Aghapour opened Iran’s 2019 campaign with a goal against Hong Kong, before firing two more goals to complete his hat-trick in their 6-3 win.
In the quarter-final match with Lebanon, Aghapour gave Iran the lead in the eighth minute, and struck an important extra-time goal to ensure the host nation advanced to the semi-finals with a 3-2 win.
Iran was knocked out of contention for a second successive title after defeat to eventual champion Japan, but he found the back of the net three more times against Indonesia to ensure the young Team Melli finished third at home.
Japan was awarded the Fair Play Award, but it was Osawa Masashi that had more reason to rejoice at the end of the night as he was named the Most Valuable Player of the Tournament.
Masashi’s performance was exceptional in Tabriz, where he scored on three different occasions, including the final match against Afghanistan to become Japan’s leading goal scorer.