# 2021–22 Gabala FK season

The 2021–22 season was Gabala FK's 17th season, and their 16th in the Azerbaijan Premier League, the top-flight of Azerbaijani football.

## Season events

On 9 June, Gabala announced the return of Urfan Abbasov on a one-year contract from Sabail. 9 Days later, 18 June 2021, Magsad Isayev also joined Gabala from Sabail, signing a two-year contract.
On 7 July, Gabala announced the signing of Nijat Mehbaliyev on a season-long loan deal from Sabah.
On 19 July, Gabala announced the signing of Christophe Atangana to a two-year contract from Bilbao Athletic.
On 30 July, Gabala announced the signing of Isnik Alimi to a one-year contract from Atalanta.
On 5 August, Gabala announced the signing of Ruan Renato from Ponte Preta on a one-year contract, with the option of an additional year.
On 1 September, Gabala announced the signing of Omar Hani to a one-year contract, with the option of an additional year, from APOEL.
On 8 October, Fernań López returned to Gabala after leaving Jagiellonia Białystok during the summer, on a contract until the summer of 2022.
On 11 January, Gabala announced the signing of Patrick on loan from Admira Wacker until the summer of 2023.
On 31 January, Gabala announced the signing of Samet Karakoc from Bayrampaşa until the summer of 2023.
Gabala's match against Zira on 13 March was postponed in the 65th minute due to weather conditions, with the remaining 25 minutes being played on 14 March at 12:30.

## Squad

    As of match played 21 May 2022
| No. | Name | Position | Date of birth (Age) | Signed from | Signed in | Contract ends | Apps. | Goals |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||||
| 1 | Christophe Atangana | GK | (2000-03-02)2 March 2000 (aged 22) | Bilbao Athletic | 2021 | 2023 | 5 | 0 |
| 36 | Elməddin Sultanov | GK | (2001-05-07)7 May 2001 (aged 21) | Trainee | 2021 | | 0 | 0 |
| 94 | Nijat Mehbaliyev | GK | (2000-09-11)11 September 2000 (aged 21) | loan from Sabah | 2021 | 2022 | 28 | 0 |
| Defenders ||||||||||
| 2 | Samet Karakoc | DF | (2002-10-22)22 October 2002 (aged 19) | Bayrampaşa | 2022 | 2023 | 1 | 0 |
| 4 | Ruan Renato | DF | (1994-01-14)14 January 1994 (aged 28) | Ponte Preta | 2021 | 2022(+1) | 31 | 2 |
| 12 | Rufat Ahmadov | DF | (2002-09-22)22 September 2002 (aged 19) | Trainee | 2020 | | 29 | 0 |
| 27 | Magsad Isayev | DF | (1994-06-07)7 June 1994 (aged 27) | Sabail | 2021 | 2023 | 31 | 1 |
| 28 | Murad Musayev | DF | (1994-06-13)13 June 1994 (aged 27) | Zira | 2019 | | 68 | 2 |
| 33 | Huseyn Mursalov | DF | (2002-07-12)12 July 2002 (aged 19) | Trainee | 2021 | | 3 | 0 |
| 34 | Urfan Abbasov | DF | (1992-10-14)14 October 1992 (aged 29) | Sabail | 2021 | 2022 | 249 | 4 |
| Midfielders ||||||||||
| 5 | Isnik Alimi | MF | (1994-02-02)2 February 1994 (aged 28) | Atalanta | 2021 | 2022 | 32 | 10 |
| 6 | Kamal Mirzayev | MF | (1994-09-14)14 September 1994 (aged 27) | Al-Salmiya | 2020 | | 15 | 0 |
| 7 | Ehtiram Shahverdiyev | MF | (1996-10-01)1 October 1996 (aged 25) | Sumgayit | 2020 | 2021 | 43 | 1 |
| 8 | Stefan Vukčević | MF | (1997-04-11)11 April 1997 (aged 25) | Zeta | 2020 | 2022 | 58 | 2 |
| 9 | Fernán López | MF | (1995-02-10)10 February 1995 (aged 27) | Unattached | 2021 | 2022 | 41 | 4 |
| 10 | Omar Hani | MF | (1999-06-27)27 June 1999 (aged 22) | APOEL | 2021 | 2022 (+1) | 25 | 2 |
| 11 | Asif Mammadov | MF | (1986-08-05)5 August 1986 (aged 35) | Inter Baku | 2015 | | 198+ | 16 |
| 17 | Yaovi Akakpo | MF | (1999-03-11)11 March 1999 (aged 23) | | 2019 | 2022 | 6 | 2 |
| 19 | Rovlan Muradov | MF | (1998-03-28)28 March 1998 (aged 24) | Trainee | 2017 | | 77 | 9 |
| 20 | Rauf Rustamli | MF | (2003-01-11)11 January 2003 (aged 19) | Trainee | 2021 | | 0 | 0 |
| 88 | Gulagha Asadov | MF | (2003-04-30)30 April 2003 (aged 19) | Trainee | 2021 | | 0 | 0 |
| Forwards ||||||||||
| 14 | Ulvi Isgandarov | FW | (1998-04-17)17 April 1998 (aged 24) | Trainee | 2017 | | 74 | 13 |
| 18 | Mehrac Baxşalı | FW | (2003-06-11)11 June 2003 (aged 18) | Trainee | 2021 | | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | Raphael Utzig | FW | (1996-08-08)8 August 1996 (aged 25) | Paraná | 2020 | 2022 | 58 | 11 |
| 24 | Patrick | FW | (1998-05-11)11 May 1998 (aged 24) | loan from Admira Wacker | 2022 | 2023 | 13 | 0 |
| 77 | Emil Safarov | FW | (2002-10-30)30 October 2002 (aged 19) | Trainee | 2021 | | 20 | 2 |
| Out on loan ||||||||||
| Left during the season ||||||||||

## Transfers
### In

| Date | Position | Name | From | Fee |
| Summer 2021 | FW | Ulvi Isgandarov | Gabala | |
| 9 June 2021 | DF | Urfan Abbasov | Sabail | Undisclosed |
| 18 June 2021 | DF | Magsad Isayev | Sabail | Undisclosed |
| 19 July 2021 | GK | Christophe Atangana | Bilbao Athletic | Undisclosed |
| 30 July 2021 | MF | Isnik Alimi | Atalanta | Free |
| 5 August 2021 | DF | Ruan Renato | Ponte Preta | Undisclosed |
| 1 September 2021 | MF | Omar Hani | APOEL | Undisclosed |
| 8 October 2021 | MF | Fernań López | Unattached | Free |
| 31 January 2022 | DF | Samet Karakoc | Bayrampaşa | Undisclosed |

### Loans in

| Date from | Position | Nationality | Name | From | Date to | Ref. |
| 7 July 2021 | GK | | Nijat Mehbaliyev | Sabah | End of season | |
| 11 January 2022 | FW | | Patrick | Admira Wacker | June 2023 | |

### Out

| Date | Position | Name | To | Fee |
| 18 June 2021 | GK | Tarlan Ahmadli | Sumgayit | Undisclosed |
| 2 July 2021 | GK | Anar Nazirov | Zira | Undisclosed |
| 7 August 2021 | DF | Jurgen Goxha | Sabail | Undisclosed |

### Released

| Date | Position | Name | Joined | Date |
| 17 July 2021 | DF | Rasim Ramaldanov | Retired | Retired |
| 30 June 2022 | DF | Samet Karakoc | Isparta 32 Spor | |
| 30 June 2022 | MF | Kamal Mirzayev | Shamakhi | |
| 30 June 2022 | MF | Ehtiram Shahverdiyev | Turan Tovuz | |
| 30 June 2022 | MF | Stefan Vukčević | Enosis Neon Paralimni | 15 July 2022 |
| 30 June 2022 | MF | Fernán López | Enosis Neon Paralimni | 1 July 2022 |

## Competitions
### Overview

| Competition | First match | Last match | Starting round | Final position | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record |
| Competition | First match | Last match | Starting round | Final position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % |
| Premier League | 15 August 2021 | 21 May 2022 | Matchday 1 | 4th | 28 | 12 | 9 | 7 | 38 | 34 | +4 | 042.86 |
| Azerbaijan Cup | 9 December 2021 | 29 April 2022 | First Round | Semifinal | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 10 | −5 | 040.00 |
| Total | Total | Total | Total | Total | 33 | 14 | 10 | 9 | 43 | 44 | −1 | 042.42 |
Last updated: 21 May 2022 Source: Competitions

### Premier League
#### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
Last updated: 21 May 2022. Source: See Results

#### Results by round

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 |
| Ground | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | H |
| Result | D | W | W | W | D | L | D | W | L | W | W | D | W | D | L | W | W | L | D | L | D | L | D | L | W | W | W | D |
| Position | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |

#### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 2 | Neftçi Baku | 28 | 15 | 5 | 8 | 42 | 31 | +11 | 50 | Qualification to Europa Conference League second qualifying round |
| 3 | Zira | 28 | 13 | 8 | 7 | 33 | 27 | +6 | 47 | Qualification to Europa Conference League second qualifying round |
| 4 | Gabala | 28 | 12 | 9 | 7 | 38 | 34 | +4 | 45 | Qualification to Europa Conference League second qualifying round |
| 5 | Sabah | 28 | 12 | 5 | 11 | 42 | 34 | +8 | 41 | |
| 6 | Sumgayit | 28 | 5 | 7 | 16 | 22 | 46 | −24 | 22 | |
* ↑ Head-to-head points: Sumgayit 7, Shamakhi 4.

### Azerbaijan Cup
## Squad statistics

    As of match played 21 May 2022

### Appearances and goals

| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Premier League | Premier League | Azerbaijan Cup | Azerbaijan Cup |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| 1 | GK | CMR | Christophe Atangana | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 2 | DF | AZE | Samet Karakoc | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 4 | DF | BRA | Ruan Renato | 31 | 2 | 26 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| 5 | MF | ALB | Isnik Alimi | 32 | 10 | 27 | 8 | 4+1 | 2 |
| 6 | MF | AZE | Kamal Mirzayev | 6 | 0 | 0+5 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 7 | MF | AZE | Ehtiram Shahverdiyev | 17 | 1 | 3+10 | 1 | 2+2 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | MNE | Stefan Vukčević | 30 | 0 | 22+4 | 0 | 3+1 | 0 |
| 9 | MF | ESP | Fernán López | 19 | 1 | 14+2 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | JOR | Omar Hani | 25 | 2 | 16+5 | 2 | 3+1 | 0 |
| 11 | MF | AZE | Asif Mammadov | 27 | 2 | 19+3 | 1 | 3+2 | 1 |
| 12 | DF | AZE | Rufat Ahmadov | 10 | 0 | 6+2 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 14 | FW | AZE | Ulvi Isgandarov | 33 | 7 | 3+25 | 6 | 1+4 | 1 |
| 17 | MF | TOG | Yaovi Akakpo | 4 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | MF | AZE | Rovlan Muradov | 31 | 4 | 24+3 | 3 | 4 | 1 |
| 23 | FW | BRA | Raphael Utzig | 30 | 6 | 26 | 6 | 4 | 0 |
| 24 | FW | BRA | Patrick | 13 | 0 | 5+5 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 |
| 27 | DF | AZE | Magsad Isayev | 31 | 1 | 27 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| 28 | DF | AZE | Murad Musayev | 30 | 2 | 26 | 2 | 3+1 | 0 |
| 33 | DF | AZE | Huseyn Mursalov | 3 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 34 | DF | AZE | Urfan Abbasov | 28 | 1 | 26 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 77 | FW | AZE | Emil Safarov | 20 | 2 | 5+11 | 2 | 3+1 | 0 |
| 94 | GK | AZE | Nijat Mehbaliyev | 28 | 0 | 26 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Players away on loan: ||||||||||
| Players who left Gabala during the season: ||||||||||

### Goal scorers

| Place | Position | Number | Name | Premier League | Azerbaijan Cup | Total |
| 1 | MF | 5 | Isnik Alimi | 8 | 2 | 10 |
| 2 | FW | 14 | Ulvi Isgandarov | 6 | 1 | 7 |
| 3 | FW | 23 | Raphael Utzig | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| 4 | MF | 19 | Rovlan Muradov | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| 5 | MF | 17 | Yaovi Akakpo | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 5 | DF | 4 | Ruan Renato | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 5 | MF | 10 | Omar Hani | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 5 | FW | 77 | Emil Safarov | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 5 | DF | 28 | Murad Musayev | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 5 | MF | 11 | Asif Mammadov | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 11 | MF | 7 | Ehtiram Shahverdiyev | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | DF | 27 | Magsad Isayev | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | DF | 34 | Urfan Abbasov | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | MF | 9 | Fernán López | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| | | | TOTALS | 38 | 5 | 43 |

### Clean sheets

| Place | Position | Nation | Number | Name | Premier League | Azerbaijan Cup | Total |
| 1 | GK | | 94 | Nijat Mehbaliyev | 11 | 1 | 12 |
| | | | | TOTALS | 11 | 1 | 12 |

### Disciplinary record

| Number | Position | Name | Premier League | Premier League | Azerbaijan Cup | Azerbaijan Cup | Total | Total |
| 4 | DF | Ruan Renato | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 1 |
| 5 | MF | Isnik Alimi | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| 6 | MF | Kamal Mirzayev | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 7 | MF | Ehtiram Shahverdiyev | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| 8 | MF | Stefan Vukčević | 9 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 1 |
| 9 | MF | Fernán López | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | Omar Hani | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| 11 | MF | Asif Mammadov | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 12 | DF | Rufat Ahmadov | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 14 | FW | Ulvi Isgandarov | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 19 | MF | Rovlan Muradov | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 23 | FW | Raphael Utzig | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 27 | DF | Magsad Isayev | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| 28 | DF | Murad Musayev | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 33 | DF | Huseyn Mursalov | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 34 | DF | Urfan Abbasov | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 77 | FW | Emil Safarov | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 94 | GK | Nijat Mehbaliyev | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Players who left Gabala during the season: ||||||||||
| | | TOTALS | 78 | 4 | 13 | 0 | 91 | 4 |