Ali Ashfaq

At 38 years old, Ali Ashfaq has this physical status:

Ali Ashfaq (born 6 September 1985), also known as "Dhagandei," is a professional footballer who competes for Maldivian club Club Green Streets.

He is a forward and serves as the Maldives' captain.

He is widely regarded as one of the best players in the South Asian region, alongside Sunil Chhetri and Bhaichung Bhutia.

According to several coaches, he is known for his stamina, amazing dribbling skills, and the potential of beating any type of defender.

He is a free-kick specialist and a clinical finisher.

He is beating a couple of defenders and rounding off the keeper to score in his signature style.

Early life

Ashfaq was born in Malé, Maldives' capital, where he and his mother and brother Ahmed Ashfaq grew up together. He had a keen interest in football from a young age and preferred playing football over attending classes. When he was a member of the Majeedya School football team when they competed in the Inter school Football Tournament those years, he was the captain. Club Valencia, the Valencian football team, was keen on him, and he arrived in 2001 in Valencia and began his professional football career.

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Club career

Ashfaq played his first match in 2001 POMIS Cup tournament against Thailand's BEC Tero Sasana FC for the first time on October 26, 2001. Ashfaq had a chance to participate in the POMIS Cup due to Ali Umar's three-match suspension. He had a fantastic chance to score a goal as he passed past two defenders and goalkeeper, but Ali Shiham was unable to score. Valencia defeated Victory Sports Club 1–0 on October 30th. Ashfaq scored his first goal for the club after defeating veteran sweeper Kappi and his powerless shot went into the right corner of the net in the second match of POMIS Cup. Ashfaq assisted Ali Shiham in scoring Valencia's first goal against FC Kochin of India in the semi final. Valencia won the match by 2–0.

Ashfaq scored his first goal of the season on June 8, 2002, beating the Eagles 5–0. In 2002–03 AFC Champions League qualifying, Ashfaq played his first international club tournament against Mohun Bagan of India. When Valenica was 2–1 down in the first leg in Kolkata, Ashfaq leveled the game.

The youngster claimed his first hat-trick against Veymandoo Gulhun on August 21, 2002. In his first full season for Valencia, Ashfaq scored 12 goals.

He ended the season with the Best Player of the Season Award at Club Valencia in 2003, with 36 goals by his team.

Ashfaq defeated Hong Kong's Happy Valley AA in their first match in an AFC Cup tournament on April 6, 2004. On the other hand, Happy Valley defeated the second leg 3–1 on April 21, Ashfaq scoring Valencia's goal.

In 2004, and 2005, he was the top scorer for three years in a row, scoring 37 goals in 2004 and 34 in 2005. He had scored 110 goals for Valencia by the age of 20, which had to be a game changer.

Ashfaq joined New Radiant, who finished third place in the 2005 AFC Cup the previous year. Ashfaq's team, which featured other key names such as Ibrahim Fazeel, Ali Umar, Sobah Mohammed, and Ahmed Thoriq, was unable to maintain his high goal-scoring rate and lost the Golden Boot to his teammate Fazeel. However, he did not score more than 40 goals during his New Radiant days. He played remarkably well and helped the Blues win numerous titles.

Ashfaq joined Brunei DPMM FC on a two-month deal in October 2007, which was active in the Malaysia Super League. Ashfaq made his league debut against Perak FA on November 18th. Ashfaq won by 5–1 over Negeri Sembilan on Monday, scoring his first goal in their victory over Negeri Sembilan. He was signed to the Maldivian VB Sports Club in January 2008, after seven appearances in DPMM. The Brunei side attempted to capture the Maldivian striker, but the attacker returned to his homeland.

He joined VB Sports Club and became the captain. He didn't have a chance to shine his best in his first season. But he returned to the league in his second season with VB, scoring 33 goals for the club, and was instrumental in winning VB their first ever league championship. For the third time, he was voted Best Player of the Maldives, as well as the top scorer. He missed a significant portion of the season in 2010 due to numerous suspensions and injuries, but he still managed to score 30 goals. It was the first year VB had won the President's Cup for the first time. Ashfaq won by 5–3 over Victory SC, their local rivals.

Ashfaq scored two goals in the Milo Charity Shield game against Victory on February 13. Ashfaq scored once in the match against New Radiant on March 30 – 1, their first victory of the season. On their 9-0 win over the league, he scored a hat-trick against the Club Eagles on April 7th. VB led the 2011 Dhivehi League champions with 47 points, though he had 14 goals in the league. Ashfaq scored his only goal of the 2011 AFC Cup against Sông Lam Ngh An in Vietnam on May 11th. VB didn't qualify for the tournament's knock-out stage this year. After defeating Maziya by 6–4 on October 31, Ashfaq netted four times to help VB win the championship. He scored 22 goals in 2011's season.

Haveeru named Ashfaq as the Maldivian footballer of the year, despite receiving his second best player of the season award from the Football Association of Maldives for his outstanding season.

Controversies began in mid-2010 and Ashfaq was rumored to be having issues with the VB Sports Club, and we had to cancel practice sessions. The allegations were not confirmed until VB reported that Ashfaq had been stripped of the captaincy just a few days after the club had won the Milo Charity Shield in April. "I was told that I am no longer the captain after yesterday's session," Ashfaq said. Don't know the reason at this moment. But after the last season, I suggested that the club give the armband to someone else. I told them that I have been wearing it for the past three seasons and that someone else should take responsibility. At that time, the club disobeyed and told me that I should keep the band."

Ashfaq was then suspended shortly before the team went to Indonesia for the 2011 AFC Cup opener against Sriwijaya F.C., but the club was unable to locate him before the club's departure. Ashfaq said later that the reason for not attending was that the club should have restricted his rights, according to Haveeru news.

After being released by VB Sports Club, Ashfaq rejoined New Radiant on December 19, 2011. In the first game of the season, New Radiant faced VB, and Ashfaq scored a hat-trick against his former club. Ashfaq helped New Radiant win the league and qualify for the 2013 AFC Cup.

Since defeating Victory Sports Club on penalty shoot-out, the new Radiant also captured the President's Cup title. In President's Cup, Ashfaq scored just one goal, and New Radiant scored 22 goals.

Ashfaq's 2013 season was not only challenging but also one of the most fruitful for the New Radiant brand. On his first game of the season, Ashfaq's first goal of the season came on his first game of the season. In the FA Charity Shield's win over Maziya by 3–1, he scored the opener from the top. In the 2013 AFC Cup, New Radiant defeated Sun Hei SC of Hong Kong on March 5th. Mohamed Umair scored the only goal for New Radiant from Ashfaq's good ball. For their second match in AFC Cup against Persibo Bojonegoro, New Radiant packed three points in home and departed to Indonesia on March 12th. Ashfaq scored five times against the Indonesian team.

Ashfaq scored a hat-trick against Persibo at home on May 1st. In the 80th minute from the spot in the same match, he scored his 300th goal in his career. Ashfaq has scored in every AFC Cup he has attended, including 2004 as the top scorer of Maldives in the tournament, as well as being the first Maldivian player to score five goals in two straight AFC Cup tournaments. In the extra time, the new Radiant defeated Malaysia's Selangor by 2–0 and advanced to the Round of 16. After losing to the 2012 AFC Cup, Kuwait SC champions from both legs in a total of 12–2, New Radiant was knocked out of the tournament. After penetrating the defense line in the first leg at home, Ashfaq scored 1 out of 2 goals against Kuwait SC.

New Radiant announced that the club had decided not to renew the deal with Ashfaq because he wanted to play for a foreign team in 2014. Many supporters attended Ashfaq's last game before heading to Malaysia's PDRM FA. In the last minutes of the game, Ashfaq scored one last goal for New Radiant. Maziya was defeated by a score of 4–2. Ashfaq earned the best player and top scorer award in the country during the season. New Radiant closed the season with a 100% win record.

Ashfaq scored his first unofficial goal for the PDRM FA in a friendly match against Penjara on December 10, where the match came down 2–0 for PDRM. He made his official debut against KL Spa on January 21st, scoring his first goal for PDRM in Malaysia. Ashfaq scored his first goal in Malaysian Premier League against Penang on January 27, while PDRM defeated them 7–1. He scored his first hat-trick in the league against Perlis on February 14th. He scored his second hat-trick in the league on March 28 against Kedah. Ashfaq was released by the PDRM on April 19th to compete in the AFC Challenge Cup with the Maldives national football team. On May 31, he returned to Malaysia to join the team. He missed two league games.

Ashfaq won the 2014 Malaysia Premier League with PDRM, the first Maldivian player to win a title outside of Malaysia. In 20 matches in the league, he scored 17 goals for PDRM. In their first match in the tournament, he scored twice against the Malaysia Cup's Sime Darby team. PDRM won the second game of the group stage against Malaysian footballers, Selangor, with a score of 2–0, while Ashfaq broke the deadlock on a foul call. Ashfaq netted thrice in the last two games against T-Team in the Malaysia Cup's group stage and helped the team finish second, helping PDRM to finish last in the top class. PDRM was disqualified from the tournament after losing to Pahang on aggregate score of 3–2 in the Malaysia Cup quarter-finals.

Ashfaq received the "Best Import Player Award" in the 2014 FA Malaysia Football Awards on November 13th. In his first year in Malaysia, he scored 27 goals in 30 matches. On November 20, Ashfaq renewed his two-year deal with PDRM.

PDRM received an invitation from Maldives FA to participate in the 2015 POMIS Cup in January 2015. PDRM defeated Ashfaq's former club, New Radiant, in their first game in the POMIS Cup, winning the match 1–0. PDRM reached the final, defeating Maziya 5–4 after beating them in extra time with a hat-trick from Ashfaq. Ashfaq won by 3–0 over Sabah in the FA Cup Round of 32, progressing to the last 16. Ashfaq sustained a hamstring strain in his right leg while playing against Perak on March 14th, and scored a goal against Felda United on April 11.

PDRM beat Sime Darby by 4–1 on April 18, with Ashfaq scoring twice in Selayang. He scored the only goal for PDRM against Selangor, which resulted in a 1–1 draw. Ashfaq was hospitalized after a Selangor game and was forced to miss the matches against Sarawak and Terengganu due to injury. Ashfaq defeated ATM on August 22 in their last game of the season. Ashfaq scored ten goals in 17 games in the league. In Group D of the Malaysia Cup, Ashfaq scored three goals in six games against Pahang, Penang, and PKNS FC. Ashfaq was nominated for the Best Foreign Player Award in Malaysia's 2015 National Football Awards on December 14, 2015.

Ashfaq will remain with them for the 2016 season, the club's final year, which began on 2014 for two years, on December 17, 2015. Ashfaq defeated Sarawak by 1–0 on February 13, 2016, his only goal for the PDRM in the season's first game. This was his last game for the club against Kedah at home; the match was called off by 1–1 on May 21. Ashfaq revealed on May 24th that he and the PDRM had come to a mutual agreement to end his employment with 7 months remaining due to an injury sustained.

Ashfaq signed a four-month contract with Maziya on July 12, 2016 and made his debut against BG Sports in the Dhivehi Premier League on July 20th. Ashfaq scored his first goal for Maziya against New Radiant on August 7th.

International career

Ashfaq started his international career in 2004 as part of the Maldives senior national team.

Ashfaq's place in the 2003 SAFF Championship National Squad was transferred to his fellow national team striker Ahmed Thariq. The 2005 SAFF Championship in Karachi was Ashfaq's first SAFF Championship. In the group stage, he scored two goals against Afghanistan and one against Sri Lanka. In the semi-finals, Maldives were defeated by India.

The 2008 SAFF Championships in Maldives and Sri Lanka co-hosted the Maldives, where Maldives took their first SAFF Championship title. Ashfaq scored six goals for the team and was named Most Valuable Player of the Tournament for his goalless appearance throughout the tournament. As a result, he was included in the top ten performers of 2008 and Goal's Asia's top ten performers.

Ashfaq was the captain of Maldives' national football team at the age of 23, 2009, when he took over the team at the age of 23. Ashfaq scored three goals in the 2009 SAFF Championship. After penalties, the Maldives lost the title to India in the final. Ashfaq was voted the third best player of the tournament by Bangladeshi media but was not the runner-up to Most Valuable Player of the Tournament.

India hosted the 2011 SAFF Championship, and all the matches took place in New Delhi. The Maldivian team returned to the tournament with high hopes after replacing Argentine coach Diego Cruciani with their new 2009 coach István Urbányi. In what was dubbed the Group of Death, a group of Maldives from Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh was placed. The first match for the Maldives was against Nepal. Ashfaq scored in the first minutes of the tournament's first half with a spectacular world-class long range shot, which was also praised by the international media as the highest goal of the tournament. The match ended in a draw. The Maldives–Pakistan match ended as a draw, but was still chastised for an average result. The eventual winners, India, had beaten the Maldives out in the semifinals.

The Maldives played their first friendly match of 2013 against Pakistan, in which the Maldivian drew by 11-01. Maldives won by three goals in their second match, with two coming from Ashfaq. His first goal was the most notable, as he dribbled past three defenders and the goalkeeper as well.

Ashfaq scored 6 goals against Sri Lanka in the 2013 SAFF Championship held in Nepal. Maldives won the match by 10–0, breaking their own record of triumph with the largest margin ever set in a 9–1 victory over Afghanistan in 2005. In addition, Ashfaq set himself a new record by being the SAFF Championship's all-time top scorer with 14 goals in total. In Bhutan's 8–2 thumping, he maintained his incredible form and scored 4 points. Ashfaq has 18 goals in the SAFF Championship, thanks to this.

Ashfaq defeated Myanmar 3–2 in the first match of the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup against them. In a 2–0 victory over Kyrgyzstan, he maintained his fine form with two goals. Maldives defeated Palestine 0–0 in the group's last match and secured a spot in the semi-finals. Despite Ashfaq's finest abilities, the Maldives lost by 3–2 in extra time and had to face the Philippines in a new way by 3–2 in extra time and had to play third place in a second place playoff. Maldives and Afghanistan fought for third place until the game's clock, which ended 1–1. Maldives captured their first AFC tournament medal after beating Afghanistan on penalty shoot-out by 8–7.

On March 26, the Maldives defeated Tajikistan. Ashfaq was forced to recover from a hamstring injury he suffered in Malaysia Super League. At the National team, Tajikistan defeated Maldives by 2–0. Maldives were defeated by the Philippines in a friendly game that ended as 2–0 in Manila on September 3rd, 2015. Since he had to compete in competitive matches too often in Malaysia, FAM gave him some time on this match.

In Group C of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualification (AFC) round 2, the Maldives were divided alongside Qatar, China, Hong Kong, and Bhutan. Maldives defeated Qatar at home on June 11, 2015, just barely defeated by a 1–0 goal in the 99th minute. Maldives lost by 2–0 away at home on June 16th. He was not in form for both of the games. Ashfaq could not participate in the China game due to some personal reasons, but the Maldives lost by 4–0 score-line in Shenyang. Ashfaq scored a hat-trick against Bhutan in their home on October 8th and came off the field in the 59th minute, losing 4-3 to Maldives. Maldives lost by one goal against Hong Kong on November 12th.

Ashfaq declared on November 26, 2015, that the 2015 SAFF Championship would be his last edition of the tournament before he resigned from international football. The Maldives stayed in Malaysia to train for the SAFF Championship, playing several games throughout the camp, including against Ashfaq's team, PDRM FA. Maldives defeated Bhutan in their first game on December 24th, winning 3–1 with Ashfaq scoring a stunner after defeating two defenders from outside the region. Maldives barely won by a 3–1 score line in their second game of the group stage against Bangladesh after scoring two goals in the second game of the game. On December 26, Ashfaq scored a penalty against Bangladesh.

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