Report.az
The XXXV round of matches of the Misli Premier League took place last weekend. The highlight was the "Araz-Nakhchivan" club. On May 17, the regional representative, who won against "Shamakhi" (1:0) away, officially finished the 2024/2025 season in third place with one round remaining. The team, coached by Elmar Bakhshiyev, won bronze medals in the elite of the Azerbaijan championship for the first time in its history. "Araz-Nakhchivan" also won the right to represent the country in European Cups for the first time.
Of course, this success of the Nakhchivan representative is very valuable. Firstly, because the team lags behind most Premier League representatives in terms of staff, conditions and financial support. It was also a big problem for the team to host its rivals not in Nakhchivan, in front of its home fans, but in "Liv Bona Dea Arena" in Mardakan. Despite all the difficulties, "Araz-Nakhchivan" managed to finish the season in third place after "Qarabag" and "Zira". The fact that Elmar Bakhshiyev's team left behind rivals such as "Turan Tovuz", "Sabah", "Neftchi" and "Sumgayit", who competed in the championship in better conditions, further increases the value of the bronze medal and the ticket to the continental tournament.
"Araz-Nakhchivan" will represent Azerbaijan in the UEFA Conference League in the 2025/2026 season. Of course, it is difficult to predict now how the team will be remembered in the continental arena in its debut season. But one thing is clear: it would be naive to hope for a successful performance with the current squad. The management is also aware of this. Let's pay attention to what the president of the Nakhchivan Football Federation, Zaur Akhundov, said after the well-known success: "Of course, success is the success of each of us, the success of the Nakhchivan community and football. I would like to note that from next season, there will be a 50 percent change in the squad of "Araz-Nakhchivan" so that the team can perform more successfully in the European Cup. We have also started work on the Nakhchivan stadium. A project is being prepared. I hope that we will play in Nakhchivan in the near future".
The representative of the Autonomous Republic, founded in 1967 under the name "Araz", is the 20th team to win an award in the history of the Azerbaijan championships. In the competition held since 1992, 19 clubs managed to be in the top three in previous years. "Araz" competed in various leagues during the USSR era. For the first time in 1968, he played in group B of the 3rd zone and played his first game against "Dashgyn". In the 1980s (except 1978), the team mainly played in the second division. "Araz" competed in the internal championship of the Azerbaijan SSR in 1987 and won the first title in the club's history - the championship. This championship allowed the team to return to the USSR championship. Since its establishment, "Araz", which brought a new breath to Azerbaijani football, has been worn by famous football players such as Boyukagha Hajiyev, Vagif Sadigov, Oktay Abdullayev, Novruz Azimov, Mashalla Ahmadov, Ilgar Huseynov, Asim Ibrahimov, Jeyhun Huseynov, Allahverdi Safarov, and Ibrahim Rzayev during the USSR era.
"Araz-Nakhchivan" participated in the Azerbaijan Premier League for the first time in the 2013/2014 season. However, after losing to "Qarabag" with a score of 0:4 in the XI round, the management applied to the Professional Football League, stating that the team had stopped participating and withdrew from the league. The next return to the Premier League took place in 2023. After winning the Azerbaijan I League and fulfilling the conditions of licensing, "Araz-Nakhchivan" returned to the Premier League by the decision of the AFFA Executive Committee and finished the 2023/2024 season in the 8th place. The regional representative, who completed the current "football year" with a bronze medal and a ticket to the UEFA Conference League, has won the I League twice (2013/2014, 2022/2023) and the bronze medal of the Region League once (2021/2022).
