 | |||
| Full name | Simurq Peşəkar Idman Klubu | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Simurqlar (The Phoenixes) | ||
| Founded | 2005; 20 years ago (2005) | ||
| Dissolved | 2015; 10 years ago (2015) | ||
| Ground | Zaqatala City Stadium, Zaqatala,Azerbaijan | ||
| Capacity | 3,500 | ||
| League | Azerbaijan Premier League | ||
| 2014–15 | 5th | ||
| Website | www | ||
 Current season | |||
Simurq PIK (Azerbaijani:Simurq Peşəkar Idman Klubu) was anAzerbaijanifootball club based inZaqatala, that competed in theAzerbaijan Premier League.
The club was founded in 2005 and participated in theAzerbaijan First Division. The club's first season was very successful, and in the2006–07 season, the club was participating in theAzerbaijan Premier League.[1] After its debuting season in the Premier League of Azerbaijan, Simurq finished 9th out of 14 clubs.
The Azerbaijani magazineFootball+ recognized Simurq as the "Surprise of the Year" of the2006–07 season based on polling results.[1] In2007–08 season club has made another step forward, and finished the season at 7th place. The club gained third place inAzerbaijan Premier League 2008-09, by making the best indicator of the team in its history.
In 2009 the club's debut in European competitions was not very successful as they were eliminated in the 1st qualifying round ofUEFA Europa League byBnei Yehuda.[2][3] The2009–10 season for club was not successful, even though the team had good start before the winter break. After the winter, club began to fall in the standings and won only 8th place, while coachRoman Pokora dismissed after a string of poor results.
In June 2010, the club's executive director, formerAzerbaijan national football team managerGjoko Hadžievski became the club's new coach. However, due to financial problems Simurq could not sign big local and foreign players and coach staff was forced to take less experienced players and use from youth system. The2010–11 season became the worst in club history as Simurq was relegated to theAzerbaijan First Division after finishing 11th place.[4] However club is allowed participate in the next season to replaceMughan who had sponsorship problems.[5][6]
On 18 July 2011, the club signed a contract withSergey Yuran, formerUkrainian football player and association football coach.[7] On 5 March 2012, after Sergey Yuran's resignation,Igor Getman became the firstAzerbaijani manager to lead Simurq as caretaker until the end of the season.[8] But after six days, the club announcedGiorgi Chikhradze as their new coach. Simurq started2012–13 season strongly, but after the start of the new year, team's form stumbled, hampering their European cup objective.
During the summer of 2015 the club folded due financial problems.[9]
| Season | League | Azerbaijan Cup | Top goalscorer | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Div. | Pos. | Pl. | W | D | L | GS | GA | P | Name | League | |||
| 2005–06 | 2nd | 3 | 30 | 19 | 8 | 3 | 67 | 14 | 65 | 1st Round | |||
| 2006–07 | 1st | 9 | 24 | 6 | 7 | 11 | 27 | 33 | 25 | 1/8 Finals |  Ramin Nasibov | 9 | |
| 2007–08 | 1st | 7 | 26 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 31 | 25 | 36 | 1/8 Finals |  Volodymyr Mazyar | 10 | |
| 2008–09 | 1st | 3 | 26 | 16 | 5 | 5 | 39 | 20 | 53 | Quarter-Finals | Volodymyr Mazyar | 12 | |
| 2009–10 | 1st | 8 | 20 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 21 | 21 | 31 | Quarter-Finals | Ruslan HunchakElshan Mammadov | 7 | |
| 2010–11 | 1st | 11 | 32 | 4 | 7 | 21 | 20 | 52 | 19 | 1/8 Finals |  Bachana Tskhadadze | 5 | |
| 2011–12 | 1st | 9 | 32 | 8 | 10 | 14 | 27 | 41 | 34 | First Round |  Robertas Poškus | 8 | |
| 2012–13 | 1st | 4 | 32 | 12 | 12 | 8 | 32 | 26 | 48 | Quarter finals |  Mario Božić | 6 | |
| 2013–14 | 1st | 7 | 36 | 11 | 13 | 12 | 35 | 28 | 46 | Second round |  Dragan Ćeran | 13 | |
| 2014–15 | 1st | 5 | 32 | 11 | 6 | 15 | 41 | 39 | 39 | Semifinal | Dragan Ćeran | 14 | |
| Competition | Matches | W | D | L | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UEFA Europa League | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| Total | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| Season | Competition | Round | Country | Club | Home | Away | Aggregate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009–10 | UEFA Europa League | 1Q |  | Bnei Yehuda | 0–1 | 0–3 | 0–4 |  |
 | |
| Location | Zaqatala, Azerbaijan |
|---|---|
| Owner | Simurq |
| Operator |  Dynamic Resource |
| Capacity | 3,500 seated |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | 2006 |
| Opened | August 2008 |
| Construction cost | $12 million |
| Architect | "Khazar" center of scientific and technical creativity of youth |
| Tenants | |
| Simurq (2008–present) | |
Zaqatala City Stadium is afootball stadium inZagatala,Azerbaijan. It is currently used as club's home stadium and holds 3,500 people.
Since the club's foundation, Simurq have had only one crest. It was officially adopted for the start of the 2006–07 season and based on a mythical sacredPhoenix firebird with castle background. It stems from the club's name Simurq, which means Phoenix inAzerbaijani language. The new home and away kits were unveiled in June 2013 for the 2013–2014 season. The home kit is black and yellow stripes and the away kit is white, withJoma being the kit manufacturer.
In 2013, the club unveiled an official crest, designed by Azerbaijani graphic designer Elnur Sharifli fromPoland.[12]
Simurq has a large fanbase in relation to its comparative lack of success on the pitch. Simurq supporters have played a vital role in the club's long term stay at Zaqatala.[13][14]
| Name | Managerial Tenure | P | W | D | L | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anatoliy Piskovets | 2005–2006 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Viktor Pyshev | 2006 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Roman Pokora | 2006 – 18 June 2010 | 124 | 51 | 35 | 38 | 41.13 |
 Gjoko Hadžievski | 18 June 2010 – 19 July 2011 | 33 | 4 | 8 | 21 | 12.12 |
 Sergei Yuran | 19 July 2011 – 5 March 2012 | 22 | 5 | 4 | 13 | 22.73 |
| Igor Getman (caretaker) | 5 March 2012 – 11 March 2013 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Giorgi Chikhradze | 11 March 2012 – June 2015 | 118 | 40 | 39 | 39 | 33.9 |
