Oussama Assaidi facts for kids
Assaidi playing for Morocco in 2011
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Oussama Assaidi | ||
| Date of birth | 15 August 1988 | ||
| Place of birth | Ait Bouyafar, Morocco | ||
| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Winger | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2003–2006 | AZ | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2006–2008 | Omniworld | 36 | (3) |
| 2008–2009 | De Graafschap | 17 | (6) |
| 2009–2012 | Heerenveen | 79 | (20) |
| 2012–2015 | Liverpool | 4 | (0) |
| 2013–2015 | → Stoke City (loan) | 28 | (4) |
| 2015–2016 | Al-Ahli Dubai | 14 | (3) |
| 2017 | Jong FC Twente | 1 | (0) |
| 2017–2019 | Twente | 41 | (7) |
| Total | 228 | (46) | |
| International career | |||
| 2011–2015 | Morocco | 17 | (2) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Oussama Assaidi (born on August 15, 1988) is a former footballer from Morocco. He played as a winger, which is a player who focuses on attacking from the sides of the field.
Assaidi started his football journey in the Netherlands with the club AZ. After not getting a full contract there, he played for second-tier clubs like FC Omniworld and De Graafschap. In 2009, he joined Heerenveen. His great playing at Heerenveen helped him get noticed by the Morocco national team. It also caught the eye of bigger football clubs in Europe.
In August 2012, Assaidi signed with the English Premier League team Liverpool. He moved for about £2.4 million. However, he found it hard to get a regular spot in Liverpool's main team. He then went on loan to Stoke City for the 2013–14 and 2014–15 seasons. In January 2015, he was sold to Al-Ahli Dubai.
Assaidi played for the Morocco national team from 2011. He represented his country in the Africa Cup of Nations in 2012 and 2013.
Contents
Oussama Assaidi's Football Journey
Starting Out in the Netherlands
Oussama Assaidi was born in Beni-Boughafer, Morocco. His family later moved to Amsterdam, Netherlands. He began his football training at the AZ academy. He spent three years there.
In 2006, he started his professional career at Omniworld. This club played in the Eerste Divisie, which is the second-highest league in Dutch football. He played two seasons with Omniworld, scoring 3 goals in 36 games.
In the summer of 2008, he moved to De Graafschap. This team played in the Eredivisie, the top Dutch football league. Assaidi stayed there for only one year.
Playing for Heerenveen
On the last day of the transfer window, Assaidi made a surprising move to Heerenveen. Heerenveen had not planned to buy new players. But Assaidi had scored five goals in five games at the start of the 2009–10 season. This impressive start made Heerenveen decide to sign him.
Assaidi played his first game for Heerenveen in a 1–0 loss against Groningen. He came into the game as a substitute. He scored his first goal for Heerenveen in a cup match, a 7–0 win against SDC Putten.
Under a new manager, Ron Jans, Assaidi became a very important player for Heerenveen. In November 2010, he had a fantastic month. He scored a goal against Excelsior and helped set up many goals for his teammates.
In December, Assaidi played an amazing game against the champions, Twente. Even with an ankle injury, he helped Heerenveen win 6–2. He scored three goals, which is called a hat-trick. He also helped create two other goals. His manager praised him highly for this performance. Because of his great playing, he was called up to play for the Morocco national team for the first time.
Time at Liverpool
On August 17, 2012, Liverpool in the English Premier League signed Assaidi. The fee was around £2.4 million. Liverpool's manager, Brendan Rodgers, was very happy about the deal. He called Assaidi an "exciting player" who would thrill the fans.
Assaidi played his first game for Liverpool on September 20. It was a 5–3 win against Young Boys in the UEFA Europa League. He also helped set up a goal in a 2–1 win against West Bromwich Albion in the League Cup.
However, other young wingers like Raheem Sterling and Suso were playing very well. This made it hard for Assaidi to get a regular spot in Liverpool's starting team. He played only 12 games in the 2012–13 season, with only four of those in the league.
Loan Spells at Stoke City
On August 27, 2013, Assaidi joined Stoke City on loan for the 2013–14 season. He said he chose Stoke because he had good talks with their manager, Mark Hughes. He played his first game for Stoke in a 3–1 win against Walsall.
Assaidi scored his first goal for Stoke in a League Cup match against Birmingham City in October 2013. On December 7, he scored the winning goal in a 3–2 victory against Chelsea. This was Stoke's first league win over Chelsea since 1975. He scored similar goals against Newcastle United and Everton too.
In February, Assaidi got an injury during a training camp. This kept him out of action for about six weeks. When he returned, he scored in a 4–1 win against Fulham. Stoke's manager, Mark Hughes, wanted to sign Assaidi permanently. However, Liverpool's asking price was too high for Stoke.
On September 1, 2014, Assaidi returned to Stoke City for another loan spell for the 2014–15 season. He played 11 games for Stoke before Liverpool called him back in January 2015.
Moving to Al-Ahli Dubai
After returning to Liverpool, Assaidi was sold to UAE Arabian Gulf League team Al-Ahli Dubai. The transfer fee was reported to be around £4.7 million. He played 14 games in the 2015 AFC Champions League. His team reached the final but lost 1–0.
On November 15, 2016, Assaidi left Al-Ahli Dubai. He later said that he only joined the club for the salary. He also mentioned that he was ready to return to the Premier League.
Twente and Retirement
On December 24, 2016, Assaidi went back to the Dutch Eredivisie. He signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with Twente.
Assaidi left Twente at the end of the 2018–19 season. After his football career, he opened his own sports gym in Morocco called "PlayersHome" with Kamal El Makrini.
Playing for His Country: Morocco
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Oussama Assaidi could have chosen to play for either the Netherlands or Morocco. In February 2011, Morocco's coach, Eric Gerets, invited him to play for Morocco in a friendly match against Niger.
Assaidi made his debut for Morocco in their 4–0 win over Niger. He came on as a substitute in the 77th minute. Since it was a friendly game, he could still have chosen to play for the Netherlands. However, on February 14, 2011, he announced that his choice to play for Morocco was final.
Assaidi scored his first goal for Morocco on June 4, 2011. It was in a 4–0 win against Algeria during a qualifier for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations. He played in the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations tournament. He started Morocco's first game, but they lost 2–1 to Tunisia. Morocco was eliminated from the group stage.
He also played in the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations. His team faced the same result and was eliminated early. On November 16, 2014, Assaidi scored his second international goal. It was a long-range goal in a 2–1 friendly win against Zimbabwe.
Images for kids
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Assaidi playing for Morocco in 2011
See also
In Spanish: Oussama Assaidi para niños
