Rafiq Khaleel
Personal information
Full name Rafiq Salah-Edine Khaleel[1]
Date of birth (2003-02-24) 24 February 2003 (age 21)
Place of birth Camden, England
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.77 m)[2]
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Crawley Town
Number 27
Youth career
Cheshunt
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2020– Crawley Town 21 (1)
2021 → Kings Langley (loan) 2 (0)
2022 → Gosport Borough (loan) 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:15, 24 October 2023 (UTC)

Rafiq Salah-Edine Khaleel (born 24 February 2003) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for League Two club Crawley Town.

Early and personal life

Khaleel was born in Camden,[2] and is of Moroccan descent.[3]

Career

He played youth football for Camden Elite and Cheshunt.[4][5] On 28 February 2020, Khaleel signed for League Two club Crawley Town on a two-and-a-half year deal.[6][7] He made his debut for the club on 13 October 2020 as a second-half substitute for Samuel Matthews in a 2–1 EFL Trophy defeat to Arsenal U21, before making his full debut the following month in a 2–0 home victory over Ipswich Town, again in the EFL Trophy.[2] He joined Premier League side West Ham United on a trial spell in April 2021.[3]

In November 2021, he joined Southern League Premier Division South club Kings Langley on loan until January 2022.[8] He made his debut as a 63rd minute substitute in a 2–1 win over Hayes & Yeading on 27 November 2021.[8][9] He made 2 appearances on loan at the club.[9] On 1 February 2022, Khaleel joined Southern League Premier Division South side Gosport Borough on loan for the remainder of the 2021–22 season.[10] He made his debut for the club as a substitute in their 1–0 win away to Hendon later that day.[11]

On 30 December 2022, Khaleel made his first league appearance for Crawley as a substitute in a 3–1 defeat to Stevenage.[12] He was given his first start for the club in the first match the following month by new manager Scott Lindsey in a 3–2 win over Salford City.[13] He scored his first goal for the club on 21 March 2023 with an 82nd-minute equaliser in a 1–1 draw with Doncaster Rovers.[14] After making 14 league appearances during the 2022–23 season, Khaleel signed a new two-year contract in June 2023.[15]

Career statistics

As of match played 5 August 2023
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup EFL Cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Crawley Town 2020–21[16] League Two 0 0 0 0 0 0 2[a] 0 2 0
2021–22[17] League Two 0 0 0 0 0 0 1[a] 0 1 0
2022–23[12] League Two 14 1 0 0 0 0 3[a] 0 17 1
2023–24[18] League Two 1 0 0 0 0 0 1[a] 1 2 1
Total 15 1 0 0 0 0 6 0 22 2
Kings Langley (loan) 2021–22[9] Southern League Premier Division South 2 0 0 0 — 0 0 2 0
Gosport Borough (loan) 2021–22[9] Southern League Premier Division South 2 0 0 0 — 0 0 2 0
Career total 19 1 0 0 0 0 6 0 26 2
  1. ^ a b c d Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy

References

  1. ^ "Notification of shirt numbers: Crawley Town" (PDF). English Football League. 11 September 2020. p. 24. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  2. ^ a b c Rafiq Khaleel at Soccerway. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  3. ^ a b Stenning, Adam (28 April 2021). "Crawley youngster goes on trial with Premier League side". The Argus. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  4. ^ Barnett, Steve (26 June 2015). "Camden Elite come from behind to clinch cup win against Liverpool". Islington Tribune. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  5. ^ Cheshunt U17(U18) EJA 19/20 [@cyfcu16eja] (28 February 2020). "Good luck Raf...good to see one of our ex players pushing on" (Tweet). Retrieved 13 October 2020 – via Twitter.((cite web)): CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ "Crawley Town sign young midfielder". Crawley and Horley Obserber. 28 February 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  7. ^ Gadsdon, Sam (28 February 2020). "Reds sign midfielder Rafiq Salah-Edine". crawleytownfc.com. Crawley Town F.C. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  8. ^ a b Pole, Matt (29 November 2021). "Crawley Town youngster departs on short-term loan". Crawley and Horley Observer. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  9. ^ a b c d "Raf Khaleel". www.aylesburyunitedfc.co.uk. Aylesbury United F.C. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  10. ^ "Young duo head out on loan". crawleytownfc.com. Crawley Town F.C. 1 February 2022. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  11. ^ Mason, Lewis (2 February 2022). "Former West Ham triallist and Crawley Town starlet shows some encouraging early signs on Gosport Borough loan bow". The News. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  12. ^ a b "Games played by Rafiq Khaleel in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
  13. ^ "Crawley Town 3-2 Salford City". BBC Sport. 28 January 2023. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
  14. ^ Morton, Sam (22 March 2023). "Scott Lindsey hails Crawley Town fans and Rafiq Khaleel after draw against Doncaster Rovers". SussexWorld. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
  15. ^ "Rafiq Khaleel: Crawley Town midfielder signs new two-year contract". BBC Sport. 9 June 2023. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
  16. ^ "Games played by Rafiq Khaleel in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  17. ^ "Games played by Rafiq Khaleel in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  18. ^ "Games played by Rafiq Khaleel in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 August 2023.

External links


Crawley Town F.C. – current squad
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