Esteghlal, is an Iranian football club based in Tehran that competes in the Persian Gulf Pro League. The club was founded in 1945 as The Cyclists and previously known as Tâj between 1949 and 1979. The club is part of the multisport club Esteghlal of Iran Athletic and Cultural Company. They were the first team to reach 1,000 points in Persian Gulf Pro League.
Giuseppe Baresi is an Italian football manager and former player, who played as a defender or as a defensive midfielder. He currently works as a technical assistant at Inter Milan. Baresi spent the majority of his 18-year career with Inter, before retiring in 1994 after two seasons with Modena. With Inter, he won two Serie A titles and the UEFA Cup, among other trophies, and also served as the team's captain. At international level, he represented the Italy national team on 18 occasions between 1979 and 1986, taking part at UEFA Euro 1980, where they finished in fourth place, and at the 1986 FIFA World Cup. His younger brother, Franco Baresi, also a defender, served as captain for city rivals A.C. Milan and the Italy national side.
Claudio Cesare Prandelli is an Italian football coach and former player. He was most recently head coach of Fiorentina.
Winfried "Winnie" Schäfer is a German football manager and former player who last managed Qatari club Al-Khor.
Marco Tardelli is an Italian former football player and manager. At club level, he played as a midfielder for several Italian clubs; he began his career with Pisa, and later played for Como, Juventus, and Internazionale, before retiring with Swiss club St. Gallen. He enjoyed a highly successful career with Juventus, winning five league titles, as well as multiple Coppa Italia titles, and four major UEFA competitions, becoming one of the first three players ever to win all three major UEFA club competitions, along with Italy and Juventus teammates Antonio Cabrini and Gaetano Scirea.
Edward John Ikem Newton is an English football manager and former professional footballer.
Attilio Lombardo is an Italian retired football player turned manager; he is currently the assistant manager for the Saudi Arabia national football team.
Alain Boghossian is a French former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He serves as an assistant coach for the France national team.
Richard Asa Hartford is a Scottish former football player and coach. He started his professional career with West Bromwich Albion. His early progress led to a proposed transfer to Leeds United in November 1971, but this collapsed when a medical examination discovered a heart condition. Hartford instead moved to Manchester City in 1974. He helped City win the 1976 League Cup Final. After a brief spell with Nottingham Forest, Hartford moved to Everton in 1979 and then had a second spell with Manchester City. After playing for Fort Lauderdale Sun, Hartford joined Norwich City. His shot resulted in the only goal of the 1985 League Cup Final.
Gabriele Ambrosetti is an Italian football manager and former player, who played as a winger.
Ardeshir "Amir" Ghalenoei is an Iranian football coach and former player who currently manages Iran national football team. He has been the most successful coach in the Iran Pro League and managed several clubs, including Esteghlal, Mes Kerman, Sepahan S.C. and Tractor, with two of which he won a total of five championships and two Hazfi Cup titles. He was also the head coach of Iran national football team from August 2006 to July 2007 where he managed the team for the 2007 AFC Asian Cup where Iran was eliminated in the quarter-finals.
Saeid Lotfi is a former Iranian football player, who played in IPL team Esteghlal and Paykan. He usually played as a defender.
Zoran Filipović is a Montenegrin former football coach and player, best known for his playing stints with Red Star Belgrade and S.L. Benfica.
Gabriele Cioffi is an Italian professional football manager and former player who played as a defender. He is the head coach of Serie A club Udinese.
Mansour Pourheidari was an Iranian football player, coach and manager.
Salvatore Bocchetti is an Italian football coach and former player. He played as a centre-back as a player.
Majid Saleh is a retired Iranian football player and current coach.
Michael McDermott is a Northern Irish former professional football player, and is currently the assistant coach to Carlos Queiroz at the Qatar national team. Dermott has held various coaching roles in professional football clubs as well as at the international level.
Andrea Stramaccioni is an Italian football manager and former player who last managed Qatari club Al Gharafa.
Ali Ghorbani is a professional footballer, who plays as a forward for Foolad in the Persian Gulf Pro League. Born in Iran, he plays for the Azerbaijan national team.
