Nabil Fekir facts for kids
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Fekir training with France at the 2018 FIFA World Cup
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 18 July 1993 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Lyon, France | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.73 m | |||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Attacking midfielder | |||||||||||||||
| Club information | ||||||||||||||||
| Current club | 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 | 7 | (4) | |||||||||||||
| National team | ||||||||||||||||
| 2014 | France U21 | 1 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2015–2020 | France | 25 | (2) | |||||||||||||
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Honours
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Nabil Fekir (born 18 July 1993) is a French professional footballer. He plays as an attacking midfielder for UAE Pro League club Al Jazira.
Nabil Fekir started his career at Lyon in France. He quickly became a key player and was even named the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year. He played 192 games for Lyon, scoring 69 goals. He also became the team captain in 2017. In 2019, he moved to Real Betis in Spain. There, he helped his team win the Copa del Rey in 2022.
Fekir also plays for the French national team. He made his first appearance for France in 2015. He was part of the squad that won the 2018 FIFA World Cup!
Contents
Club Journey
Starting Out: Youth Career
Nabil Fekir joined the youth academy of Olympique Lyonnais when he was 12. But two years later, he was told he wasn't strong enough and was released. He didn't give up! He went back to play for other youth clubs like Vaulx-en-Velin and Saint-Priest. Many scouts from different teams noticed his talent. Even Lyon's rivals, Saint-Étienne, wanted to sign him. But Nabil waited for Lyon to sign him again in 2011. He said he wanted to show Lyon they made a mistake.
Playing for Lyon
Nabil Fekir joined the Lyon first team in July 2013. He made his first team debut on 28 August 2013 in a Champions League game. A few days later, he played his first Ligue 1 match. On 27 April 2014, he scored his first goal for Lyon in a 4–1 win against Bastia. He also helped his teammates score. In his first season, he played 17 games and scored one goal.
During the 2014–15 season, Nabil became a regular player. He scored 11 goals and helped with 7 assists in 25 games. This great performance led to him being called up for the national team. On 17 May 2015, he was named the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year. He also made it into the Team of the Year. He finished that season with 13 goals and 9 assists.
On 29 August 2015, Fekir scored three goals, which is called a hat-trick, in a 4–0 win against Caen. Unfortunately, he missed most of the 2015–16 season because of a serious knee injury.
In February 2017, Fekir scored another hat-trick in a Europa League game. He also helped set up another goal. By this time, he had scored 10 goals and made 10 assists in 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. The game was 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 wanted to sign Fekir. They offered a lot of money, and Nabil even had a medical check-up. But the transfer didn't happen because of a knee issue that came up during the medical.
Time at Real Betis
On 22 July 2019, Nabil Fekir signed a four-year contract with the Spanish club Real Betis. Lyon received about €19.75 million for the transfer. As part of the deal, Nabil's younger brother, Yassin Fekir, also moved to Betis. Nabil played his first La Liga game for Betis on 18 August. A week later, he scored his first goal for the team against Barcelona.
He sometimes received red cards during games for fouls or for arguing with the referee. For example, in February 2020, he was sent off against Barcelona. In April 2021, he was sent off again after just 11 minutes on the field. In the last game of the 2020–21 season, he scored a goal that helped his team win 3–2 and qualify for the Europa League.
On 4 November 2021, Fekir was sent off in a Europa League game. In January 2022, he scored a goal in a Copa del Rey match against Sevilla FC. This game was stopped and finished later because an object was thrown from the crowd. Betis went on to win the Copa del Rey that season, which was a big achievement! His contract was extended until 2026.
On 6 November 2022, Fekir was sent off again in a derby match against Sevilla. In February 2023, he suffered another serious knee injury (an anterior cruciate ligament injury). This meant he couldn't play for the rest of that season. He returned to playing in November 2023.
Moving to Al Jazira Club
On 30 August 2024, Nabil Fekir joined the Emirati club Al Jazira Club. The transfer fee was 6 million euros.
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.
In March 2015, Fekir was called up to play for Algeria, which is his family's home country. However, he chose to play for the French squad instead. He made his debut for the senior French team on 26 March 2015 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. Sadly, during this match, he suffered a serious knee injury that kept him out of action for about six months.
On 25 August 2016, Fekir was called back to the French team after his injury. He made his first competitive appearance for France in a World Cup qualifying game against Bulgaria in October 2016.
He was chosen to be part of the 23-man French national team for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. He played the last nine minutes of the final match, where France won 4–2 against Croatia. This made him a World Cup winner!
How He Plays
When Nabil Fekir was first called up to the French senior team, the manager Didier Deschamps said that Fekir "is a player with great potential." He added that Fekir "can bring us something different" because he can both score goals and help his teammates score. He is known for his skill and creativity on the field.
About His Life
Nabil Fekir was born in France to parents from Algeria. 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 footballer and played for Lyon and Betis. Nabil Fekir is a Muslim. He gives to charity when he cannot fast during Ramadan because of football games.
Honours and Awards
Real Betis
- Copa del Rey: 2021–22
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 in France)
See also
In Spanish: Nabil Fekir para niños
