Ibrahim Afellay

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Ibrahim Afellay
Ibrahim Afellay Oranje.jpg
Personal information
Full name Ibrahim Afellay
Date of birth 2 April 1986 (1986-04-02) (age 25)
Place of birth Utrecht, Netherlands
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1]
Playing position Attacking midfielder / Winger
Club information
Current club Barcelona
Number 20
Youth career
1996–2003 PSV
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2003–2011 PSV 159 (35)
2011– Barcelona 17 (1)
National team
2007– Netherlands[2] 36 (3)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 18 September 2011.

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 9 June 2011

Ibrahim Afellay (born 2 April 1986) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays for FC Barcelona as an attacking midfielder or winger.

He has played for the Dutch national youth team and is now part of the senior Dutch national team, which he represented at UEFA Euro 2008 and the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the latter of which saw them reach the final.

Previously he played for and captained PSV Eindhoven with whom he won four national titles and during which time he was named Best Young Player in The Netherlands (2007).

Contents

[edit] Club career

[edit] PSV Eindhoven

Afellay with PSV

Born in Utrecht, in 1986 Afellay switched to the youth academy of PSV Eindhoven. Afellay's official debut for PSV Eindhoven was on 4 February 2004 during a cup match against NAC Breda at the age of 17. His debut in the competition was on 14 February, against Twente. In the 2003–04 season he played three official games, and seven more in the 2004–05 season.

On 15 May 2005, PSV Eindhoven played a game against Feyenoord. Afellay was a part of the starting lineup, and made a great impression with two goals.

In the 2005–06 season Afellay played games in the Johan Cruijff-schaal and the first three competition games. Because of the absence of DaMarcus Beasley and Mika Väyrynen he always started in the line-up.

On 13 September, Afellay made his Champions League debut against Schalke 04. PSV won the game 1–0. On 8 October, Dutch coach Marco van Basten took Afellay into the full national team during the games against the Czech Republic and Macedonia, though he did not play.

In the 2005–06 season, following the departure of important players including midfielders Johann Vogel and Mark van Bommel, Afellay grew to be a first-team regular, and was even pre-selected for the Dutch national team. He managed to play a total of 23 league matches during a season hit with a string of minor injuries, scoring twice.

[edit] FC Barcelona

On 16 November 2010, FC Barcelona and PSV Eindhoven came to terms regarding the transfer of Afellay to the Catalan side in January 2011. Afellay travelled to Barcelona on 23 December 2010 for a medical to finalize the deal. The fee was reported to be around 3 m.[3][4]

Afellay recently signed a contract that will tie him until 2015 with the club and wears the squad number 20.[5] He is the 19th Dutch player to represent Barcelona.[6] Afellay made his Blaugrana debut on 5 January 2011 in the Copa del Rey against Athletic Bilbao. He was brought in for David Villa in injury time. Afellay was given his first start for the Barcelona on 19 January 2011 against Real Betis during the second leg of the Copa del Rey in which they lost 3–1 but qualified for the semis on a 6–3 aggregate. He scored his first goal for Barcelona against UD Almería in the Copa del Rey.

Afellay playing for PSV

Afellay made his debut for Barça in the Champions League in the second match against Arsenal, and came close to scoring on two occasions. Barcelona went on to win the match. Later in the tournament, Afellay came on as a substitute in the 71st minute during the first Leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid. In the 76th minute, Afellay assisted Lionel Messi to score the opening goal of Barcelona's 2–0 victory over Madrid. He scored his first goal in the Spanish league in a 3–1 away win for Barcelona against Málaga CF on the last day of the 2010–11 season. He came on as a sub in the final of the UEFA Champions League against Manchester United.

[edit] International career

After both the Moroccan and the Dutch national teams managers selected him for their squads, he was caught in the dilemma to either play for the Moroccan national team, because of his Moroccan descent, or to play for the Dutch team, the Netherlands being his place of residence. He ultimately decided to play for the Dutch national team despite the heavy competition for places in midfield.[7] He made his international debut in a Euro 2008 qualifier against Slovenia on 28 March 2007. On 12 October 2010 Ibrahim Afellay scored his first international goals in a Euro 2012 qualifier against Sweden.

[edit] Euro 2008

Afellay was included in Marco van Basten's squad for Euro 2008 and was mostly used as a substitute. Just seconds after replacing Dirk Kuyt in the group match against Italy he nearly scored a goal but his volley went off the crossbar. In their last group game against Romania, he was given a place in the starting 11 alongside Arjen Robben in midfield.

[edit] 2010 World Cup

Afellay was part of the Dutch team for the 2010 World Cup managed by Bert van Marwijk.[8] The player came on as a substitute for their first and second matches in the competition, a 2–0 victory over Denmark[9] and 1–0 victory over Japan respectively, as well as the round of 16 match against Slovakia.

[edit] International goals

Goal Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 12 October 2010 Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands  Sweden 2–0 4–1 Euro 2012 qualification
2. 12 October 2010 Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands Sweden Sweden 4–0 4–1 Euro 2012 qualification
3. 25 March 2011 Stadium Puskás Ferenc, Budapest, Hungary Hungary Hungary 0–2 0–4 Euro 2012 qualification

[edit] Career stats

As of 18 September 2011
Club Season League Cup Europe Other1 Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
PSV 2003–04 2 0 1 0 3 0
2004–05 7 2 2 0 9 2
2005–06 23 2 2 0 8 0 1 0 34 2
2006–07 27 6 2 0 5 0 34 6
2007–08 24 2 0 0 8 0 1 0 33 2
2008–09 28 13 1 0 4 0 1 0 34 13
2009–10 29 4 4 1 11 1 44 6
2010–11 19 6 1 0 6 1 26 7
Total 159 35 13 1 42 2 3 0 217 38
Barcelona 2010–11 16 1 6 1 7 0 29 2
2011–12 1 0 0 0 1 0 2 0
Total 17 1 6 1 8 0 31 2
Career total 176 36 19 2 50 2 3 0 248 40

1Includes other competitive competitions, including the Johan Cruijff Shield, Supercopa de España, UEFA Super Cup, Intercontinental Cup and FIFA Club World Cup

[edit] Honours

[edit] Club

[edit] PSV Eindhoven

2004-05, 2005-06, 2006-07, 2007-08
2004-05
2008

[edit] FC Barcelona

2010-11
2010-11
2011
2011
2011

[edit] Individual

2007

[edit] References

[edit] External links

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