Alessandro Hojabrpour | |
Fullname: | Alessandro Feridun Hojabrpour |
Birth Date: | 10 January 2000 |
Birth Place: | Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada |
Position: | Defensive midfielder |
Currentclub: | Forge FC |
Youthclubs1: | Italian Canadian SF |
Youthclubs2: | Vancouver Whitecaps FC |
Youthclubs3: | Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC |
Youthyears4: | 2012–2017 |
Youthclubs4: | Vancouver Whitecaps FC |
Youthyears5: | 2017–2018 |
Youthclubs5: | Lokomotiv Plovdiv |
Years1: | 2019–2021 |
Clubs1: | Pacific FC |
Caps1: | 56 |
Goals1: | 1 |
Years2: | 2022– |
Clubs2: | Forge FC |
Caps2: | 48 |
Goals2: | 2 |
Nationalteam1: | Canada U17 |
Nationalyears1: | 2017 |
Nationalcaps1: | 3 |
Nationalgoals1: | 1 |
Club-Update: | October 7, 2023 |
Nationalteam-Update: | May 12, 2019 |
Alessandro Feridun Hojabrpour (Persian: آلساندرو فریدون هژبرپور; born January 10, 2000) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a central midfielder for Canadian Premier League side Forge FC.
Hojabrpour began playing soccer at age three with the Italian Canadian Sports Federation. In 2007-08, he participated in the Vancouver Whitecaps FC Prospects program, before joining Coquitlam Metro-Ford SC.[1] [2] In 2012, he joined the Vancouver Whitecaps Academy Residency.[3] In 2017, after playing in a youth tournament in Bulgaria, he was recruited and joined Lokomotiv Plovdiv's U19 team.[3]
Hojabrpour signed with a professional contract with Pacific FC of the Canadian Premier League on January 15, 2019;[4] making his club debut on May 12, 2019 against FC Edmonton.[5] He was given his first start for the club in the next game during a Canadian Championship match against Cavalry FC on May 15, 2019.[6] Hojabrpour re-signed with Pacific in December 2019 for the 2020 season[7] and in December 2020 for the 2021 season.[8] [9]
During the 2021 Canadian Premier League season, Hojabrpour earned his first assist for the club on July 17 on a goal by Josh Heard against Forge FC.[10] He scored his first goal for Pacific on October 6 against FC Edmonton at Clarke Stadium.[11] Hojabrpour helped Pacific reach their first CPL final on November 20, 2021, after a 2–1 extra time win over Cavalry FC at ATCO Field.[12] On December 5, 2021, Hojabrpour scored the winning goal to win Pacific the 2021 Canadian Premier League Final against two-time defending champions Forge FC at Tim Hortons Field.[13] [14] [15] At the end of the season, he was given the 2021 under-21 player of the year award.[16] [17] After the season, he departed the club,[18] having made 63 appearances for the club across all competitions over his three seasons, scoring two goals and adding two assists.[19] [20]
In January 2022, Hojabrpour signed with fellow Canadian Premier League side Forge FC ahead of the 2022 Canadian Premier League season.[21] [22] [23] Hojabrpour made his club debut on February 16, 2022, in a CONCACAF Champions League match against Liga MX side Cruz Azul.[24] He scored his first goal for Forge on April 16, 2022, in their 2022 home opener against Cavalry FC.[25] On October 23, 2022, Hojabrpour provided an assist in the semifinal to help Forge reach the 2022 Canadian Premier League Final.[26] On October 30, 2022, Hojabrpour scored in the final for his second consecutive championship-winning goal of the Canadian Premier League Finals, helping Forge win the 2022 championship over Atlético Ottawa.[27] [28]
On April 22, 2023, Hojabrpour made his 100th professional appearance in a 1–1 league draw against HFX Wanderers: in the process, he became the third player (behind Dominick Zator and Terran Campbell) to ever hit the 100-game milestone in all competitions for multiple CPL clubs.[29] On October 14, 2023, Hojabrpour scored a goal in the semifinal to help lead Forge to the 2023 Canadian Premier League final.[30] At the end of the season, he helped Forge win their fourth league title, which was his third consecutive title (Pacific in 2022 and Forge in 2023 and 2024).[31]
Hojabrpour was born in Burnaby, Canada to an Italian mother and Iranian father, and also holds an Italian passport.[32]
In October 2014, he made his debut in the Canadian national program, attending a camp with the Canada U15 team. He represented the Canada men's national under-17 soccer team in the 2017 CONCACAF U-17 Championship, scoring a goal against Cuba on April 25, 2017.[33] [34]
Hojabrpour can operate as a central midfielder or defensive midfielder.[5] He has been praised for his defensive abilities and reliability in midfield.[35]
Club | Division | Season | League | Playoffs | Domestic Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||||
Pacific FC | Canadian Premier League | 2019 | 22 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 24 | 0 | |||
2020 | 10 | 0 | — | — | — | 10 | 0 | ||||||
2021 | 24 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | 29 | 2 | ||||
Total | 56 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 63 | 2 | |||
Forge FC | Canadian Premier League | 2022 | 26 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 3[36] | 0 | 2 | 0 | 34 | 3 | |
2023 | 22 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 1 | |||
Total | 48 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 61 | 4 | |||
Career total | 104 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 124 | 6 |
Pacific FC
Forge FC
2021[17]