International Career
Hejazi joined up with the Iran National Team, just in time to feature in the squad that won the Asian Cup in 1968 and picked up two more in 1972 as the first choice and 1976 as the second choice goalkeeper.
He also represented Iran at the 1972 Munich Olympics and reached the quarterfinals of the Olympic Tournament in Montreal in 1976. In 1974, he had a key role in Iran's victory in the final match (Bahram Mavadat and Mansour Rashidi had played the prior matches) of the football tournament of the Asian Games in Tehran.
Hejazi's most valued tournament was the 1978 FIFA World Cup in Argentina, where he participated as Iran's starting goalkeeper.
He was the captain of the national team during the 1980 Asian Cup and played his last match for Iran in the semi-final match versus Kuwait. After the tournament, a member of Iran's Physical Education Department implemented a policy in which athletes older than 27 years of age would no longer be allowed to compete internationally. Hejazi was effectively forced to retire from international football back then, in spite of being only 29 years old at the time of implementation.
Read more about this topic: Nasser Hejazi
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