A six-time winner of Uzbekistan’s Player of the Year Award, Ahmedov was born in Namangan in 1987 and made his senior debut for FC Pakhtakor under the famed Russian coach Valery Nepomnyashchy as a 19-year-old, becoming a star for the Tashkent club in the years to follow.

His role in two league titles and three Uzbekistan Cups earned him a move to high-flying Russian Premier League outfit Anzhi Makhachkala, where he would play alongside some of the biggest stars in world football, including Roberto Carlos, Samuel Eto’o and Willian.

By then Ahmedov had also become a standout for the Uzbekistan national team, memorably lighting up the opening night of the 2011 AFC Asian Cup, scoring a blistering long range goal against Qatar on the way to semi-final finish, the best in the nation’s history. 

Ahmedov remained one of Uzbekistan’s key figures for another decade, starring at the 2015 and 2019 AFC Asian Cups and becoming the team’s long-term captain until his international retirement in June.

At club level, he continued his success in Russia with a spell at FC Krasnodar, before joining Shanghai SIPG, now known as Shanghai Port, in 2017 and becoming a crucial member of a team that included Brazilians Oscar and Hulk. 

With Ahmedov in the heart of midfield, the Shanghai club interrupted Guangzhou Evergrande's dominance of the Chinese Super League by winning the title in 2018 , and became regulars in the knockout stage of AFC Champions League. 

Ahmedov’s time in Shanghai came to an end in 2020, with brief spells at Tianjin TEDA and Canzgzhou marking the final stops in a glittering career.

"Everything has a beginning and an end,” Ahmedov told the crowd at Saturday’s event. “I recently finished my career with the Uzbekistan national team, and today I made one of the most difficult decisions. I think I made the right one.

“I would like to thank Pakhtakor, Anzhi, Krasnodar and Shanghai SIPG and express my deepest gratitude to the national team of Uzbekistan.  At the end of my speech, I have a piece of advice for young people: Dream, set goals and we will definitely go to the World Cup,”

With 108 appearances and 21 goals, Ahmedov finishes his career as the third most capped player In Uzbekistan national team history, with only Server Djeparov and Timur Kapadze representing the White Wolves on more occasions.

Photos: AFP, AFC