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Houssem Aouar

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Houssem Aouar
حسام عوار
Aouar in a press conference with Algeria in 2024
Personal information
Full name Houssem-Eddine Chaâbane Aouar
Date of birth (1998-06-30) 30 June 1998 (age 26)
Place of birth Lyon, France
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[1]
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Al-Ittihad
Number 10
Youth career
2006–2009 AC Villeurbanne
2009–2016 Lyon
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2015–2017 Lyon B 22 (4)
2016–2023 Lyon 179 (30)
2023–2024 Roma 16 (4)
2024– Al-Ittihad 0 (0)
International career‡
2014 France U17 1 (0)
2017–2021 France U21 17 (4)
2020 France 1 (0)
2023– Algeria 11 (3)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:06, 26 May 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 10 June 2024

Houssem-Eddine Chaâbane Aouar (Arabic: حسام الدين شعبان عوار; born 30 June 1998) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad and the Algeria national team.

Born in France, he made one appearance for his country of birth before switching his allegiance to Algeria. He made his debut for the latter in June 2023, and represented the national team at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

Early life

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Houssem-Eddine Chaâbane Aouar[2] was born on 30 June 1998 in Lyon, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes,[3] to parents from Béni Saf in Algeria.[4] He grew up in Villeurbane.[5]

Club career

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Lyon

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Aouar playing for Lyon against RB Leipzig in a Champions League match in 2019

Aouar joined the Olympique Lyonnais Academy in 2009 at the age of 11.[citation needed]

He signed a three-year professional contract at Lyon in July 2016. He made his first team debut in on 16 February 2017 in a 1–4 away win over AZ Alkmaar in the first-leg match of the round of 32 of the knockout phase of the UEFA Europa League, replacing Sergi Darder after 84 minutes.[6] Aouar scored his first goal for Lyon's first team a week later in the second-leg match against AZ Alkmaar at Parc Olympique Lyonnais, which Lyon won 7–1.[7] He made his Ligue 1 debut by starting in the away match against Bastia on 16 April 2017, but the match was abandoned at half-time with the score at 0–0. A win was given to Lyon three weeks later.[8] He was nominated for the Golden Boy award in July 2018.[9]

At the beginning of the 2017–18 season, despite having played only five competitive matches for Lyon's first team since he joined the club, Aouar was given the symbolic number 8 (having previously been worn by club legend Juninho) left free when Corentin Tolisso left the club for Bayern Munich in June 2017.[10]

On 11 December 2019, Aouar scored a goal against RB Leipzig in a Champions League group stage match[11] helping Lyon to secure their way into the Champions League round of 16. His side later upset both Juventus and Manchester City to reach the semi-finals, where they were beaten by Bayern Munich.[12]

Roma

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On 11 June 2023, it was announced that Aouar had signed a five-year contract with Serie A club Roma.[13][14] Later that year, on 26 August, he scored his first goal in a 2–1 away defeat against Hellas Verona.[15]

Al-Ittihad

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On 16 July 2024, Aouar signed for Saudi club Al-Ittihad for a reported fee of €12 million.[16]

International career

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France

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In 2014, Aouar was called up to the France under-17 national team, but only played one game. In 2019, he was a starter throughout the UEFA European Under-21 Championship for the France under-21 national team, eventually being eliminated by Spain in the semi-finals.[17]

In November 2019, Aouar was called up to the France national team, but was unable to join the team due to suffering an injury. He was not replaced in the squad.[18] On 26 August 2020, Aouar received his first call-up for France to prepare for 2020–21 UEFA Nations League matches against Sweden and Croatia in early September.[19] However, on 27 August, he tested positive for COVID-19 during a regular test carried out by Lyon, amid its pandemic in France;[20] he was put into isolation for a fortnight and had to skip training for at least 10 to 15 days. Therefore, France decided to replace him with Nabil Fekir.[21] Aouar eventually made his France debut on 7 October 2020 in a 7–1 friendly win over Ukraine.[22]

Algeria

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Aouar and Djamel Belmadi in a press conference before the match against Mauritania at the 2024 Africa Cup of Nations

In March 2023, Aouar switched his international allegiance from his birth to the football federation of the country of his parents, Algeria. In an interview with the Algerian Football Federation, he said, "the president held out his hand to me and it seemed like it was just meant to be. I had a second chance and I jumped on it." He also added that he "regretted" having played for France, saying that he felt he "hadn't made the best choice".[23] On 18 June 2023, he made his debut for Algeria against Uganda in the African Cup of Nations qualification match.[24]

In December 2023, he was named in Algeria's squad for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.[25]

Style of play

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Aouar is a versatile attacking midfielder who can play anywhere in midfield, and has been praised for his excellent technical ability and calmness with the ball at his feet.[26]

Personal life

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Aouar holds French and Algerian nationalities.[27][28] He holds Juninho and Zinedine Zidane as role models.[29] He is a Muslim.[30]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of match played 26 May 2024[31]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Europe Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Lyon B 2015–16 CFA 6 0 — — — 6 0
2016–17 CFA 15 4 — — — 15 4
2017–18 Championnat National 2 1 0 — — — 1 0
Total 22 4 — — — 22 4
Lyon 2016–17 Ligue 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 2[c] 1 5 1
2017–18 Ligue 1 32 6 4 0 0 0 8[c] 1 44 7
2018–19 Ligue 1 37 7 2 0 1 0 7[d] 0 47 7
2019–20 Ligue 1 25 3 4 3 4 2 8[d] 1 41 9
2020–21 Ligue 1 30 7 3 1 — — 33 8
2021–22 Ligue 1 36 6 0 0 — 9[c] 2 45 8
2022–23 Ligue 1 16 1 2 0 — — 18 1
Total 179 30 15 4 5 2 34 5 233 41
Roma 2023–24 Serie A 16 4 0 0 — 9[c] 0 25 4
Al-Ittihad 2024–25 Saudi Pro League 0 0 0 0 — 0 0 0 0
Career total 217 38 15 4 5 2 43 5 280 49
  1. ^ Includes Coupe de France, Coppa Italia
  2. ^ Includes Coupe de la Ligue
  3. ^ a b c d Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. ^ a b Appearances in UEFA Champions League

International

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As of match played 10 June 2024[32]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
France 2020 1 0
Total 1 0
Algeria 2023 5 2
2024 6 1
Total 11 3
Career total 12 3

Honours

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Lyon

Individual

References

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  1. ^ "Houssem Aouar". Olympique Lyonnais. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  2. ^ "HA Diffusion". Verif.com (in French). Retrieved 3 July 2022.
    "Houssem-Eddine Aouar". Verif.com (in French). Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  3. ^ "Houssem Aouar". L'Équipe (in French). Paris. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  4. ^ "La Famille d'Aouar de Beni Saf l'incite à Choisir l'Algérie". dzballon.com (in Arabic). Rabah Farid Kada. 5 March 2020.
  5. ^ "Merci Houssem Aouar". www.ol.fr. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
  6. ^ "AZ Alkmaar vs. Lyon - 19 February 2017 - Soccerway". soccerway.com. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
  7. ^ "Lyon vs. AZ Alkmaar - 23 February 2017 - Soccerway". soccerway.com. Retrieved 24 February 2017.
  8. ^ "Ligue 1 : L'OL se voit attribuer la victoire face au Sporting Club de Bastia". olweb.fr. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
  9. ^ Polden, Jake (2 July 2018). "Golden Boy 2018 award nominees announced". mirror.
  10. ^ "OL: les numéros de Tolisso et Lacazette réattribués". RMC Sport (in French). 9 July 2017. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
  11. ^ "Lyon 2 - 2 RB Leipzig - Match Report & Highlights - Sky Sports". skysports.com. Retrieved 26 December 2019.
  12. ^ "Lyon 0-3 Bayern Munich: Bayern breeze through to final showdown with PSG". BBC Sport. 19 August 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
  13. ^ "Houssem Aouar signs for the Giallorossi!". www.asroma.com. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
  14. ^ "Aouar signs for Roma on free transfer from Lyon". ESPN. 11 June 2023. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
  15. ^ "Hellas Verona 2–1 AS Roma". ESPN. 26 August 2023.
  16. ^ Salem, Omar (17 July 2024). "Official: Ittihad Jeddah announce Houssem Aouar signing". KingFut. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  17. ^ "Spain versus France Match Report". UEFA. 28 June 2019. Retrieved 31 August 2020.
  18. ^ "Bleus: Houssem Aouar, blessé, déclare forfait pour le rassemblement (Deschamps)". beIN Sports (in French). 9 November 2020. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  19. ^ "Dernière sélection". French Football Federation (in French). 26 August 2020. Retrieved 31 August 2020.
  20. ^ "Club statement". Olympique Lyonnais. 31 August 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
  21. ^ Westwood, James (31 August 2020). "Lyon star Aouar tests positive for Covid-19 ahead of Ligue 1 season opener". Sporting News. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
  22. ^ "France v Ukraine game report". ESPN. 7 October 2020.
  23. ^ "Can Algeria switch help relaunch Aouar's career?". Ligue 1. 17 March 2023. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
  24. ^ "First match of Aouar with Algeria". 18 June 2023.
  25. ^ "CAN 2024 : L'Algérie Dévoile sa Liste Officielle – Qui Sont les Fennecs Prêts à Conquérir l'Afrique ?" (in French). Algérie-Focus. 30 December 2023. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  26. ^ "Houssem Aouar: Meet the Lyon player Pep Guardiola calls 'incredible'". BBC Sport. 29 November 2018.
  27. ^ Vavel (14 November 2016). "Qui es-tu, Houssem Aouar ?". VAVEL.com (in French). Retrieved 5 February 2018.
  28. ^ "C'est officiel, Houssem Aouar représentera l'Algérie en équipe nationale".
  29. ^ "The Young Lyon wanted in Liverpool and Barcelona - Meet Ligue 1 Rising Star Houssem Aouar | Goal.com". Retrieved 30 November 2018.
  30. ^ "Houssem Aouar victime de sa pratique de l'islam". TSA (in French). 28 January 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  31. ^ "H. Aouar". Soccerway. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
  32. ^ Houssem Aouar at National-Football-Teams.com Edit this at Wikidata
  33. ^ "Paris St-Germain beat Lyon in French League Cup final for another treble". BBC Sport. 31 July 2020. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
  34. ^ "UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season". UEFA. 28 August 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
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