Anisur Rahman Zico (Bengali: আনিসুর রহমান জিকো) is a Bangladeshi professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Bangladesh Premier League club Bashundhara Kings and the Bangladesh national team.[2][3][4] He is considered to be a penalty specialist and is also one of the best goalkeepers in the country. He is nicknamed "Banglar Bajpakhi" (Bengali: বাংলার বাজপাখি) which translates to "The Hawk/Falcon of Bangla" in English.[5][6]
 Zico holding Best Local Player award of Bangladesh Premier League 2021 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Anisur Rahman Zico | ||
| Date of birth | 10 August 1997 | ||
| Place of birth | Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh | ||
| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Bashundhara Kings | ||
| Number | 1 | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2014 | Farashganj SC | 11 | (0) |
| 2015 | Muktijoddha Sangsad | 3 | (0) |
| 2016 | Chittagong Abahani | 1 | (0) |
| 2017–18 | Saif Sporting Club | 9 | (0) |
| 2018– | Bashundhara Kings | 97 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2015 | Bangladesh U19 | 6 | (0) |
| 2017–2019 | Bangladesh U23 | 6 | (0) |
| 2020– | Bangladesh | 30 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17 April 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 7 September 2023 | |||
Club career
editOn 14 December 2018, Zico's performance in the shootout in Walton Independence Cup helped Bashundhara Kings edge a spirited Rahmatganj MFS 3–2 in the quarter-final tiebreaker.[7] On 20 December 2018, Zico's performance propelled Kings to the Independence Cup final with a 7–6 win on penalties over Abahani Limited Dhaka. He also got limelight in the 2020 AFC Cup where he played a crucial role for his team, including three penalty saves which helped Kings win 5–1 against TC Sports Club.[8] He was later named the AFC Top Performer of the Week.[9]
International career
editOn 13 November 2020, Zico made his senior debut against Nepal in an international friendly.[10][11][12]
On 4 December 2020, Zico performed well against reigning Asian champions Qatar in 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC second round.[13] His "heroic" performance gained him popularity among the local fans and also got him offers from MLS and Saudi Pro League clubs.[14][15]
He received the Best Goalkeeper Award in the 2023 SAFF Championship, even after Bangladesh crashed out of the semi-finals of the tournament.[16]
Career statistics
editClub
edit- As of 18 May 2024.[17]
| Club | Season | League | Domestic[a] | Other | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Farashganj SC | 2014 | Bangladesh Championship League | 11 | 0 | — | — | — | 11 | 0 | |||
| Muktijoddha Sangsad | 2015 | Bangladesh Premier League | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 0 | ||
| Chittagong Abahani | 2016 | Bangladesh Premier League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0[b] | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
| Saif SC | 2017–18 | Bangladesh Premier League | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | — | 13 | 0 | |
| Bashundhara Kings | 2018–19 | Bangladesh Premier League | 22 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 4[b] | 0 | — | 32 | 0 | |
| 2019–20 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3[c] | 0 | 1[d] | 0 | 15 | 0 | ||
| 2020–21 | 21 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 3[d] | 0 | 29 | 0 | |||
| 2021–22 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5[b] | 0 | 3[d] | 0 | 29 | 0 | ||
| 2022–23 | 17 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 0 | ||
| 2023-24 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 0 | ||
| Bashundhara Kings total | 97 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 143 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 121 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 170 | 0 | ||
- ^ Appearance in the Federation Cup
- ^ a b c d Independence Cup
- ^ Appearance in the Sheikh Kamal International Club Cup
- ^ a b c Appearance in the AFC Cup
International
edit- As of 7 September 2023.[18]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bangladesh | 2020 | 2 | 0 |
| 2021 | 12 | 0 | |
| 2022 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 9 | 0 | |
| Total | 31 | 0 | |
Honours
editBashundhara Kings
- Bangladesh Premier League: 2018–19, 2020–21, 2021–22, 2022–23, 2023–24
- Bangladesh Federation Cup: 2019–20, 2020–21
- Independence Cup: 2018–19, 2022–23, 2023–24
Individual
- 2020–21 − BPL Goalkeeper of the Season.
- 2023 – SAFF Championship Best Goalkeeper Award.
- 2021 − Sports Journalist Community Best Player Award.
References
edit- ^ জিকো নামের এক গোলকিপার. Prothom Alo (in Bengali). 23 December 2018. Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- ^ sun, daily. "Want to be Asia's best: Zico | Daily Sun |". daily sun. Archived from the original on 2023-06-12. Retrieved 2023-06-12.
- ^ "Goalkeeper's role very important: Zico". businesspostbd.com. Archived from the original on 2023-06-12. Retrieved 2023-06-12.
- ^ "Rahman Anisur Zico Bashundhara Kings videos, transfer history and stats - SofaScore". www.sofascore.com. Archived from the original on 2020-11-14. Retrieved 2020-12-07.
- ^ "বাংলার বাজপাখি জিকো - Bhorer Kagoj". www.bhorerkagoj.com. Archived from the original on 2023-03-16. Retrieved 2023-03-16.
- ^ নিউজ, সময়. "মেজর লিগ সকার থেকেও ডাক পেয়েছিলেন বাংলার 'বাজপাখি' জিকো! | খেলা". Somoy News (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 2023-03-16. Retrieved 2023-03-16.
- ^ "Kings survive R'ganj scare". The Daily Star. 15 December 2018. Archived from the original on 27 August 2019. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
- ^ "Heroic Zico propels Kings to final". The Daily Star. 21 December 2018. Archived from the original on 27 August 2019. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
- ^ "Kings' goalie Zico named AFC top performer | Daily Sun |". Archived from the original on 2023-06-12. Retrieved 2023-06-12.
- ^ "FIFA International Series: Bangladesh off to a flying start with 2-0 win over Nepal". UNB. Archived from the original on 2020-11-13. Retrieved 2020-12-07.
- ^ "Mujib Barsho friendly series: Bangladesh vs Nepal". Daily Sun. Archived from the original on 2020-11-13. Retrieved 2020-12-07.
- ^ "New goalkeeper, striker for first friendly?". Dhaka Tribune. 2020-11-12. Archived from the original on 2020-11-14. Retrieved 2020-12-07.
- ^ "জিকো ভাবতেই পারেননি কাতারের বিপক্ষে খেলবেন!". banglatribune.com. 5 December 2020.
- ^ নিউজ, সময়. "মেজর লিগ সকার থেকেও ডাক পেয়েছিলেন বাংলার 'বাজপাখি' জিকো! | খেলা". Somoy News. Archived from the original on 2023-03-16. Retrieved 2023-03-16.
- ^ "Qatar crush Bangladesh despite Zico heroics". The Business Standard. December 5, 2020. Archived from the original on January 24, 2022. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
- ^ ডেস্ক, স্পোর্টস (July 4, 2023). "সাফের সেরা গোলরক্ষক জিকো". The Daily Star Bangla. Archived from the original on July 5, 2023. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
- ^ "Bangladesh - A. Rahman - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway". us.soccerway.com. Archived from the original on 2020-11-14. Retrieved 2020-12-07.
- ^ Strack-Zimmermann, Benjamin. "Anisur Rahman". www.national-football-teams.com. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29. Retrieved 2020-12-07.
External links
edit- Anisur Rahman Zico at Soccerway
- Anisur Rahman Zico on Facebook
- Anisur Rahman Zico on Instagram
