Shojae Khalilzadeh

Early years in Mazandaran

At the age of 16, Khalilzadeh started playing football with local youth teams for three years.

Mes Rafsanjan and Kerman

Khalilzadeh began his professional career with Mes Rafsanjan in 2008. He spent two seasons at Mes Rafsanjan in Azadegan League. In late June 2010, Khalilzadeh joined Iran Pro League side Mes Kerman. He made a debut for the club under coach Samad Marfavi in the league 2010–11 season. In his second season, under Croatian coach Miroslav Blažević, he reached with the team the semi-finals of the 2011–12 Hazfi Cup. In June 2012, Khalilzadeh extended his contract for a third season a worth R800m. His performance did not go unnoticed, as Esteghlal, Persepolis and Sepahan teams showed interest in signing of the defender.

Sepahan and Tractor

In late June 2013, Khalilzadeh was presented as a player of Isfahani club Sepahan on a four-year contract. In his first season, under Croatian coach Zlatko Kranjčar, he formed a partnership in the heart of the Sepahan defensive with the captain Hadi Aghily. He helped the team to win the 2014–15 Persian Gulf Pro League. Khalilzadeh was loaned to Tractor to complete his mandatory military service, as the club was affiliated with the provincial army of the IRGC at that time. He was one of the best players under coach Amir Ghalenoei, the club reached the top of their group at the 2016 AFC Champions League, outperforming the Saudi giant Al-Hilal. He returned to Sepahan at the end…

Khalilzadeh was invited to Iran national team in 2012 by Carlos Queiroz. He made his debut for the Team Melli in a 6–1 victory against Tajikistan national team. After seven years of notable absence from the international side, during the time of Queiroz and Marc Wilmots, Khalilzadeh was call-up by new coach Dragan Skočić in 2020 for a friendlies against Uzbekistan and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and to help in a difficult situation, after the failure in the 2019 AFC Asian Cup and two consecutive defeats from Bahrain and Iraq in the second round of qualifiers for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The Team Melli finished top of the group stage, where they won all of his remaining four matches to qualify to 2023 AFC Asian Cup and the final round of the World Cup.

He is known for his awareness, carrying the ball forward and his on-the-pitch bravery.

Khalilzadeh was born in the small village of Gālesh Kolā in Bahnemir District, Babolsar County, Mazandaran Province, to a family working in agriculture and fish farming on the Caspian Sea.