Abedzadeh had previously stolen the show in the 1990 Asian Games, helping win the gold medal in Beijing after 16 years. Two years before, he saved three penalties in the 1988 AFC Asian Cup third-place match against China and sent the Iranians home with a medal. Abedzadeh will stay in heart forever. Happy birthday to you, the Legend. Led by young strikers Mark Viduka and Harry Kewell, the Socceroos spent the entire first half laying siege to the goal. With Stan Lazaridis and Robbie Slater making inroads on the flanks, and Aurelio Vidmar pushing forward from midfield, it seemed an Aussie avalanche was inevitable. The nation will never forget Abedzadeh’s smile during the game while the match could be chaotic for Iran. But the Captain kept the score level with some inspired goalkeeping. The Persepolis legend turns 55 today.
Such legendary explorers as Bartholomeu Dias, Vasco da Gama, Christopher Columbus and Ferdinand Magellan sailed under Portuguese masts throughout the 15th and 16th centuries, their journeys blessed by ambitious monarchs. Eighty percent of Portugal’s current population is Roman Catholic. The Discovery Age giant was thrown into economic turmoil after an earthquake ravaged the capital, Lisbon, in 1755, a fall that Portugal has never quite recovered from. Largely dependent on the success of its colonies, the nation’s strained economy was pushed into steeper decline with the independence of Brazil, its wealthiest colony, in 1822 and the flood of emigrants returning home as other African and Asian colonies were relinquished through the next century.
