Role Football player Number 14 Height 1.78 m | 2004–2009 Shandong Luneng Name Mirahmetjan Muzepper Current team Henan Jianye F.C. | |
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Full name Mirahmetjan Muzepper木热合买提江·莫扎帕 Date of birth (1991-01-14) January 14, 1991 (age 24) Place of birth Kashgar, Xinjiang, China | ||
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Mirahmetjan Muzepper (Chinese: 木热合买提江·莫扎帕; pinyin: Mùrèhémǎitíjiāng Mòzhāpà; Uyghur: مىراكھمادژون مۇزاففار; born 14 January 1991 in Kashgar, Xinjiang) is a Chinese professional association football player who currently plays for Tianjin Teda in the Chinese Super League. He is also the first Uyghur player to be called up into Chinese national football team. He is also called as Maitijiang (Chinese: 买提江) in Chinese media.
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Club career
Mirahmetjan grew up from a football family with his father Muzepper and grandfather Zunun Mamut both playing within the Xinjiang region. At a young age he would quickly draw the attentions of Shandong Luneng and join their youth team where he would win several youth championships, which attracted the interests of Henan Construction who took him on loan at the beginning of the 2010 Chinese Super League season where he would make his senior debut in a league game against Jiangsu Sainty on April 18, 2010 that was a 0-0 draw.
After a productive season where Mirahmetjan established himself as a regular for Henan he would return to Shandong at the beginning of the 2011 Chinese Super League and would go on to make his first senior appearance for the club in a league game against Chengdu Blades on April 1, 2011 as a substitute Wang Yongpo in a 3-3 draw.
On 5 January 2014, Mirahmetjan transferred to fellow Chinese Super League side Henan Jianye on a free transfer. On 31 December 2016, Henan Jianye officially confirmed that Mirahmetjan had left the club after a disagreement in negotiations for extending his contract.
On 9 January 2017, Mirahmetjan moved to Super League side Tianjin Teda.
International career
Mirahmetjan was called up into China U-20's squad in 2009 where he would take part in the teams 2010 AFC U-19 Championship qualification. After China's successful qualification he would draw significant attention when he became the first Uyghur player to ever be called up to the senior team. The Chinese Head coach Gao Hongbo called him up for several training sessions in preparation for 2010 East Asian Football Championship on the basis of his youth performances, however he did not feature within the tournament. Mirahmetjan would return to the Chinese U-20 squad and take part in the 2010 AFC U-19 Championship where he would play in three games and saw China knocked out quarter-finals. After that tournament he was immediately promoted to the Chinese U-23 squad and included in the team that played in the Football at the 2010 Asian Games where he would once more play in three games and see China knocked out in the last sixteen.