Nabil Fekir facts for kids
2.jpg)
Fekir training with France at the 2018 FIFA World Cup
|
||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Nabil Fekir | |||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 18 July 1993 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Lyon, France | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Attacking midfielder | |||||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||||
|
Current team
|
Al Jazira | |||||||||||||||
| Number | 20 | |||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2001 | AC Villeurbanne | |||||||||||||||
| 2001–2003 | Vaulx-en-Velin | |||||||||||||||
| 2003–2005 | SC Caluire | |||||||||||||||
| 2005–2007 | Lyon | |||||||||||||||
| 2007–2010 | Vaulx-en-Velin | |||||||||||||||
| 2010–2011 | Saint-Priest | |||||||||||||||
| 2011–2013 | Lyon | |||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||
| 2011–2013 | Lyon B | 63 | (13) | |||||||||||||
| 2013–2019 | Lyon | 145 | (54) | |||||||||||||
| 2019–2024 | Real Betis | 135 | (21) | |||||||||||||
| 2024– | Al Jazira | 20 | (8) | |||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||
| 2014 | France U21 | 1 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2015–2020 | France | 25 | (2) | |||||||||||||
|
Medal record
|
||||||||||||||||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:56, 25 May 2025 (UTC) | ||||||||||||||||
Nabil Fekir (born 18 July 1993) is a French football player. He plays as an attacking midfielder for UAE Pro League club Al Jazira.
Nabil Fekir started his career at Lyon in France. He joined their main team in July 2013. In his second season, he became a key player and was named the best young player in the French league. He played 192 games for Lyon, scoring 69 goals. He also became the team's captain in 2017.
In 2019, he moved to the Spanish club Real Betis. With Betis, he won the Copa del Rey in 2022. Fekir also plays for the French national team. He made his debut in March 2015 and was part of the squad that won the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Contents
Club Career
Early Years and Youth Teams
Nabil Fekir joined the youth academy of Lyon when he was 12 years old. However, two years later, he was released because the club thought he was not strong enough. He then played for other youth teams like Vaulx-en-Velin and Saint-Priest.
Many scouts from different clubs noticed him there. Lyon's rival team, Saint-Étienne, wanted to sign him. But Nabil waited for Lyon to sign him again, which they did in 2011. He later said he wanted to show Lyon they had made a mistake by letting him go.
Playing for Lyon
Nabil Fekir joined the Lyon first team in July 2013. He made his first appearance for Lyon on 28 August 2013 in a Champions League qualifying game. A few days later, he played his first game in Ligue 1, the top French league.
On 27 April 2014, Nabil scored his first goal for Lyon in a 4–1 win against Bastia. He also helped his teammates score two other goals in that game. In his first season (2013–14), he played 17 games and scored one goal.
During the 2014–15 season, Nabil played regularly and became a very important player. By March 2015, he had scored 11 goals and helped with 7 assists in 25 league games. This led to him being called up to the French national team for the first time. In May 2015, he was named the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year. He was also chosen for the Ligue 1 Team of the Year. He finished that season with 13 goals and 9 assists.
On 29 August 2015, Fekir scored three goals in one game, which is called a hat-trick, in a 4–0 win against Caen. However, he missed most of the 2015–16 season because of a serious knee injury.
He returned strong. On 23 February 2017, Nabil scored another hat-trick in a UEFA Europa League game against AZ Alkmaar. He also helped a teammate score in that game. By this time, he had scored 10 goals and provided 10 assists in all competitions for the 2016–17 season.
In August 2017, Nabil Fekir was named the captain of Lyon. On 5 November, he scored two goals in a big 5–0 win against their rivals, AS Saint-Etienne. After scoring his second goal, he celebrated in a way that upset the opposing fans. This caused the game to be stopped for a while before it could finish.
In the 2017–18 season, Fekir was part of a strong attacking team. He scored 18 goals that season. In June 2018, the English club Liverpool tried to sign Fekir. He even agreed to join them, but the transfer did not happen. Later, Fekir said the reason the move failed was not because of an injury, but because of his agent.
Moving to Real Betis
On 22 July 2019, Nabil Fekir signed a four-year contract with the Spanish club Real Betis. His younger brother, Yassin Fekir, also moved to Betis as part of the deal.
Nabil made his debut in La Liga, the top Spanish league, on 18 August. He scored his first goal for Betis a week later in a game against Barcelona. During his time at Betis, he was sometimes sent off the field for getting two yellow cards in a game.
On 21 April 2021, he was sent off early in a game against Athletic Bilbao. In the last game of the 2020–21 season, he scored a goal that helped his team win 3–2 against RC Celta de Vigo. This win secured sixth place for Betis, which meant they qualified for the Europa League.
On 4 November 2021, in a Europa League game, Fekir was sent off after a disagreement with an opponent. In January 2022, his contract with Betis was extended until 2026. He helped his team win the Copa del Rey that season, scoring important goals along the way. One of these goals was in a derby match against Sevilla FC. That game was stopped for a short time after an object was thrown from the crowd, but it continued later without fans.
On 24 February 2023, Nabil suffered another serious knee injury while playing against Elche CF. This injury kept him out of action for the rest of that season. He returned to play in November 2023.
Joining Al Jazira Club
On 30 August 2024, Nabil Fekir moved to the Emirati club Al Jazira Club.
International Career
Nabil Fekir played one game for the France U21 national team in October 2014. France lost that game and did not qualify for the European Under-21 Championship.
Fekir was also considered to play for Algeria, his family's home country, in March 2015. However, he chose to play for the French senior team instead. He made his debut for France on 26 March 2015 in a friendly game against Brazil. He scored his first goal for France on 7 June 2015 in a friendly game against Belgium. On 4 September 2015, he started his first game for France against Portugal. During this game, he suffered a serious knee injury that kept him out of play for about six months.
He was called back to the French team in August 2016, but had to withdraw again due to another injury. On 7 October, he made his first competitive appearance for France in a World Cup qualifying game against Bulgaria.
Nabil Fekir was chosen to be part of the 23-man French national team for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. He played in the last few minutes of the final match, where France won 4–2 against Croatia. This meant he became a World Cup winner!
Playing Style
When Nabil Fekir was first called up to the French national team in March 2015, the manager Didier Deschamps said that Fekir "is a player with great potential." He added that Nabil "can bring us something different" because he can both score goals and help his teammates score.
Personal Life
Nabil Fekir's parents are from Algeria, a country in North Africa. They are originally from a small town called Menaceur. His father moved to France in 1992 and worked in a factory. His mother was a social worker. Nabil is the oldest of four brothers. His brother, Yassin Fekir, also became a professional football player and moved to Betis with Nabil. Nabil Fekir is a Muslim. He gives to charity when he cannot fast during Ramadan because of football games.
Honours
Team Awards
- Real Betis
- Copa del Rey: 2021–22
- Al Jazira
- UAE League Cup: 2024–25
- France
Individual Awards
- UNFP Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year: 2014–15
- UNFP Ligue 1 Team of the Year: 2014–15, 2017–18
- UNFP Ligue 1 Player of the Month: October 2017
- La Liga Team of the Season: 2021–22
- La Liga Play of the Month: April 2024 (with Isco)
Special Recognition
- Knight of the Legion of Honour: 2018 (This is a very high award given by the French government.)
Images for kids
-
Fekir training with France at the 2018 FIFA World Cup
-
Fekir in training with Lyon in 2015
-
Fekir in training with Lyon in 2017
See also
In Spanish: Nabil Fekir para niños
