A Contract That Lasted One Day; Still Talking About Zahedi in South Korea

Iran's national team striker's return to South Korea was, unlike before, marked by a sweet and memorable moment.

According to "Varzeh Se", Shahab Zahedi played again in South Korea after seven years and 9 months, this time wearing Johor Darul Tazeem shirt of Malaysia and in the night when they achieved a valuable 2-0 victory against Pohang Steelers and won their first win in the Asian Elite League, he gave an assist and got a dismissal to be the star of his team.

Zahedi's return to Korean football is a reminder of one of the strangest events in the career of this Iranian striker, because it was in January 2019 that Suwon Samsung Bluewings announced his recruitment, but this transfer lasted only one day and the contract was canceled by mutual agreement.

The reason for this decision was the publication of news about the history of Zahedi's ban during his time in Iranian football, and he had previously emphasized that such an incident occurred due to the unknowing use of contaminated supplements, but despite this, the reactions in South Korea were so fast that the opportunity to be in Suwon's lineup was taken away from the Iranian striker, and this transfer ended before the first game.

After that, Zahedi went to Ukrainian football and later, he experienced playing in Hungary and returning to Persepolis, but being in Japan and playing for Avispa Fukuoka was another chapter of his career until he joined Johor Darul Tazeem in the summer of 2026 and is busy shining in the Malaysian champion team in the new season.

Now his name is seen in Korean football news again, but this time because of his performance on the field, because Shahab Zahedi did an exceptional job last Tuesday night at the Pohang Steelers field in South Korea and in the final moments of the first half led to the dismissal of Joon Minkwang, the captain of the Korean team, so that Johor could take full advantage of one less opponent and score the first goal on the pass of his Iranian star.

In the 49th minute, Zahedi assisted Marcus Guilherme for the first goal with a spectacular deep pass and played a role in his team's victory, and if Guilherme had not scored a double in the 89th minute, Shahab would probably have been awarded the best player award.

In this season, Zahedi has scored 12 goals for Johor in all competitions, provided three assists and set up another goal, and is considered the best scorer of the Malaysian club. His return to South Korea, this time with a different team shirt, took place in a situation where the Iranian national team player, contrary to Suwon's bitter experience, left the field with a victory, an assist and a dismissal from the opponent.