Mehdi Taremi facts for kids

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Mehdi Taremi

Taremi with Iran at the 2019 AFC Asian Cup
Personal information
Date of birth	(1992-07-18) 18 July 1992 (age 33)
Place of birth	Bushehr, Iran
Height	1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s)	Striker
Team information
Current team	Inter Milan
Number	99
Youth career
2002–2006	Bargh Bushehr
2006–2010	Iranjavan
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2010–2012	Shahin Bushehr	8	(1)
2012–2014	Iranjavan	22	(12)
2014–2018	Persepolis	87	(45)
2018–2019	Al-Gharafa	30	(13)
2019–2020	Rio Ave	30	(18)
2020–2024	Porto	122	(64)
2024–	Inter Milan	26	(3)
International career‡
2011–2012	Iran U20	6	(0)
2013	Iran U23	1	(0)
2015–	Iran	94	(55)
Medal record Representing  Iran CAFA Nations Cup Winner 2023 Kyrgyzstan–Uzbekistan Team
Signature
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:25, 23 May 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 10 June 2025

Mehdi Taremi (Persian: مهدی طارمی; born on July 18, 1992) is a professional footballer from Iran. He plays as a striker for the Italian club Inter Milan and is also a key player for the Iran national team.

Mehdi started his career a bit later than some players. He first played for Shahin Bushehr and Iranjavan. From 2014 to 2018, he played for Persepolis, where he was the top scorer in the Persian Gulf Pro League twice.

After playing for Al-Gharafa in Qatar, he moved to Portugal. He joined Rio Ave in 2019 and was one of the top scorers in the Primeira Liga in the 2019–20 season. In 2020, he moved to FC Porto and helped them win many titles, including the league and several cups. He was the top goal scorer in the league in the 2022–23 season.

Taremi first played for the senior national team in 2015. He has represented Iran in major tournaments like the FIFA World Cup in 2018 and 2022, and the AFC Asian Cup in 2019 and 2023.

Club Career Highlights

Starting His Football Journey

Mehdi Taremi began his football journey at the Bargh Bushehr Academy. Later, he moved to the Youth Academy of Iranjavan.

Playing for Shahin Bushehr

In the summer of 2010, Taremi joined Shahin Bushehr. He played seven games and scored one goal. In 2012, he left the club for military service.

Time at Iranjavan

Taremi joined Iranjavan in the summer of 2013. He signed a two-year contract. During the 2013–14 season, he scored 12 goals in 22 matches. This made him the second-highest scorer in the league that season.

Success with Persepolis

Taremi training with Persepolis in 2016

After being a top scorer, Taremi received offers from many teams. He decided to join Persepolis in the summer of 2014. He signed a two-year contract.

First Season: 2014–15

Taremi played his first game for Persepolis in a 1–1 draw against Naft Tehran. He scored his first goal for the club on August 15, 2014, in a 1–0 win against Zob Ahan. He also scored a penalty in the Asian Champions League against Al Nassr. He scored many goals and helped his team. He won the Best Striker Award for the 2014–15 season.

Becoming a Top Scorer: 2015–16

Taremi playing for Persepolis in the Tehran derby.

Taremi scored twice in a 2–0 win against Foolad. This was Persepolis' first win of the season. His great performances earned him the player of the month award in August. On December 18, 2015, Taremi scored two goals in a 2–0 win against Rah Ahan. He finished the first half of the league as the top scorer with nine goals.

On April 15, 2016, Taremi scored two goals in Persepolis' big 4–2 win over Esteghlal in the Tehran derby. He finished the season as the league's top scorer with 16 goals.

Winning the League: 2016–17

Before the new season, Taremi decided to stay with Persepolis. He signed a new two-year contract. He scored his first goal of the season against Saba Qom. He also scored two goals in a 3–1 win against Sepahan. At the end of the season, Persepolis won their tenth Iran Pro League title. Taremi became the top scorer for the second year in a row with 18 goals.

On May 8, 2017, Taremi scored three important goals against Al Wahda. This helped his team reach the next round of the 2017 AFC Champions League.

A Short Break: 2017–18

Taremi played seven games and scored four goals. During this season, he was not allowed to play for four months. This was because of a past contract issue with a Turkish club. Persepolis was also not allowed to sign new players for a while.

Moving to Al Gharafa

Taremi playing for Al-Gharafa in 2018

On January 8, 2018, Taremi signed an 18-month contract with the Qatari club Al-Gharafa. He scored his first goal in the AFC Champions League against Al Jazira. He also scored two goals against Tractor Sazi in the AFC Champions League.

Joining Rio Ave in Portugal

On July 23, 2019, Taremi signed a two-year contract with the Portuguese club Rio Ave. He scored three goals in his first league start for the club on August 23, 2019. This was in a match against Aves.

Taremi finished his first season with 18 goals. He was one of the top scorers in the Primeira Liga.

Great Success with Porto

Taremi playing for Porto in 2021

In August 2020, Taremi signed a four-year contract with Primeira Liga club Porto. He scored his first league goal for Porto on November 8, 2020. This was in a 3–1 home win against Portimonense. In December 2020, he helped Porto win the 2020 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, which was his first European trophy.

On February 17, 2021, Taremi scored the first goal for Porto against Juventus in the UEFA Champions League. He was the first Iranian player to score in this stage of the competition. On April 13, he scored an amazing bicycle kick goal against Chelsea in the Champions League quarter-finals. This goal was later voted the best goal of the season's Champions League. It also won the "UEFA.com Goal of the Season" award.

Taremi finished the 2020–21 season with 16 goals and 11 assists. He won his first Primeira Liga title in the 2021–22 season with Porto. He scored 20 goals and made 13 assists that season. On May 20, 2023, he scored all four goals in a 4–2 win against Famalicão.

He finished the 2022–23 season as the top scorer in the league with 22 goals. He also won the Taça de Portugal cup with Porto. He was named in the Primeira Liga Team of the Year for the fourth time in a row.

Taremi playing for Inter Milan in 2024

On May 12, 2024, he scored a goal in the 98th minute in a 2–1 win against Boavista. This was his last game for Porto at their home stadium. On May 26, he scored a penalty in extra time, helping Porto win 2–1 against Sporting CP in the 2024 Taça de Portugal final.

Joining Inter Milan

On July 13, 2024, Taremi signed a three-year contract with the Italian champions Inter Milan. He became the first Iranian player and the second Asian player to join Inter Milan. On October 1, he scored his first goal and provided two assists in a 4–0 win over Red Star Belgrade in the Champions League. On January 26, 2025, he scored his first Serie A goal in a 4–0 away win over Lecce.

On May 6, 2025, Taremi made a crucial assist to Davide Frattesi in the 99th minute of extra time. This helped Inter Milan win dramatically against Barcelona in the Champions League semi-final. With this, he became the second Iranian player to reach the Champions League final.

International Career

Youth Teams

Taremi played for Iran's student national football team. He scored 9 goals in a tournament in Turkey. He was also called up for the Iran U23 team.

Playing for the Senior National Team

Taremi celebrating Iran's goal against Morocco in the 2018 FIFA World Cup

Taremi celebrating his goal against China in the 2019 AFC Asian Cup

Taremi played his first game for the Iran national team on June 11, 2015, in a friendly match against Uzbekistan. On September 3, 2015, he scored his first two goals for Iran in a 6–0 win over Guam.

On March 23, 2017, Taremi scored the winning goal in Iran's 1–0 victory against Qatar. This was in a World Cup qualifying match. He scored again on March 28, 2017, in a 1–0 win against China. On June 12, 2017, Taremi scored the second goal in a 2–0 win over Uzbekistan. This win helped Iran qualify for two World Cups in a row.

In June 2018, he was part of Iran's team for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. In Iran's group stage match against Portugal, Taremi had a chance to score a winning goal in stoppage time, but he missed.

He was also part of Iran's team for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. In the first group stage game, he scored two goals as Iran lost 6–2 to England.

On March 25, 2025, Taremi scored twice against Uzbekistan in a 2–2 draw. This result helped Iran qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, marking their seventh appearance in the tournament.

Personal Life

Mehdi Taremi is the youngest of three children in his family. His older brother, Mohammad, is also a football player.

In April 2022, Sporting CP, a rival club of Porto, published an article about Taremi. The article was criticized by Porto fans and Iranians, including the Iranian Ambassador to Portugal. The club later removed the article.

Career Statistics

Club

International

Scores and results list Iran's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Taremi goal.

List of international goals scored by Mehdi Taremi

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	3 September 2015	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran	Guam	2–0	6–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
2				5–0
3	8 September 2015	Sree Kanteerava Stadium, Bangalore, India	India	3–0	3–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
4	17 November 2015	Guam National Football Stadium, Tamuning, Guam	Guam	1–0	6–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
5				6–0
6	7 June 2016	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran	Kyrgyzstan	2–0	6–0	Friendly
7	10 November 2016	Shah Alam Stadium, Shah Alam, Malaysia	Papua New Guinea	2–0	8–1	Friendly
8	23 March 2017	Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar	Qatar	1–0	1–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
9	28 March 2017	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran	China	1–0	1–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
10	12 June 2017	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran	Uzbekistan	2–0	2–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
11	27 March 2018	UCP Arena, Graz, Austria	Algeria	2–0	2–1	Friendly
12	24 December 2018	Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha, Qatar	[[Palestinian National Authority {{{altlink}}}|Palestinian National Authority]]	1–0	1–1	Friendly
13	31 December 2018	Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan, Qatar	Qatar	1–0	2–1	Friendly
14	7 January 2019	Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates	Yemen	1–0	5–0	2019 AFC Asian Cup
15	3–0
16	24 January 2019	Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates	China	1–0	3–0	2019 AFC Asian Cup
17	3 June 2019	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran	Syria	2–0	5–0	Friendly
18				3–0
19				4–0
20	10 October 2019	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran	Cambodia	4–0	14–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
21				9–0
22	8 October 2020	Pakhtakor Central Stadium, Tashkent, Uzbekistan	Uzbekistan	2–0	2–1	Friendly
23	7 June 2021	Bahrain National Stadium, Riffa, Bahrain	Bahrain	3–0	3–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
24	11 June 2021	Bahrain National Stadium, Riffa, Bahrain	Cambodia	3–0	10–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
25	7 September 2021	Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan, Qatar	Iraq	2–0	3–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
26	7 October 2021	Zabeel Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates	United Arab Emirates	1–0	1–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
27	27 January 2022	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran	Iraq	1–0	1–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
28	1 February 2022	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran	United Arab Emirates	1–0	1–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
29	23 September 2022	NV Arena, Sankt Pölten, Austria	Uruguay	1–0	1–0	Friendly
30	21 November 2022	Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan, Qatar	England	1–4	2–6	2022 FIFA World Cup
31				2–6
32	23 March 2023	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran	Russia	1–1	1–1	Friendly
33	13 June 2023	Dolen Omurzakov Stadium, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan	Afghanistan	2–0	6–1	2023 CAFA Nations Cup
34				3–0
35				5–0
36	16 June 2023	Dolen Omurzakov Stadium, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan	Kyrgyzstan	1–0	5–1	2023 CAFA Nations Cup
37				2–0
38				3–1
39	12 September 2023	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran	Angola	1–0	4–0	Friendly
40				2–0
41	13 October 2023	Amman International Stadium, Amman, Jordan	Jordan	2–0	3–1	2023 Jordan International Tournament
42	16 November 2023	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran	Hong Kong	3–0	4–0	2026 FIFA World Cup qualification
43	21 November 2023	Milliy Stadium, Tashkent, Uzbekistan	Uzbekistan	2–0	2–2	2026 FIFA World Cup qualification
44	5 January 2024	Olympic Stadium, Kish, Iran	Burkina Faso	1–1	2–1	Friendly
45	23 January 2024	Education City Stadium, Al Rayyan, Qatar	United Arab Emirates	1–0	2–1	2023 AFC Asian Cup
46				2–0
47	31 January 2024	Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha, Qatar	Syria	1–0	1–1 (5–3 p)	2023 AFC Asian Cup
48	6 June 2024	Hong Kong Stadium, Hong Kong, China	Hong Kong	1–0	4–2	2026 FIFA World Cup qualification
49				2–1
50				3–1
51	5 September 2024	Fuladshahr Stadium, Fuladshahr, Iran	Kyrgyzstan	1–0	1–0	2026 FIFA World Cup qualification
52	19 November 2024	Dolen Omurzakov Stadium, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan	Kyrgyzstan	1–0	3–2	2026 FIFA World Cup qualification
53	25 March 2025	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran	Uzbekistan	1–1	2–2	2026 FIFA World Cup qualification
54				2–2
55	10 June 2025	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran	North Korea	2–0	3–0	2026 FIFA World Cup qualification

Awards and Achievements

Persepolis

• Persian Gulf Pro League: 2016–17, 2017-18
• Iranian Super Cup: 2017

Al-Gharafa

• Qatari Stars Cup: 2018–19

Porto

• Primeira Liga: 2021–22
• Taça de Portugal: 2021–22, 2022–23, 2023–24
• Taça da Liga: 2022–23
• Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2020, 2022

Inter Milan

• UEFA Champions League runner-up: 2024–25

Iran

• CAFA Nations Cup: 2023
• Jordan International Tournament: 2023

Individual Awards

• Iranian Footballer of the Year: 2016, 2017
• Persian Gulf Pro League Striker of the Year: 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17
• Persian Gulf Pro League Top Goalscorer: 2015–16, 2016–17
• Persian Gulf Pro League Team of the Year: 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17
• Azadegan League Top Goalscorer (Group B): 2013–14
• Primeira Liga Team of the Year: 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22, 2022–23
• Primeira Liga Top scorer: 2019–20, 2022–23
• Rio Ave Player of the Year: 2019–20
• SJPF Player of the Month: January 2021, September 2022, November 2022, December 2022
• Primeira Liga top assist provider: 2020–21
• UEFA Fans' Goal of the Tournament: 2020–21
• IFFHS Asian Men's Team of the Year: 2022, 2023
• CAFA Nations Cup Top Goalscorer: 2023
• CAFA Nations Cup Best Player: 2023
• AFC Asian Cup Team of the Tournament: 2023

See also

In Spanish: Mehdi Taremi para niños

• List of men's footballers with 50 or more international goals
• List of Primeira Liga hat-tricks