Nabil Baha

Nabil Baha

Baha playing for Morocco
Personal information
Full name	Nabil Baha
Date of birth	(1981-08-12) 12 August 1981
Place of birth	Remiremont, France
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s)	Striker
Youth career
1994–1998	Épinal
1998–2000	Montpellier
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2000–2001	Montpellier B	?	(5)
2001–2004	Naval	84	(24)
2004	Braga B	4	(4)
2004–2005	Braga	10	(1)
2005–2006	Racing Ferrol	37	(8)
2006	Créteil	17	(5)
2007	Ponferradina	20	(9)
2007–2011	Málaga	109	(24)
2011	AEK Athens	9	(0)
2011–2013	Sabadell	32	(5)
2013	Dalian Aerbin	9	(2)
International career
2003–2010	Morocco	20	(4)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 7 November 2013

Nabil Baha (Arabic: نبيل باها; born 12 August 1981) is a Moroccan footballer who plays as a striker.

He started playing for Montpellier in 2000, but competed professionally mainly in Portugal and Spain, representing in the country's top divisions Braga and Málaga.

Baha gained 20 caps for Morocco, during seven years.

Club career

Born in Remiremont, France, and with both of his parents hailing from Douar Guerzine near Fes, Baha made his professional debuts with France's Montpellier HSC, then went on to represent Associação Naval 1º de Maio (second division) and S.C. Braga in Portugal, moving to neighbours Spain in 2005 and appearing for Racing de Ferrol in the second level. There, in spite of his eight league goals, the Galician club would be relegated.

After a brief return spell to France with lowly US Créteil-Lusitanos, Baha returned to Spain and its second-tier in January 2007, scoring nine league goals for SD Ponferradina, which would also drop down a level at the season's closure. In the 2007–08 campaign he played for another side in the category, Málaga CF, and, benefitting from several injuries to habitual first-choice Salva, finished with ten goals (squad's second-best) as the Andalusians returned to La Liga after two years.

In the early months of 2008, Baha was subject of a €2 million transfer to FC Steaua Bucureşti, however he rejected this as he wanted to play in Spain's top flight – he had a clause in his contract allowing him to talk to other clubs if the offer was of at least €5 million. In 2008–09 he scored his first goal in the competition, in a 4–0 away routing of Recreativo de Huelva on 5 October 2008; the following month he also found the net, at the Santiago Bernabéu against Real Madrid, but in a 3–4 final loss, and finished the first half of the season as the club's top scorer at eight for a total of nine, tied for best with midfielder Apoño.

On 29 January 2011 free agent Baha joined AEK Athens F.C. from Greece, signing a six-month contract with an option for an extra year. On 30 April he scored his only official goal of the campaign, in a 3–0 win against Atromitos F.C. for the Greek Cup final.

On 18 August 2011 Baha returned to Spain and joined CE Sabadell FC, signing a two-year contract. He was released by the club late in January 2013 and, in July, moved to the Chinese Super League with Dalian Aerbin FC.

International career

A full Moroccan international since February 2003, Baha took part in the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations where the national side finished second to hosts Tunisia, scoring once in a 4–0 semifinal win over Mali.

Due to a dislocated shoulder suffered in the late months of October against Racing de Santander in a Spanish Cup match, Baha failed to win a place in the nation's final squad for the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, which was held in Ghana.

External links

• Nabil Baha – French league stats at LFP – also available in French (archived)
• BDFutbol profile
• Stats at ForaDeJogo
• Nabil Baha at National-Football-Teams.com
• Nabil Baha – FIFA competition record (archived)
• Soccerway profile