SHANGHAI -- Iran’s Vahid Shamsaee made it two in a row when he picked up the AFC Futsal Player of the Year Award for 2008 on Tuesday night in Shanghai, China.

Shamsaee beat out the challenge of compatriot Mostafa Nazari and Japan’s Daisuke Ono to become the first player to win consecutive awards and enhance his reputation as Asia’s finest futsal player.
According to AFC, The 33-year-old’s Asian accolade adds to the MVP title he won at the AFC Futsal Championship in Thailand, where he led Iran to the title.
Shamsaee was also an integral part of the Iranian team who reached the second round of the FIFA Futsal World Cup, where they missed out on a semi-final place on goal difference to Italy.
With his second award in the bag, Shamsaee said he was looking forward to number three next year.
“If I win a third award in a row next year, that will be extremely exciting,” Shamsaee said after receiving his trophy.
“I would like to present this award to my wife. She has helped me a lot. It was one of my best years in terms of training and matches. As a team, Iran really deserved the success that we achieved this year.”
Shamsae was also full of praise for his teammate Nazari, who was one of the best futsal goalkeepers on show at the FIFA Futsal World Cup.
“I think Nazari is a very important part of the team and is an exceptional goalkeeper.”
He also paid tribute to Japanese star Ono, describing him as “a phenomenon”.