2016–17 Azerbaijan Premier League
Football league season
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 2016–17 Azerbaijan Premier League was the 25th season of the Azerbaijan Premier League, the top tier Azerbaijani professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1992. Qarabağ were the defending champions, having won the previous season. The season began on 6 August 2016 and concluded on 29 April 2017.
| Season | 2016–17 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 6 August 2016 – 29 April 2017 |
| Champions | Qarabağ (5th title) |
| Relegated | AZAL |
| Champions League | Qarabağ |
| Europa League | Gabala Inter Baku Zira |
| Matches | 112 |
| Goals | 251 (2.24 per match) |
| Biggest home win | Qarabağ 6–0 AZAL (9 September 2016) |
| Biggest away win | Neftçi Baku 0–8 Gabala (10 September 2016) |
| Highest scoring | Neftçi Baku 0–8 Gabala (10 September 2016) |
← 2015–16 2017–18 → | |
On 16 April 2017, Qarabağ defeated Inter Baku 3–0 to successfully defend their league title - their fourth league title in a row and fifth overall.[1]
Teams
On 13 June 2016 the Professional Football League of Azerbaijan announced that both Khazar Lankaran and Ravan had been refused licenses to play in the 2016–17 Premier League and that no First Division teams would replace them.[2]
On 25 April 2017, Zira were awarded a 3–0 victory over Neftçi Baku after Neftçi Baku fielded 7 foreign players in their 2–2 draw on 23 April 2017.[3]
Team in italics is from a zone of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and is playing its home games in Baku.
- Note: Table lists in alphabetical order.
| Team | Location | Venue | Capacity[4] |
|---|---|---|---|
| AZAL | Baku | AZAL Stadium | 5,000 |
| Gabala | Qabala | Gabala City Stadium | 2,000 |
| Inter Baku | Baku | Inter Arena | 8,125 |
| Neftçi Baku | Baku | Bakcell Arena | 11,000 |
| Qarabağ | Baku | Azersun Arena | 5,800 |
| Sumgayit | Sumqayit | Kapital Bank Arena | 1,500 |
| Zira | Baku | Zira Olympic Sport Complex Stadium | 1,500 |
| Kapaz | Ganja | Ganja City Stadium | 27,000 |
Personnel and kits
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| Team | Manager | Team captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AZAL |  Tarlan Ahmadov |
Emin Jafarguliyev |
Joma | Silk Way |
| Gabala |  Roman Hryhorchuk |
Rashad Sadiqov |
Joma | QafqaZ Hotels[5] |
| Inter Baku |  Zaur Svanadze |
Nizami Hajiyev |
Joma | IBA |
| Neftçi Baku | Elkhan Abdullayev |
Ruslan Abışov |
Kappa | Asan Xidmət |
| Qarabağ | Gurban Gurbanov |
Rashad Sadygov |
Adidas | Azersun[6] |
| Sumgayit | Samir Abbasov |
Vurğun Hüseynov |
Joma | Azerkimya[7] |
| Zira | Aykhan Abbasov |
Elvin Mammadov |
Umbro | Santral |
| Kapaz | Shahin Diniyev |
Tural Akhundov |
Umbro | Gəncə 4000 |
Stadiums
| Gabala | Inter Baku | Kapaz | Neftçi Baku |
| Gabala City Stadium | Inter Arena | Ganja City Stadium | Bakcell Arena |
| Capacity: 2,000 | Capacity: 8,125 | Capacity: 27,000 | Capacity: 11,000 |
 |
 |
 | |
| Qarabağ | Səbail | Sumgayit | Zira |
| Azersun Arena | Bayil Arena | Kapital Bank Arena | Zira Olympic Sport Complex Stadium |
| Capacity: 5,800 | Capacity: 5,000 | Capacity: 1,500 | Capacity: 1,500 |
 |
 |
Managerial changes
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Neftçi Baku | Vali Gasimov |
Sacked | 14 September 2016[8] | 7th | Elkhan Abdullayev |
15 September 2016[9] |
| Zira | Adil Shukurov |
Mutual termination | 27 December 2016[10] | 6th | Aykhan Abbasov |
27 December 2016[10] |
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Qarabağ (C) | 28 | 19 | 5 | 4 | 46 | 14 | +32 | 62 | Qualification for the Champions League second qualifying round[a] |
| 2 | Gabala | 28 | 14 | 10 | 4 | 48 | 21 | +27 | 52 | Qualification for the Europa League second qualifying round |
| 3 | Inter Baku | 28 | 11 | 10 | 7 | 39 | 33 | +6 | 43 | Qualification for the Europa League first qualifying round |
| 4 | Zira | 28 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 29 | 26 | +3 | 39 | |
| 5 | Kapaz | 28 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 24 | 27 | −3 | 36 | |
| 6 | Sumgayit | 28 | 9 | 8 | 11 | 28 | 35 | −7 | 35 | |
| 7 | Neftçi Baku | 28 | 9 | 2 | 17 | 24 | 45 | −21 | 29 | |
| 8 | AZAL (R) | 28 | 1 | 7 | 20 | 13 | 50 | −37 | 10 | Relegation to the Azerbaijan First Division |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head goals scored; 5) Head-to-head away goals scored (only if two teams); 6) Goal difference; 7) Goals scored.[11]
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
- Qarabağ qualified for the Europa League second qualifying round by winning the 2016–17 Azerbaijan Cup. However, since they already qualified for European competition based on their league position, the spot awarded to the cup winners was passed down the league.
Results
Season statistics
Top scorers
- As of match played 29 April 2017
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Filip Ozobić |
Gabala | 11 |
| Rauf Aliyev |
Inter Baku | ||
| 3 |  Dino Ndlovu |
Qarabağ | 10 |
| 4 | Mirabdulla Abbasov |
Sumqayıt | 8 |
| 5 |  Bagaliy Dabo |
Gabala | 7 |
| Nizami Hajiyev |
Inter Baku | ||
| 7 |  Julien Ebah |
Kapaz | 6 |
| Amil Yunanov |
Sumqayıt | ||
 Sergei Zenjov |
Gabala | ||
| 10 | Ruslan Abışov |
Inter Baku | 5 |
| Tural Akhundov |
Kapaz | ||
Hat-tricks
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bagaliy Dabo | Gabala | Neftchi Baku | 8–0 | 10 September 2016 | [14] |