Youssef El-Arabi
El-Arabi with Caen in 2010
Personal information
Full name Youssef El-Arabi
Date of birth (1987-02-03) 3 February 1987 (age 37)
Place of birth Caen, France
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Striker
Team information
Current team
 Olympiacos
Number 11
Youth career
2001–2002 Caen
2002–2004 SC Hérouville Football
2004–2007 USON Mondeville
2007–2009 Caen
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2008–2011 Caen 75 (28)
2011–2012 Al-Hilal 21 (12)
2012–2016 Granada 130 (44)
2016–2019 Al-Duhail 60 (76)
2019– Olympiacos 142 (67)
International career‡
2010– Morocco 47 (16)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 3 March 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 30 March 2021

Youssef El-Arabi (Standard Moroccan Tamazight: ⵢⵓⵙⴼ ⵍⵄⴰⵕⴰⴱⵉ; born 3 February 1987) is a professional footballer who plays as a striker for Greek Super League club Olympiacos and the Morocco national team.[1]

He began his career with hometown club Caen in Ligue 1, making his debut in 2008.[2] After a season in Saudi Arabia with Al Hilal he signed for La Liga club Granada for a club record €5 million in 2012. He scored 45 goals in 134 official games before leaving for Al-Duhail in 2016. In three years in the Qatar Stars League, he was top scorer twice, and totalled 102 goals in 89 games across all competitions before returning to Europe with Olympiacos.[3]

Born in France, El-Arabi chose to represent Morocco at international level, making his debut in 2010. He represented them at three Africa Cup of Nations tournaments.

Club career

Caen/Al-Hilal

On 20 December 2008, El-Arabi made his debut for Caen, coming on as a substitute in the 76th minute against Lyon in Ligue 1. He played 2 more games that season (coming on in both as a substitute), and scored no goals (2008–09). The following season (2009–10) saw El-Arabi score 11 goals in 34 games (he came on in 11 of these games as a substitute) for Caen, as well as claiming eight assists, in Ligue 2. This season (2010–11) has seen El-Arabi score 17 goals in 38 games for Caen, as well as claiming five assists, in Ligue 1. After rejecting bids from Sevilla FC and Genoa C.F.C, he eventually signed for Al-Hilal FC in July 2011 on a four-year contract.

Granada

On 19 July 2012, El-Arabi returned to Europe, signing a five-year contract for La Liga club Granada for a club record €5 million fee.[4] He made his debut on 20 August, starting as the season began with a 1–0 loss at Rayo Vallecano. His first goal was scored on 7 October, a penalty to open a 2–1 win at Mallorca,[5] and his total of eight goals in 31 games helped his side avoid relegation.

He scored 12 times in his second season at the Estadio Nuevo Los Carmenes, including his first La Liga hat-trick, all three goals in a 3–1 win over rivals Málaga on 8 November 2013.[6] At the end of the season, he was nominated for the Best African player at the LFP Awards, losing out to teammate Yacine Brahimi.[7]

On 4 October 2014, El-Arabi scored in the first minute against Málaga, albeit in a 2–1 away loss.[8] He put the side ahead with a penalty at Levante the following 23 February but was later sent off for scrapping with Iván Ramis in a loss by the same score.[9] Granada avoided relegation on goal difference.

In his final season at Granada, El-Arabi scored 17 times in 38 games, including a hat-trick in a 5–1 win over Levante on 21 April 2016.[10]

Al-Duhail

On 18 July 2016, El-Arabi signed for Lekhwiya SC of the Qatar Stars League.[11] He made his debut on 17 September, scoring the opening goal of a 4–0 home win over Muaither. His 24 goals in 18 games made him joint top scorer for the season alongside Al Sadd's Baghdad Bounedjah, while Lekhwiya won the title.

On 11 December 2017, El-Arabi scored six goals in one match for the renamed Al-Duhail in an 8–0 QSL Cup group stage win at Al-Khor.[12] His team retained their league title, and he was again top scorer, with 26 goals in 20 games, one more than his teammate Youssef Msakni.[13]

Olympiacos

On 6 July 2019, El-Arabi signed a three-year contract with Greek side Olympiacos, returning to Europe after three years in Qatar.[14] He made his Super League Greece debut on 24 August, scoring the only goal of a home win over Asteras Tripoli through a 7th-minute penalty.[15] Three days later, he scored both goals of a 2–1 win at FC Krasnodar in a Champions League play-off second leg match, putting the Piraeus-based team through 6–1 on aggregate.[16]

El-Arabi scored his first Champions League goal on 22 October 2019 in a 2–3 loss against Bayern Munich.[17] On 11 December 2019, El Arabi scored the only goal with a late penalty against Red Star Belgrade in their final Champions League Group B game, to book a place in the Europa League at the expense of the Serbians.[18][19] The following 12 January 2020, he scored a hat-trick in a 4–0 away win over Lamia.[20]

On 27 February 2020, Olympiacos played their second leg of the Round of 32 at the Emirates Stadium, and El-Arabi scored a goal at the 119th minute of extra time to knock Arsenal out of the UEFA Europa League on away goals.[21] He scored on 28 June as they won 2–1 at AEK to secure a 45th league title, the first in three years.[22]

In 2020–21, El-Arabi was top scorer with 22 goals as Olympiacos retained the title.[23] On 4 November 2021, in a 2–1 Europa League loss UEFA Europa League to Eintracht Frankfurt, he surpassed Predrag Đorđević and Kostas Mitroglou as the club's top European scorer with 16 goals, doing so in 33 games.[24] On 15 December, he scored a hat trick in a 3–0 home win against Atromitos F.C. to reach 50 goals in 81 league appearances; his fourth hat-trick put him equal with Giovanni, having done so in fewer games than the Brazilian's 111.[25][26][27]

International career

On 5 September 2010, El-Arabi made his debut for the Morocco national football team, coming on as a substitute in the 65th minute for Mounir El-Hamdaoui against the Central African Republic. He followed this up with games against Tanzania and Northern Ireland, coming on as a substitute in both games.

Manager Eric Gerets named El-Arabi among the 23 players for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations, where he started and played as a substitute for one game each of a group-stage exit.[28] On 13 October that year, he scored and provided an assist in a 4–0 home win over Mozambique as the Atlas Lions overturned a first-leg deficit to reach the 2013 edition;[29] in another group exit in South Africa, he scored the equaliser in a draw with Cape Verde.[30]

On 29 March 2016, El-Arabi scored both goals in a 2–0 win over the same opponents at the Stade de Marrakech to qualify for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations.[31] Hervé Renard called him up for the finals in Gabon, where he made only an 11-minute substitute appearance in a run to the quarter-finals.[32] He was a noted omission from the French manager's squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.[33]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 14 December 2023[34]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Continental Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Caen 2008–09 Ligue 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 – 3 0
2009–10 Ligue 2 34 11 3 2 0 0 – 37 13
2010–11 Ligue 1 38 17 1 0 0 0 – 39 17
Total 75 28 4 2 0 0 – 79 30
Al-Hilal 2011–12 Saudi Pro League 21 12 4 0 1 0 6[c] 4 32 16
Granada 2012–13 La Liga 31 8 1 0 – – 32 8
2013–14 36 12 0 0 – – 36 12
2014–15 28 8 0 0 – – 28 8
2015–16 35 16 3 1 – – 38 17
Total 130 44 4 1 – – 134 45
Al Duhail 2016–17 Qatar Stars League 18 24 1 1 0 0 4[c] 3 23 28
2017–18 20 26 5 3 3 7 9[c] 9 37 45
2018–19 22 26 1 1 6 3 6[c] 4 35 34
Total 60 76 7 5 9 10 19 16 95 107
Olympiacos 2019–20 Super League Greece 34 20 4 0 – 13[d] 7 51 27
2020–21 33 22 5 2 – 11[e] 4 49 28
2021–22 34 16 4 2 – 13[f] 5 51 23
2022–23 34 6 6 2 – 9 2 49 10
2023–24 6 3 0 0 – 6[g] 1 12 4
Total 141 67 19 6 – 52 19 212 92
Olympiacos B 2023–24 Super League Greece 2 2 1 – – – 2 1
Career total 429 228 38 14 11 10 76 39 554 291
  1. ^ Includes Coupe de France, King Cup, Emir of Qatar Cup, Copa del Rey, Greek Cup
  2. ^ Includes Saudi Crown Prince Cup, Qatari Stars Cup
  3. ^ a b c d Appearances in AFC Champions League
  4. ^ Nine appearances and five goals in UEFA Champions League, four appearances and two goals in UEFA Europa League
  5. ^ Seven appearances and one goal in UEFA Champions League, four appearances and three goals in UEFA Europa League
  6. ^ Three appearances and one goal in UEFA Champions League, seven appearances and four goals in UEFA Europa League
  7. ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa League

International

Scores and results list Morocco's goal tally first.[35]
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 10 August 2011 Stade Demba Diop, Dakar, Senegal  Senegal 2–0 2–0 Friendly
2. 29 February 2012 Stade de Marrakech, Marrakesh, Morocco  Burkina Faso 2–0 2–0
3. 13 October 2012  Mozambique 3–0 4–0 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
4. 23 January 2013 Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban, South Africa  Cape Verde 1–1 1–1 2013 Africa Cup of Nations
5. 24 March 2013 Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania  Tanzania 3–1 3–1 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
6. 8 June 2013 Stade de Marrakech, Marrakesh, Morocco 2–0 2–1
7. 7 September 2013 Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny, Abidjan, Ivory Coast  Ivory Coast 1–0 1–1
8. 5 March 2014 Stade de Marrakech, Marrakesh, Morocco  Gabon 1–0 1–1 Friendly
9. 23 May 2014 Estádio de São Luís, Faro, Portugal  Mozambique 2–0 4–0
10. 4–0
11. 5 September 2015 Estádio Nacional 12 de Julho, Sao Tomé, Sao Tomé & Principé  São Tomé and Príncipe 2–0 3–0 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
12. 12 November 2015 Stade Adrar, Agadir, Morocco  Equatorial Guinea 1–0 2–0 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
13. 26 March 2016 Estádio Nacional de Cabo Verde, Praia, Cape Verde  Cape Verde 1–0 1–0 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
14. 29 March 2016 Stade de Marrakech, Marrakech, Morocco 1–0 2–0
15. 2–0
16. 9 October 2020 Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat, Morocco  Senegal 3–0 3–1 Friendly

Honours

Caen

Al Hilal

Al Duhail

Olympiacos

Individual

Records

References

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External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Youssef El-Arabi.
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