Aykhan Abbasov
Azerbaijani footballer and manager (born 1981)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Aykhan Abbasov (Azerbaijani: Ayxan Fərzux oğlu Abbasov; born 25 August 1981) is an Azerbaijani professional football manager and former midfielder. He is the head coach of the Azerbaijani national football team.[1]
|
Abbasov in 2025 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Aykhan Farzukh oglu Abbasov | ||
| Date of birth | 25 August 1981 | ||
| Place of birth | Baku, Azerbaijan SSR | ||
| Height | 1.64 m (5 ft 5 in) | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Azerbaijan (manager) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Khazri Buzovna | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1996–1997 | Khazri Buzovna | 1 | (0) |
| 1998–2001 | Shafa Baku | 63 | (2) |
| 2002 | OIK | 8 | (0) |
| 2003–2004 | Shafa Baku | 23 | (0) |
| 2004–2005 | Turan Tovuz | 39 | (2) |
| 2006–2007 | Inter Baku | 25 | (0) |
| 2007 | Mil-Muğan | 0 | (0) |
| 2007–2011 | Qarabağ | 49 | (2) |
| 2011–2012 | Turan Tovuz | 16 | (0) |
| International career | |||
| 1997–1998 | Azerbaijan U18 | 19 | (1) |
| 2001–2002 | Azerbaijan U21 | ||
| Managerial career | |||
| 2015–2016 | Zira (assistant) | ||
| 2016–2018 | Zira | ||
| 2018–2021 | Sumgayit | ||
| 2022–2024 | Turan Tovuz | ||
| 2024–2026 | Şamaxı | ||
| 2025 | Azerbaijan U-21 | ||
| 2025– | Azerbaijan | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Early life and footballing career
Abbasov was born on 25 August 1981 in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku, specifically in Khazar. He started playing football at the age of 7 in Buzovna,[2] playing for the U-18 team in 1997. Until 2002 he also played for Shafa Baku FK and the same year, went to play at MOIK Baku on a loan. From 2004 until 2007 he played for Turan Tovuz and Inter Baku (now Şamaxı FK). In his youth, Abbasov also participated in playing for the Azerbaijani junior (U-17) and youth (U-19) teams. In 2007, he began playing for MKT-Araz (now İmişli FK), where he left the club after that same season after the manager and club got into problems, playing for Qarabağ from then on until going back to Turan Tuvaz in 2011.[3]
Coaching career
On 27 December 2016, Abbasov was appointed as manager of Zira FK until the end of the 2016–17 season.[4]
On 16 December 2021, Abbasov left his role as head coach of Sumgayit.[5]
On March 14, 2025, he was appointed the head coach of the Azerbaijan national U-21 football team, and AFFA signed a two-year contract with him.[6]
For the Ukraine–Azerbaijan game in the 2026 World Cup qualification, he was appointed as caretaker of the Azerbaijani national football team, after Fernando Santos was sacked the game before. With him, Azerbaijan went from losing 5–0 to Iceland[7] to drawing 1–1 with Ukraine,[8] which led to him being apoointed as the main manager of Azerbaijan.[9][10] Under him, Azerbaijan played France twice, losing both games 3-0 and 3–1, though this was met by approval from fans and the board, especially after Azerbaijan scored an early leading goal against France.[11][12]
Abbasov also led Azerbaijan to their first ever victory after 16 games, with their 6-1 result against Saint Lucia also being Azerbaijan's greatest victory ever.[13] Shortly after, Azerbaijan faced Sierra Leone in the final of the 2026 FIFA Series, defeating them in a penalty shootout and becoming champions.[14] Aykhan Abbasov and the national team have since then been praised multiple times by the public in Azerbaijan.
