Dutch association football player

Ibrahim Afellay ( born 2 April 1986 ) is a dutch former professional football player who played as an attacking midfielder or winger. He played youth football at Elinkwijk before joining the PSV Eindhoven young academy at age 10. After debuting in 2004, he represented PSV for eight seasons, helping them to four Eredivisie titles before moving to Barcelona for €3 million in January 2011. rarely used by Barcelona and marred by wound, he was loaned to Schalke 04 and Olympiacos before signing for Stoke City in 2015. Afellay spend three seasons with Stoke before ending his career back at PSV.

Making his Netherlands national team debut in 2007, Afellay appeared at the 2010 World Cup, contributing to the dutch side finish in second base home in the tournament. He was besides present at Euro 2008 and Euro 2012, making over 50 appearances in entire .

early on life [edit ]

Afellay is of Moroccan Riffian origin ; his parents left their hometown Al Hoceima in the 1960s to work in the Netherlands. He grew up in Overvecht, a neighborhood in Utrecht with a large immigrant population. [ 3 ] Afellay and his brother, Ali, were brought up by their mother, Habiba, after his don died when he was young. [ 4 ]

Club career [edit ]

Beginning of career [edit ]

Afellay started to play football at local side VSK, but joined USV Elinkwijk after one season. [ 5 ]

PSV [edit ]

Afellay left Elinkwijk in 1996 for PSV. [ 6 ] Afellay ‘s official introduction for PSV was on 4 February 2004 during a KNVB Cup match against NAC Breda at the long time of 17. His first Eredivisie regular followed ten days late against FC Twente. [ 7 ] Afellay played one more aged match in the 2003–04 temper. [ 8 ] He signed a fresh contract at PSV in May that would run until 2007. [ 9 ] In the adjacent season, Afellay got a rate in the foremost eleven against Roda JC in December. [ 10 ] But during the winter transgress train camp in Dubai, he suffered a break toe. [ 11 ] Afellay was unable to play for three months. [ 12 ] He played nine matches in full in the 2004–05 season ; his most memorable being PSV ‘s final home match against Feyenoord ( 2–4 ). Afellay grade twice and provided an assist in the match. [ 6 ] [ 13 ] He besides won the KNVB Cup after appearing as a substitute in the final against Willem II, which PSV won 4–0. [ 8 ]
Afellay playing for PSV in January 2010 In the 2005–06 season, Afellay established himself as a first-team even at PSV. [ 7 ] He formed a midfield partnership with Timmy Simons and Phillip Cocu. [ 14 ] In his first gear four matches ( Johan Cruijff Shield and league ), Afellay received four jaundiced cards, resulting in an immediate suspension. [ 15 ] In September, Afellay made his Champions League debut against Schalke 04 ( 1–0 winnings ). [ 8 ] Overall, he managed to play a total of 23 league matches during a season hit with a string of minor injuries. PSV won the Eredivisie in 2006 ; Afellay ‘s irregular title in a course. [ 16 ] In the adjacent season, he played 27 league matches and scored six goals for PSV. The team won the Eredivisie on a single goal dispute after defeating Vitesse ( 5–1 ) in the last league round. Afellay made the third goal of the match. [ 8 ] For his performances that year, Afellay was awarded the Johan Cruijff Award for being the most promise child in The Netherlands. [ 6 ] Afellay started the 2007–08 season well by scoring the first finish and assisted the second in the away couple against Heracles Almelo ( 0–2 ). [ 17 ] A month late, a break toe forced Afellay into a two-month convalescence. [ 18 ] [ 19 ] He extended his shrink until 2011 in December. [ 20 ] Afellay played 24 Eredivisie matches in the 2007–08 season. [ 8 ] He missed second-to-final match against FC Twente in which PSV could seal the backing, but the team failed to do indeed. [ 21 ] The league entitle was finally won in the last match against Vitesse with Afellay in the team. [ 8 ] The start of the 2008–09 temper was troublesome for Afellay when he received less vacation then desired after Euro 2008. [ 22 ] His season started well though, with the Johan Cruyff Shield victory against Feyenoord ( 0–2 ) and three goals in the open two Eredivisie matches. Afellay scored 13 league goals in full, including the only finish in the home plate match against Feyenoord in December. The 2008–09 season, in which PSV finished fourth, ended prematurely after he suffered an injury in April. [ 8 ] [ 23 ] [ 24 ] For the 2009–10 season, Afellay shifted to a more defensive midfield position under modern passenger car Fred Rutten. [ 25 ] In February, Afellay was promoted to second captain of the team. But because first captain Timmy Simons was by and large on the workbench that season, Afellay was efficaciously the fresh captain. [ 26 ] In March, Afellay received a three-match ban after television evidence showed foul turn against Eyong Enoh in the match against Ajax. [ 27 ] PSV and Afellay ended the Eredivisie season in third base. [ 28 ] In the summer, he was officially appointed as team captain. [ 29 ] In October, Afellay announced he would not sign a newfangled contract with PSV. [ 30 ] With the contract nearing its end, PSV was will to sell in the winter break. [ 31 ] On 15 November, it was FC Barcelona who agreed on a deal with PSV. [ 7 ] Afellay signed a compress for four-and-a-half years. [ 31 ] In his death PSV match against Roda JC, he was granted a farewell by the fans. [ 32 ]

Barcelona [edit ]

Afellay with Barcelona in 2011 After completing the €3 million transfer, Afellay signed a contract for four and a half years at FC Barcelona. [ 31 ] [ 33 ] [ 34 ] He made his Blaugrana debut on 5 January 2011 in the Copa del Rey match against Athletic Bilbao, replacing David Villa in injury time. He continued to play 28 Barcelona matches in his first gear season, of which 18 were as a substitute. Afellay was given his first start on 19 January 2011 against Real Betis in the Copa del Rey. [ 35 ] His first goal besides occurred in the Copa del Rey against UD Almería in February. [ 36 ] Afellay scored his first league goal in a 3–1 away win against Málaga CF on the last day of the season. [ 35 ] The 2010–11 season ended in the title gain for Barcelona and the one-fifth league backing for Afellay overall. [ 37 ] He made his Champions League-debut for Barcelona against Arsenal and went on to appear in the quarter-finals against Shakthar and the semi-finals against Real Madrid. He assisted Lionel Messi to score the opening finish of Barcelona ‘s 2–0 away victory over Madrid. Afellay and Barcelona finally won the Champions League after beating Manchester United ( 3–1 ). Afellay came on in the 90th infinitesimal of the final. [ 35 ] [ 36 ] Afellay had a minor hamstring injury in the 2011–12 pre-season, consequently missing out on the Supercopa de España matches against Real Madrid. [ 38 ] He returned in prison term for one Champions League and one La Liga pit before suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury during train in September. [ 39 ] [ 40 ] After undergoing surgery, Afellay went through a seven-month recovery menstruation. On 29 April, he returned to the field as a stand-in in the 71st moment replacing teammate Sergio Busquets against Rayo Vallecano on a 7–0 away trashing succeed for the Catalan side. [ 39 ] Although he appeared in two more La Liga fixtures, director Pep Guardiola did not call-up Afellay for the major matches against Chelsea and Real Madrid. [ 3 ] [ 39 ]

Schalke 04 ( loanword ) [edit ]

In the build-up for the 2012–13 season, Barcelona coach Tito Vilanova notified Afellay of his decrease playing clock in the approaching class. It prompted him to accept a lend put up from FC Schalke 04 on 31 August. He was reunited with Jefferson Farfán and coach Huub Stevens. [ 41 ] [ 42 ] [ 43 ] Afellay made his introduction the adjacent day against FC Augsburg. He scored four goals at Schalke, including the open goal in the Revierderby against Borussia Dortmund ( 1–2 ) and a goal against Arsenal in the Champions League. Afellay played his death Schalke pit on 10 November ; he picked up a muscle injury in a dutch national team friendly against Germany a few days later. [ 44 ] The injury prevented Afellay from playing until January, when he suffered a alike muscle striving in a friendly against Al Sadd SC. [ 45 ] With the recovery this time taking the remainder of the season, Afellay returned to The Netherlands after expressing his discontented with the checkup discussion at Schalke 04. [ 46 ] Although both parties kept in contact, Afellay did not return to Gelsenkirchen anymore after the injury ; a move that led to criticism from Schalke ‘s general coach Horst Heldt. [ 47 ] Afellay returned to Spain in May to evaluate his problems with the FC Barcelona medical staff. [ 48 ] He decided to start training two weeks earlier than the respite of the squad in order to focus on his recovery. [ 49 ] But in August, Afellay had to undergo another surgery on a thigh wound in Barcelona, sidelining him for another four months. [ 50 ] Although he was originally not given a police squad number, Barcelona assigned Afellay the numeral 19 jersey after the transfer window deadline had passed. [ 51 ]

Olympiacos ( loan ) [edit ]

On 10 August 2014 Olympiacos announced the acquisition of Afellay on a season farseeing deal. He scored his first finish in the Superleague on his debut on 23 August, receiving the ball in the 32nd infinitesimal following a pass from Alejandro Domínguez. [ 52 ] Afellay enjoyed a successful season in Greece with Olympiacos as they won the league and cup double. [ 53 ] At the end of the 2014–15 season, he was released by Barcelona after his injury hit quell at the club. [ 54 ]

Stoke City [edit ]

Afellay joined Premier League side Stoke City on a biennial shrink on 27 July 2015. [ 55 ] [ 56 ] He made his debut on 9 August, in a 1–0 get the better of against Liverpool at the Britannia Stadium, playing 78 minutes before making way for Peter Odemwingie. [ 57 ] He was sent-off against West Bromwich Albion on 29 August 2015, for slapping Craig Gardner. [ 58 ] He scored his first base finish for Stoke on 1 December 2015 in a 2–0 League Cup victory against Sheffield Wednesday. [ 59 ] Afellay scored his first Premier League goal on 13 February 2016 in a 3–1 succeed against AFC Bournemouth. [ 60 ] He scored his second Premier League goal on his thirtieth birthday in a 2–2 draw with Swansea City on 2 April 2016. [ 61 ] On 22 April 2016 Afellay suffered a serious stifle injury in train, ruling him out for up to eight months. [ 62 ] In full Afellay played 36 times for Stoke in 2015–16 scoring three goals as the side finished in ninth stead. Afellay made his render from injury against Liverpool on 27 December 2016. [ 63 ] Afellay signed a biennial compress extension with Stoke on 2 March 2017. [ 64 ] [ 65 ] He suffered another injury in April 2017 and under went knee operating room. [ 66 ] Afellay managed to make 13 appearances in 2016–17, of which 3 were starts as Stoke finished in 13th situation. [ 67 ] [ 68 ] He returned from injury in September 2017 but was ineffective to establish himself in Mark Hughes ‘ in 2017–18 team form just six appearances. Afellay then had a education ground bust up with new director Paul Lambert in March 2018 and was told to stay away from the clubhouse. [ 69 ] [ 70 ] Afellay returned to the club for pre-season ahead of the 2018–19 season and scored in a friendly against Walsall but suffered another hanker term knee wound. [ 71 ] His contract with Stoke was terminated by reciprocal consent on 28 January 2019. [ 72 ]

reappearance to PSV [edit ]

On 18 June 2019, PSV announced the recurrence of Afellay after nine years. [ 73 ] On 31 January 2021, Afellay announced his retirement from professional football. [ 74 ] He stated : “ What I wanted has not happened. But I am at peace with it. You know that this moment will come sooner or late. It ‘s all right like this. ” [ 74 ]

International career [edit ]

Afellay with PSV in 2008 Afellay and his family are moroccan Dutch. After both the Moroccan and the Dutch national team managers selected him for their squads, he was caught in the dilemma to either play for the Moroccan home team, because of his moroccan descent, or to play for the Dutch team, the Netherlands being his place of give birth and residence. He ultimately decided to play for the Dutch home team despite the heavy rival for places in midfield. [ 75 ] He made his international debut in a Euro 2008 qualifier against Slovenia on 28 March 2007. He played in the 2008 european Championships as a substitute. [ 76 ] Just seconds after replacing Dirk Kuyt in the group match against Italy he closely scored a goal but his shoot hit the top of the crossbar. In their last group match against Romania, he was given a target in the starting eleven aboard Arjen Robben in midfield. On 12 October 2010, Afellay scored his first external goals in a Euro 2012 qualifier against Sweden .

2010 World Cup [edit ]

Afellay was part of the Dutch team for the 2010 World Cup managed by Bert van Marwijk. [ 77 ] The player came on as a utility for their beginning and moment matches in the rival, a 2–0 victory over Denmark [ 78 ] and 1–0 victory over Japan respectively, angstrom good as the round of 16 peer against Slovakia .

euro 2012 [edit ]

Despite being injured for most of the 2011–12 season, he was included in the Netherlands ‘ Euro 2012 squad. On 2 June 2012, Afellay scored two goals in a 6–0 friendly win over Northern Ireland, which was the Netherlands ‘ final equal ahead of the tournament. In the first match of the tournament, his team suffered a 1–0 loss to Denmark. He was part of the starting eleven against Germany angstrom well. After the second loss, the head bus Bert van Marwijk decided to replace him with Rafael vanguard five hundred Vaart .

career statistics [edit ]

club [edit ]

As of match played 23 January 2020[8][35][79][80]

International [edit ]

As of match played 29 March 2016[87][88]
National team Year Apps Goals
Netherlands
2007 1 0
2008 13 0
2009 5 0
2010 12 2
2011 5 1
2012 8 2
2014 4 1
2015 3 0
2016 2 1
Total 53 7
As of match played 25 March 2016. Netherlands score listed first, score column indicates score after each Afellay goal.[88]

Honours [edit ]

club [edit ]

PSV [ 89 ]
Barcelona [ 89 ]
Olympiacos [ 89 ]
Netherlands [ 89 ]
Individual [ 89 ]

  • Dutch Football Talent of the Year: 2007

References [edit ]