Walid Ismail

Walid Ismail
	Ismail with Bourj in 2020
Personal information
Full name	Walid Bahij Ismail
Date of birth	10 November 1984 (age 39)
Place of birth	Beirut, Lebanon
Height	1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Position(s)	Left-back
Senior career*
Years	Team
0000–2008	Islah Borj Shmali
2008–2013	Racing Beirut
2013–2014	Nejmeh
2014–2016	Zob Ahan
2016–2018	Safa
2018–2019	Salam Zgharta
2019–2021	Bourj
2021–2022	Sagesse
Total
International career
2010–2019	Lebanon
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Walid Bahij Ismail (Arabic: وليد بهيج إسماعيل; born 10 November 1984) is a Lebanese former professional footballer who played as a left-back.

Ismail began his career in Lebanon at Islah Borj Shmali, before playing for Racing Beirut and then Nejmeh, with whom he won the 2013–14 league title. In 2014 he moved to Zob Ahan in Iran, winning two consecutive Hazfi Cup titles—in 2014–15 and 2015–16. Ismail returned to Lebanon in 2016, playing for Safa, Salam Zgharta, Bourj and Sagesse.

He is one of his country's most capped players, having represented Lebanon internationally 68 times between 2010 and 2019. Ismail participated at the 2011, 2015, and 2019 AFC Asian Cup qualifications, and the 2014 and 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifications. He also played at the 2019 AFC Asian Cup, in Lebanon's first participation through qualification.

Club career

Starting his career at Islah Borj Shmali in the Lebanese Second Division, Ismail played for Lebanese Premier League side Racing Beirut, before moving to Nejmeh in 2013 where he won one league title, one Super Cup, one Elite Cup and helped them reach the round of 16 of the 2013 AFC Cup.^[3] In 2014, he moved to Iranian club Zob Ahan with whom he won two Hazfi Cups and played in the AFC Champions League.^[3]

In 2016 he returned to Lebanon at Safa, where he spent two seasons, before joining Salam Zgharta in 2018.^[3] On 3 June 2019, Ismail joined newly promoted side Bourj.^[4] Ismail moved to newly-promoted side Sagesse on 12 June 2021, on a one-year deal.^[5] He left the club on 13 July 2022.^[6]

International career

Ismail represented Lebanon at the 2019 AFC Asian Cup.^[2] On 21 January 2019, Ismail announced his retirement from international football.^[7]

Playing style

While not a fast left-back, Ismail is known for his calmness and experience on the field.^[3]

Career statistics

International

Scores and results list Lebanon's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Ismail goal.

List of international goals scored by Walid Ismail
No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition	Ref.
1	19 December 2012	Saida Municipal Stadium, Sidon, Lebanon	Pakistan	1–0	3–1	Friendly	^[8]

Honours

Nejmeh

Lebanese Premier League: 2013–14

Zob Ahan

Hazfi Cup: 2014–15, 2015–16

Individual

Lebanese Premier League Team of the Season: 2012–13,^[9]^[10] 2013–14^[11]

References

^ ^a ^b "Walid Ismail". Global Sports Archive. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
^ ^a ^b "AC2019 Final Squads". Asian Football Confederation. p. 19. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "The final 23: who are they?". Lebanese Football Review. 9 January 2019. Retrieved 26 July 2019.
^ Lebanon, Football. "البرج يتعاقد مع المدافع اسماعيل". football-lebanon.com (in Arabic). Retrieved 3 June 2019.
^ Mahfoud, Maroun (12 June 2021). "New signings for Hekmeh". FA Lebanon. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
^ "وليد إسماعيل يودع الحكمة". كووورة (in Arabic). 13 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
^ الله, دبي-عز الدين جاد (21 January 2019). "وليد إسماعيل: قررت اعتزال اللعب دولياً". البيان (in Arabic). Retrieved 24 July 2019.
^ Strack-Zimmermann, Benjamin. "Lebanon vs. Pakistan (3:1)". national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
^ مهرجان كرة المنار الـ17 : محمد حيدر افضل لاعب في لبنان. Al Ahed News Archive (in Arabic). 18 June 2013. Archived from the original on 6 April 2023. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
^ محمد حيدر أفضل لاعب..ولا حذاء ذهبي. Malaeeb (in Arabic). 18 June 2013. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
^ نتائج مهرجان كرة المنار الـ18. An-Nahar (in Arabic). 3 June 2014. Archived from the original on 10 May 2019. Retrieved 26 February 2019.

External links

Walid Ismail at FA Lebanon
Walid Ismail at RSSSF
Walid Ismail at National-Football-Teams.com
Walid Ismail at Soccerway
Walid Ismail at Kooora.com (in Arabic) (archived in English at Goalzz.com)
Walid Ismail at Lebanon Football Guide

[GSA-1] "Walid Ismail". Global Sports Archive. Retrieved 25 April 2021.

[AFC-2] "AC2019 Final Squads". Asian Football Confederation. p. 19. Retrieved 25 June 2022.

[:02-3] "The final 23: who are they?". Lebanese Football Review. 9 January 2019. Retrieved 26 July 2019.

[4] Lebanon, Football. "البرج يتعاقد مع المدافع اسماعيل". football-lebanon.com (in Arabic). Retrieved 3 June 2019.

[5] Mahfoud, Maroun (12 June 2021). "New signings for Hekmeh". FA Lebanon. Retrieved 12 June 2021.

[6] "وليد إسماعيل يودع الحكمة". كووورة (in Arabic). 13 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.

[7] الله, دبي-عز الدين جاد (21 January 2019). "وليد إسماعيل: قررت اعتزال اللعب دولياً". البيان (in Arabic). Retrieved 24 July 2019.

[8] Strack-Zimmermann, Benjamin. "Lebanon vs. Pakistan (3:1)". national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 9 July 2020.

[:2013a-9] مهرجان كرة المنار الـ17 : محمد حيدر افضل لاعب في لبنان. Al Ahed News Archive (in Arabic). 18 June 2013. Archived from the original on 6 April 2023. Retrieved 13 May 2019.

[:2013b-10] محمد حيدر أفضل لاعب..ولا حذاء ذهبي. Malaeeb (in Arabic). 18 June 2013. Retrieved 26 February 2019.

[:2014-11] نتائج مهرجان كرة المنار الـ18. An-Nahar (in Arabic). 3 June 2014. Archived from the original on 10 May 2019. Retrieved 26 February 2019.

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