Khazar Lankaran FK () was an Azerbaijani football club based in Lankaran that last played in the Azerbaijan Premier League during the 2015–16 season.
Since the summer of 2016 the club has concentrated on youth football. It played in the Azerbaijan Premier League for twelve-seasons, winning the title once, and the Azerbaijan Cup three times. Khazar were also a member of the European Club Association, an organization that replaced the previous G-14 which consists of major football clubs in Europe.
History
Early years (2004–2012) The club was founded in 2004 by Azerbaijani entrepreneur Mubariz Mansimov and dubbed by the local media as "Caucasian Chelsea" because of its strong financial position.Наставник сборной Молдавии отрицает переход в "кавказский "Челси" Кавказский "Челси": миф или реалность? Under Agaselim Mirjavadov, the club won the Premier League title during the 2006–07 season and the Azerbaijan Cup twice. Khazar also won the CIS Cup in 2008, defeating Pakhtakor Tashkent in the final.
After Fabian Veldwijk's appointment in 2012, a string of Romanian players and footballers were signed from Liga I, but the club did not find success in European cup competition. After winning the Cup in 2013, Khazar announced and decided On 4 December 2013, that Veldwijk had been sacked by the club due to a run of poor performances.
Recent years (2014–2016) In July 2014, the club under Yunis Huseynov earned their first win in European competition by beating Nõmme Kalju. In March 2015, former Liverpool striker John Toshack was appointed as new manager after signing two-year deal with the club. In the 2015–16 season, Khazar finished in 12th place, the club's lowest finishing position to date. Khazar Lankaran once again featured in European competitions during the 2015–16 season, featuring in the UEFA Europa League, where they were knocked out 3–0 on aggregate after suffering their heaviest European defeat ever, losing 8–0 to Maccabi Haifa.
Following the Professional Football League of Azerbaijan's decision to deny Khazar a licence for the 2016–17 season, the club announced their withdrawal from professional football.
League and cup history Season League Azerbaijan Cup Top goalscorer Div. Pos. Pl. W D L GS GA P Name League2004–051st2342464681578Semi-finals Samir Aliyev202005–061st726998271836Semi-finals Samir Aliyev42006–071st1241752501656Winners Zaur Ramazanov202007–081st42614102441652Winners Zaur Ramazanov112008–091st4261556492150Quarter-finals Ivan Tsvetkov152009–101st44218177482571Runners-up Mario Sergio92010–111st23216124381860Winners Winston Parks82011–121st2321787442859Quarter-finals Branimir Subašić62012–131st832101012403740Runners-up Dimitris Sialmas62013–141st636121311444949Semi-finals Mbilla Etame112014–151st7328816354632Quarter-finals Galin Ivanov62015–161st10363627165115Quarter-finals Rahid Amirguliyev4
European history
Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate 2005–06 UEFA Cup 1Q FC Nistru Otaci 1–2 1–3 2–5 2007–08 UEFA Champions League 1Q NK Dinamo Zagreb 1–1 1–3 (aet) 2–4 2008–09 UEFA Cup 1Q Lech Poznań 0–1 1–4 1–5 2010–11 UEFA Europa League 1Q Olimpia 1–1 0–0 1–1 (a) 2011–12 UEFA Europa League 2Q Maccabi Tel Aviv 0–0 1–3 1–3 2012–13 UEFA Europa League 1Q Nõmme Kalju 2–2 2–0 4–2 2Q Lech Poznań 1–1 0–1 1–2 2013–14 UEFA Europa League 1Q Sliema Wanderers 1–0 1–1 2–1 2Q Maccabi Haifa 0–8 0–2 0–10
Crest and colours The club's crest includes stockless anchor with a football ball. The badge shaped like traditional compass with white-green background elements.
Shirt sponsors and kit manufacturers Khazar's traditional kit is composed of white shirts, green shorts and white socks. The club's kits are manufactured by Puma and sponsored by Palmali, a multinational shipping company in Istanbul.
Stadium
Khazar Lankaran's home ground is Lankaran City Stadium. It has a capacity of 15,000 and is the third largest stadium in Azerbaijan. The stadium also known as Fırtınalar meydanı (Arena of Storms), named after club's local supporters Fırtına fan group."Fırtınalar meydanı"nda qol şousu "Fırtınalar meydanı" niyə dolmur...
On 17 July 2009, UEFA approved stadium for the usage during international football matches.Azərbaycan – Finlandiya oyunu Lənkəranda keçiriləcək The stadium hosted its first senior international match on 5 September 2009, between Azerbaijan and Finland.affa.az:Azərbaycan – Finlandiya oyunu Lənkəranda keçiriləcək
Supporters Khazar is one of the best supported clubs in Azerbaijan, having the highest attendance after FC Kapaz in the Caucasus region. Supporters of Khazar Lankaran are drawn from all over the Southern Region and beyond, with supporters' clubs all across the world.Khazar Lankaran FC’s Baku Fan Club The club's supporters are also known as the Fırtına(Storm) the first established independent fan club in Azernaijan. Fan club's first president Ravan Bashirov also been appointed as vice- president of Khazar Lankaran FC. ."FIRTINA" Fan Club “Xəzər Lənkəran”a zərbə yox, dəstək lazımdır!
Rivalry
There is often a fierce rivalry between the two strongest teams in the Azerbaijan Premier League, and this is particularly the case in Azerbaijan, where the game between Khazar Lankaran and Neftchi Baku is known as Böyük Oyun (The Great Game).Раиль МЕЛИКОВ: «Это главное дерби Азербайджана и его невозможно сравнить с другим матчем» “XƏZƏR-LƏNKƏRAN”-"NEFTÇİ" DERBİSİ İTV-dən YAYIMLANACAQ pfl.az:50 saat qalmış
Honours
National Azerbaijan Premier League Winners (1): 2006–07 Azerbaijan Cup Winners (3): 2006–07, 2007–08, 2010–11 Azerbaijan Supercup Winners (1): 2013
Regional CIS Cup Winners (1): 2008
Individual records Lists of the players with the most caps and top goalscorers for the club, as of 30 August 2014 (players in bold signifies current Khazar player). Zaur Ramazanov is the club's all-time top scorer with 33 goals in 69 games.
+ Top Ten Highest Goalscorers Player Period Appearances Goals 1 Zaur Ramazanov 2005–08; 2011 69 33 2 Ivan Tsvetkov 2008–10 50 22 3 Rahid Amirguliyev 2006–present 189 20 4 Mario Sergio 2008–10 58 18 5 Oktay Derelioğlu 2004–05 17 16 6 Branimir Subašić 2011–13 51 14 7 Rashad Abdullayev 2004–09 116 12 8 Mbilla Etame 2013–14 35 11 9 Allan Lalín 2009–11 43 11 10 Sadio Tounkara 2011–present 81 11
+ Top Ten Players With Most Appearances Player Period Caps Goals 1 Rahid Amirguliyev 2006–present 189 20 2 Radomir Todorov 2007–10; 2012–13 136 1 3 Kamran Agayev 2006–13 122 0 4 Alim Qurbanov 2004–12 121 11 5 Rashad Abdullayev 2004–09 116 12 6 Elnur Abdullayev 2011–present 109 10 7 Adrian Scarlatache 2011; 2012–2015 96 11 8 Sadio Tounkara 2011–present 81 11 9 Adrian Piț 2011–14 75 8 10 Emin Quliyev 2005–09 70 10
Notable managers
The following managers have all won at least one trophy when in charge of FK Khazar Lankaran: NamePeriodTrophies Agaselim Mirjavadov2007–09Azerbaijan Premier League, Azerbaijan Cup (2), CIS Cup Mircea Rednic2010–11Azerbaijan Cup Fabian Veldwijk2013Azerbaijan Supercup
In popular culture A number of television programmes have included references to Khazar Lankaran over the past few decades. In the sitcom Aramizda Galsin, the character Jasarat is a Khazar supporter. Khazar have also featured on several occasions in meykhana.
References
External links