Almoez Ali

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Almoez Ali
Ali with the 2019 AFC Asian Cup golden boot trophy after the championship won by Qatar
Personal information
Full name Almoez Ali Zainalabedeen Mohamed Abdulla[1]
Date of birth (1996-08-19) 19 August 1996 (age 27)
Place of birth Khartoum, Sudan[2]
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[3]
Position(s) Striker, winger[4]
Team information
Current team
 Al-Duhail
Number 11
Youth career
2003–2006
Al-Mesaimeer
2006–2013 Aspire Academy
2013–2014
Lekhwiya
2014–2015
Eupen
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2015
LASK Linz II
 4 (5)
2015–2016 LASK 7 (1)
2016 Cultural Leonesa 10 (1)
2016– Al-Duhail 147 (49)
International career‡
2014–2015 Qatar U20 9 (3)
2016–2018 Qatar U23 7 (6)
2013– Qatar 112 (54)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  Qatar
AFC Asian Cup
Winner 2019 UAE
Winner 2023 Qatar
FIFA Arab Cup
Third place 2021 Qatar
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 00:00, 17 April 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 26 March 2024

Almoez Ali Zainalabedeen Mohamed Abdulla (

Arabic: المعز علي زين العابدين محمد عبد الله; born 19 August 1996) is a professional footballer who plays as a striker for Qatar Stars League side Al-Duhail, whom he captains. Born in Sudan, he plays for the Qatar national team
.

Ali is a member of the Qatar squad which won the 2019 AFC Asian Cup, where he scored nine goals, which also serves as the record for most goals scored at an AFC Asian Cup.[5] He is also the only footballer to score in three different intercontinental championships — those being the AFC Asian Cup, the Copa América and the CONCACAF Gold Cup.[6]

Club career

Early career

Ali was born in

Lekhwiya SC.[9][10] He was also a part of the youth setup for Belgian club Eupen in 2015.[11]

LASK

In July 2015, Ali joined the senior team of Austrian club LASK.[12] His first and only Austrian Bundesliga league goal for the club's first team came on 27 November 2015 against Floridsdorfer AC, becoming the second Qatari to score a league goal in Austria’s top league, after Adel Jadoua Ali.[13]

Cultural Leonesa

In January 2016, Ali left the club and joined Cultural Leonesa in Spain's third tier, the Segunda División B.[14] On 3 April 2016, he scored his first goal for Cultural Leonesa in a 1–0 victory over Arandina,[15] becoming the first Qatari footballer ever to score in a Spanish league.[16]

Al-Duhail

Ali rejoined his former youth club Lekhwiya SC for the 2016–17 season. He scored his first goal for the club on 27 September 2016 in a 5–4 win against Muaither.[17] He went on to make 25 appearances and scoring 8 goals, as well as providing 8 assists and being awarded as the best U23 player of the season as his club won the Qatar Stars League.[18]

In the following season, Ali was part of the newly rebranded Al-Duhail, as his former club was merged with El Jaish, and was part of the unbeaten 2017–18 Qatar Stars League title campaign.[19]

International career

Ali unofficially made his inaugural appearance for the senior national team in a friendly against Bahrain in December 2013. The match was not recognized by FIFA.[20]

In 2014, Ali was a part of the

Qatar U19 team that won the 2014 AFC U-19 Championship. In 2015, he was part of the Qatar U20 squad for the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup. He played in the three group stage matches, but Qatar did not advance to the knockout stage.[21][22][23]

On 8 August 2016, Ali made his official senior debut for the national team as a substitute in 2–1 win against Iraq.[24] Furthermore, he was the top scorer in the 2018 AFC U-23 Championship with six goals and played an instrumental role in Qatar's third-place ranking.[25]

2019 AFC Asian Cup

Ali celebrating after scoring a goal against UAE at the 2019 AFC Asian Cup semi-final.

Ali was selected for Qatar's squad in the 2019 AFC Asian Cup. He found the net in his team's first group stage game against Lebanon. In the next game against North Korea, he scored a four goals in a span of 51 minutes,[26] the second fastest time to four goals after Iranian Ali Daei, who scored four goals in 23 minutes against South Korea in the 1996 AFC Asian Cup.[27]

The following match, against Saudi Arabia, he increased his tally in the competition to seven goals after scoring both goals in the 2–0 win.[28] In doing so, he became the joint-top scorer in the AFC Asian Cup Group Stage, sharing the record with Ali Daei of Iran, Choi Soon-ho of South Korea and Naohiro Takahara of Japan. He also broke Mansour Muftah's all-time record of five goals scored for the Qatar national team in the AFC Asian Cup.[29]

In the

2019 AFC Asian Cup Final match against Japan.[31][32]

Eligibility dispute

On 30 January 2019, soon after the 4–0 defeat at the

UAE FA lodged a formal appeal to the AFC over the eligibility of Sudanese-born Almoez Ali and Iraqi-born Bassam Al-Rawi, claiming that they did not qualify to play for Qatar on residency grounds based on Article 7 of the FIFA statute [33] which states that a player's eligibility to play for a representative team if he has "lived continuously for at least five years after reaching the age of 18 on the territory of the relevant association". It was alleged that Almoez had not lived continuously in Qatar for at least five years over the age of 18, although the player claimed that his mother was born in Qatar.[34] On 1 February 2019, the AFC Disciplinary and Ethics Committee dismissed the protest lodged by the United Arab Emirates Football Association without further comments or explanation.[35][36][37]
In August 2020, the case was finally settled at CAS (Court of Arbirtration for Sport, based in Lausanne, Switzerland) with the UAE losing its appeal against the Asian Football Confederation's (AFC) decision.

2019–2022: Invitation tournaments and 2022 FIFA World Cup

On 16 June 2019, Ali scored in Qatar's 2–2 draw with Paraguay in the 2019 Copa América.[38] Ali was included in Qatar's squad for the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup. He scored four goals in the competition to clinch the top scorer award.[39]

In November 2022, he was included in Qatar's squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. He started in all three group matches as Qatar made its first appearance at the FIFA World Cup tournament.[40]

2023 AFC Asian Cup

On 3 January 2024, Ali was named in Qatar's squad for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup.[41] In the team's opening match of the tournament, he scored Qatar's second goal in a 3–0 win over Lebanon in Lusail.[42] In the semi-final match against Iran, he scored the winning goal in a 3–2 victory, which qualified his country to their second final in a row.[43] On 10 February 2024, Ali won the 2023 AFC Asian Cup which was his second in a row for him.


On 16 November 2023, Ali scored his second poker goal (4 goals) for Qatar during the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Kuwait in a thrashing 8–1 victory.

Career statistics

Club

As of 17 April 2024[44]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
LASK Linz II
 2015 Austrian Regionalliga 4 5 — — — 4 5
LASK 2015–16 Austrian Second League 7 1 2 0 — — 9 1
Cultural Leonesa 2016 Segunda División B 10 1 — — — 10 1
Lekhwiya B
 2016–17 Qatari Second Division 4 1 — — — 4 1
Al-Duhail 2016–17 QSL 25 8 2 0 7[a] 1 2[b] 0 36 9
2017–18 16 7 3 2 10[a] 2 3[c] 1 32 12
2018–19 18 3 3 0 5[a] 1 1[d] 0 27 4
2019–20 19 7 2 2 6[a] 3 2[e] 1 29 13
2020–21 20 6 3 0 6[a] 0 4[f] 1 33 7
2021–22 17 7 3 2 5[a] 2 0 0 25 11
2022–23 14 4 1 0 3[a] 0 4[g] 0 22 4
2023–24 18 7 0 0 6[a] 1 1 0 25 8
Total 147 49 17 6 48 10 17 3 226 68
Career total 172 57 17 6 48 10 17 3 259 76
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Appearances in AFC Champions League
  2. ^ One appearance in Sheikh Jassim Cup, one appearance in Qatar Cup
  3. ^ One appearance and one goal in Sheikh Jassim Cup, two appearances in Qatar Cup
  4. ^ One appearance in Sheikh Jassim Cup
  5. ^ two appearances in Qatar Cup
  6. ^ Two appearances and one goal in FIFA Club World Cup, two appearances in Qatar Cup
  7. ^ One appearance in Ooredoo Cup,Three appearances in Qatar Cup

International

Scores and results list Qatar's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Ali goal.[20]
List of international goals scored by Almoez Ali
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 5 October 2017 Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Singapore 1–0 3–1 Friendly
2 2–0
3 14 December 2017 Hamad bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Liechtenstein 1–0 1–2
4 23 December 2017 Al Kuwait Sports Club Stadium, Kuwait City, Kuwait  Yemen 3–0 4–0 23rd Arabian Gulf Cup
5 26 December 2017 Al Kuwait Sports Club Stadium, Kuwait City, Kuwait  Iraq 1–0 1–2
6 7 September 2018 Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar  China 1–0 1–0 Friendly
7 11 September 2018 Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Palestine 1–0 3–0
8 12 October 2018 Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Ecuador 2–0 4–3
9 4–1
10 23 December 2018 Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Jordan 1–0 2–0
11 9 January 2019 Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates  Lebanon 2–0 2–0 2019 AFC Asian Cup
12 13 January 2019 Khalifa bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates  North Korea 1–0 6–0
13 2–0
14 4–0
15 5–0
16 17 January 2019 Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates  Saudi Arabia 1–0 2–0
17 2–0
18 29 January 2019 Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates  United Arab Emirates 2–0 4–0
19 1 February 2019 Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates  Japan 1–0 3–1
20 16 June 2019
Estádio do Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro
, Brazil		  Paraguay 1–2 2–2 2019 Copa América
21 5 September 2019 Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Afghanistan 1–0 6–0 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
22 2–0
23 5–0
24 16 October 2019 Al Janoub Stadium, Al Wakrah, Qatar  Oman 2–1 2–1
25 29 November 2019 Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Yemen 3–0 6–0 24th Arabian Gulf Cup
26 12 October 2020 Mardan Sports Complex, Aksu, Turkey  Ghana 1–1 1–5 Friendly
27 17 November 2020
BSFZ-Arena, Maria Enzersdorf
, Austria		  South Korea 1–1 1–2
28 4 December 2020 Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Bangladesh 3–0 5–0 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
29 4–0
30 4 July 2021 Stadion Aldo Drosina, Pula, Croatia  El Salvador 1–0 1–0 Friendly
31 13 July 2021
BBVA Stadium, Houston
, United States		  Panama 2–1 3–3 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup
32 17 July 2021 BBVA Stadium, Houston, United States  Grenada 4–0 4–0
33 24 July 2021 State Farm Stadium, Glendale, United States  El Salvador 1–0 3–2
34 3–0
35 14 November 2021 Baku Olympic Stadium, Baku, Azerbaijan  Azerbaijan 1–0 2–2 Friendly
36 2–2
37 6 December 2021 Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor, Qatar  Iraq 1–0 3–0 2021 FIFA Arab Cup
38 10 December 2021 Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor, Qatar  United Arab Emirates 2–0 5–0
39 5–0
40 27 October 2022 Marbella Football Center, Marbella, Spain  Honduras 1–0 1–0 Friendly
41 5 November 2022 Estadio Municipal de Marbella, Marbella, Spain  Panama 1–0 2–1
42 9 November 2022 Estadio Municipal de Marbella, Marbella, Spain  Albania 1–0 1–0
43 16 November 2023 Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Afghanistan 2–1 8–1 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification
44 4–1
45 5–1
46 6–1
47 21 November 2023 Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar, India  India 2–0 3–0
48 31 December 2023 Thani Bin Jassim Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Cambodia 1–0 3–0 Friendly
49 2–0
50 3–0
51 12 January 2024 Lusail Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Lebanon 2–0 3–0 2023 AFC Asian Cup
52 7 February 2024 Al Thumama Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Iran 3–2 3–2 2023 AFC Asian Cup
53 26 March 2024 Ali Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Farwaniya, Kuwait  Kuwait 1–0 2–1 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification
54 2–1

Honours

Club

Al-Duhail

International

Qatar U19

  • AFC U-19 Championship: 2014

Qatar

Individual

See also

References

  1. ^ "Almoez Ali". Global Sports Archive. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  2. ^ "Qatar's Almoez Ali pick of the bunch in Asian Cup for young forwards". Qatar-Tribune. 20 January 2019.
  3. ^ "Almoez Ali - AFC Asian Cup 2019".
  4. ^ "المنتخب القطري يتوج بطلا لكأس آسيا لكرة القدم 2019 لأول مرة في تاريخه". جريدة لوسيل (in Arabic). 1 February 2019.
  5. ^ @afcasiancup (1 February 2019). "Al Moez Ali is your #AsianCup2019 top scorer and he did it in style!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  6. ^ "AFC Asian Cup 2023: Almoez Ali Seeks to Engrave His Name in History Records Again as Tournament's Top Scorer". Qatar News Agency. 8 January 2024. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  7. ^ "Asian Cup: Qatar beats Saudi Arabia in first meeting on pitch since blockade". Middle East Eye.
  8. ^ "A Copa da Ásia define seus mata-matas, com o Catar surpreendendo como melhor da fase de grupos | Trivela" (in Portuguese). 17 January 2019. Archived from the original on 17 April 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
  9. ^ "المعز علي: لم أتوقع فوزي كأفضل لاعب صاعد". 20 May 2017.
  10. ^ "AlMoez 'AlMoez' Ali Abdulla (32) Forward". LASK Linz. Archived from the original on 2 August 2015. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  11. ^ "Katar mit 6 KAS-Spielern" (in German). KAS Eupen. 5 June 2015. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  12. ^ "Almoez Ali". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 24 December 2015.
  13. ^ "LASK Linz-Floridsdorfer AC". Republica Sport. 27 November 2015. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  14. ^ Marcel Yildiz (4 January 2016). "Duo verlässt den LASK" (in German). Fussball Imnetz.
  15. ^ "Continúa la mala racha ribereña". Diario de Burgos. 3 April 2016. Retrieved 6 October 2017.
  16. ^ "Entrevista. Ali Almoez: "Quiero subir a Segunda el próximo año"". VAVEL (in Spanish). 10 April 2016.
  17. ^ "Lekhwiya set early pace". www.thepeninsulaqatar.com. 27 September 2016.
  18. ^ "Almoez Ali wins best U23 player award". Qatar Stars League. 20 May 2017. Archived from the original on 13 June 2021. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  19. ^ "Undefeated Al Duhail secure sixth Qatar Stars League title". www.the-afc.com.
  20. ^ a b "Abdulla, Almoez Ali". national-football-teams.com.
  21. ^ "FIFA U-20 World Cup New Zealand 2015 - Matches - Qatar-Colombia". Archived from the original on 2 June 2015.
  22. ^ "FIFA U-20 World Cup New Zealand 2015 - Matches - Qatar-Portugal". Archived from the original on 21 June 2015.
  23. ^ "FIFA U-20 World Cup New Zealand 2015 - Matches - Senegal-Qatar". Archived from the original on 8 June 2015.
  24. ^ "Qatar vs. Iraq - Football Match Summary - August 8, 2016 - ESPN".
  25. ^ Adwaidh Rajan (14 January 2019). "AFC Asian Cup 2019: Almoez Ali and Akram Afif – Qatar's hopes for 2022 World Cup". Fox Sports Asia. Archived from the original on 15 April 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
  26. ^ "AFC Asian Cup 2019: Almoez Ali sets new AFC Asian Cup record in Qatar's 6–0 demolition of DPR Korea". Fox Sports Asia. 13 January 2019. Archived from the original on 15 April 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
  27. ^ "Moments and Milestones: Ali Daei's 23 minute masterclass". Tehran Times. 1 July 2016. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
  28. ^ "Shiotani fires Japan past Uzbeks, Qatar's Ali downs Saudis". AFP. 17 January 2019. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  29. ^ Abdelaziz Abuhamar (18 January 2019). "Stats: Almoez strikes against Saudi set new marks in Asian Cup history". Inside World Football. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  30. ^ "Qatar's Almoez Ali equals tournament record goal tally". www.the-afc.com.
  31. ^ "AFC Asian Cup 2019: Japan 0-1 Qatar - Almoez Ali (12')". FOX Sports Asia. Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  32. ^ "Qatar stun Japan with 3-1 win to be crowned Asian Cup champions". Guardian. 1 February 2019. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  33. ^ "FIFA STATUTES April 2015 edition" (PDF).
  34. ^ "UAE lodge formal protest with AFC over eligibility of two Qatar players at Asian Cup". The National. 31 January 2019.
  35. ^ "UAE FA protest dismissed". The-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation. 1 February 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  36. Fox Sports. 1 February 2019. Archived from the original
    on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  37. ^ "UAE protest at eligibility of Qataris dismissed on day of final". Reuters. 1 February 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  38. ^ "Qatar shake up Copa with thrilling comeback against Paraguay". Euronews. 16 June 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  39. ^ "Qatar's Almoez Ali scoops 2021 Gold Cup Top Scorer Award". AFC. 2 August 2021.
  40. ^ "Player Profile — Almoez Ali". USA Today. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  41. ^ "Our final list for Asia". Twitter. Qatar Football Association. 3 January 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  42. ^ "Group A: Qatar 3-0 Lebanon". Asian Football Confederation. 13 January 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  43. ^ "Hosts Qatar beat Iran in thriller to set up Asian Cup final against Jordan". The Guardian. 7 February 2024.
  44. ^ "Almoez Ali". Soccerway. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  45. ^ "AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 Technical Report and Statistics". AFC. 29 May 2019. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  46. ^ "IFFHS MAN TEAM - AFC - OF THE DECADE 2011-2020". IFFHS. 30 January 2021.
  47. ^ "Qatar's Ali earns 2021 Gold Cup Top Scorer Award". CONCACAF. 2 August 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
  48. ^ "Turner, Funes Mori named to Best XI". CONCACAF. 3 August 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2021.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Almoez Ali.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Almoez_Ali&oldid=1219450364"