Mbark_Boussoufa
Mbark Boussoufa
Moroccan footballer (born 1984)
Moubarak "Mbark" Boussoufa (Arabic: مُبارك بوصوفة; born 15 August 1984) is a former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or winger. He won the Belgian Golden Shoe in 2006 and 2010.[3] Born in the Netherlands, he played for the Morocco national team from 2006 to 2019 making 70 appearances and scoring eight goals.
|
Boussoufa with Morocco in 2018 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Mbark Boussoufa[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1984-08-15) 15 August 1984 (age 39) | ||
| Place of birth | Amsterdam, Netherlands | ||
| Height | 1.67 m (5 ft 6 in)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Attacking midfielder, winger | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1994–1995 | Middenmeer | ||
| 1995–1996 | Fortius | ||
| 1996–2001 | Ajax | ||
| 2001–2004 | Chelsea | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2004–2006 | Gent | 59 | (14) |
| 2006–2011 | Anderlecht | 137 | (43) |
| 2011–2013 | Anzhi Makhachkala | 55 | (8) |
| 2013–2016 | Lokomotiv Moscow | 39 | (3) |
| 2016 | → Gent (loan) | 5 | (2) |
| 2016–2018 | Al Jazira | 37 | (7) |
| 2019 | Al-Shabab | 13 | (1) |
| 2019–2020 | Al-Sailiya | 15 | (3) |
| Total | 360 | (81) | |
| International career | |||
| 2006–2019 | Morocco | 70 | (8) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
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Boussoufa started off at the youth academy of Ajax before joining Chelsea F.C. He spent the 2005–06 season with K.A.A. Gent, winning several prizes in 2006: Belgian Golden Shoe, Belgian Footballer of the Year, Belgian Young Footballer of the Year and Belgian Ebony Shoe.
In June 2006, Boussoufa signed a four-year contract with R.S.C. Anderlecht after a €3.5 million transfer.[4] In his first season he was a regular in the title-clinching squad. He became a key player for the team that finished second in both the 2007–2008 and the 2008–09 seasons. Boussoufa was named Belgian Footballer of the Year for a second time after the 2008–09 season in which Anderlecht barely missed out on the title, losing the Championship play-off against Standard de Liège. The next year, he managed 14 goals and 24 assists which made him the most valuable player in Anderlecht's championship-winning squad. He was named Belgian Footballer of the Year for a second consecutive time and the third time overall. After the season, he renewed his contract with a significant raise, making him the best paid footballer in Belgium.[5] He won the Belgian Golden Shoe for the second time in 2010.[3]
In March 2011, Russian side FC Terek Grozny announced his signing,[6] but his transfer fell through three days later. Instead, Boussoufa signed for another Russian team, Anzhi Makhachkala.[7]
Boussoufa signed a three-year contract with FC Lokomotiv Moscow in August 2013.[8] With Lokomotiv he won the 2015 Russian Cup, scoring the second goal as they beat Kuban Krasnodar 3–1 after extra time in the final.[9] He returned to K.A.A. Gent on loan from in February 2016.[10]
In July 2016, Boussoufa signed a two-year contract with UAE club Al Jazira.[11] He made 16 appearances and scored three times as Al-Jazira went on to win the 2016-17 UAE Arabian Gulf League.[12][13]
On 3 January 2019, Boussoufa signed a contract until the end season with Saudi club Al-Shabab.[14]
Eligible to play for both Morocco and The Netherlands, Boussoufa chose to represent Morocco and made his international debut against the USA on 23 May 2006.
Boussoufa has represented Morocco at Africa Cup of Nations tournaments; in 2012, 2017 and 2019.
In May 2018, he was named in Morocco's 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.[15]
On 5 July 2019, Boussoufa announced his retirement after Morocco's loss against Benin in the round of 16, 4–1 in penalties (following a 1–1 draw), in the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.[16]
Club
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Gent | 2004–05 | Belgian First Division | 29 | 5 | 3 | 0 | – | – | 32 | 5 | ||
| 2005–06 | 28 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 1 | – | 38 | 11 | |||
| 2006–07 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | 4 | 0 | |||
| Total | 59 | 14 | 7 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 74 | 16 | ||
| Anderlecht | 2006–07 | Belgian First Division | 33 | 8 | 7 | 2 | 6 | 0 | – | 46 | 10 | |
| 2007–08 | 22 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 0 | – | 35 | 8 | |||
| 2008–09 | 33 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 39 | 11 | ||
| 2009–10 | 26 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 13 | 3 | 10 | 5 | 53 | 18 | ||
| 2010–11 | 23 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 1 | – | 35 | 11 | |||
| Total | 137 | 43 | 23 | 6 | 36 | 4 | 12 | 5 | 208 | 58 | ||
| Anzhi | 2011–12[17][18] | Russian Premier League | 25 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 3 | 39 | 7 |
| 2012–13[17] | 26 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 14 | 2 | – | 44 | 6 | |||
| 2013–14[17] | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 4 | 0 | |||
| Total | 55 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 13 | 3 | 87 | 13 | ||
| Lokomotiv Moscow | 2013–14[17] | Russian Premier League | 21 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 21 | 2 | |
| 2014–15[17] | 17 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | – | 21 | 4 | |||
| 2015–16[17] | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 1 | 0 | |||
| Total | 39 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 6 | ||
| Gent | 2015–16[18] | Belgian Pro League | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 2 |
| Al Jazira | 2016–17[17] | UAE Pro-League | 21 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | 29 | 8 |
| 2017–18[17] | 16 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 5[lower-alpha 2] | 0 | 31 | 3 | ||
| Total | 37 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 11 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 60 | 11 | ||
| Al-Shabab | 2018–19[17] | Saudi Pro League | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 1 |
| Al-Sailiya | 2019–20[17] | Qatar Stars League | 15 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 3 | ||
| Career total | 360 | 81 | 45 | 13 | 77 | 8 | 31 | 8 | 512 | 110 | ||
- Appearance in UAE Super Cup
- One appearance in UAE Super Cup, four appearances in FIFA Club World Cup
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Morocco | 2006 | 5 | 1 |
| 2007 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2008 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2009 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2010 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2011 | 7 | 3 | |
| 2012 | 5 | 1 | |
| 2013 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2014 | 5 | 1 | |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 13 | 1 | |
| 2018 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 7 | 1 | |
| Total | 70 | 8 | |
- Scores and results list Morocco's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Boussoufa goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 September 2006 | Stade Moulay Abdellah, Rabat, Morocco |  Malawi |
2–0 | 2–0 | 2008 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 2 | 9 February 2011 | Stade de Marrakech, Marrakech, Morocco |  Niger |
1–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 3 | 2–0 | |||||
| 4 | 9 October 2011 | Stade de Marrakech, Marrakech, Morocco |  Tanzania |
3–1 | 3–1 | 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 5 | 29 February 2012 | Stade de Marrakech, Marrakech, Morocco |  Burkina Faso |
1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 6 | 13 October 2014 | Stade de Marrakech, Marrakech, Morocco |  Kenya |
2–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 7 | 31 May 2017 | Stade Adrar, Agadir, Morocco |  Netherlands |
1–2 | 1–2 | Friendly |
| 8 | 1 July 2019 | Al Salam Stadium, Cairo, Egypt |  South Africa |
1–0 | 1–0 | 2019 Africa Cup of Nations |
Anderlecht[20]
Anzhi Makhachkala
- Russian Cup runners-up: 2012–13
Lokomotiv Moscow
- Russian Cup: 2014–15
Al Jazira
Individual
- Best Gent player of the Season: 2005–06[21]
- Belgian Young Professional Footballer of the Year: 2005–06[22]
- Belgian Professional Footballer of the Year: 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10[22]
- Man of the Season (Belgian First Division): 2005–06[23]
- Best africain player in Belgium: 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10[24]
- Belgian Golden Shoe: 2006, 2010[25]
- Belgian Lion Award: 2010, 2011
- "FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2017: List of Players: Al Jazira" (PDF). FIFA. 29 November 2017. p. 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 December 2017.
- "2018 FIFA World Cup Russia – List of Players" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 4 June 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 June 2018. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
- "Mbark Boussoufa wins Golden Shoe 2010" Archived 21 January 2011 at the Wayback Machine (Dutch), Sporza, 19 January 2011
- "Boussoufa finalises switch to Anderlecht" Archived 16 September 2016 at the Wayback Machine by Fahd Chafik, Morocco Times, 7 June 2006, retrieved 11 June 2006
- "Boussoufa: Did Herman drink too much champagne?" (Dutch), Sporza, 27 April 2010
- Мбарк Буссуфа перешел в "Терек". (in Russian). FC Terek Grozny. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
- "Boussoufa moves to Anzhi, not to Grozny" (in Dutch). sporza.be. Archived from the original on 12 March 2011. Retrieved 10 March 2011.
- "Mbark Boussoufa in Loko!" (in Russian). fclm.ru. Archived from the original on 20 August 2013. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
- uefa.com (21 May 2015). "Member associations - Russia - News – UEFA.com". UEFA.com. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
- "Welcome back Mbark!" (in Dutch). K.A.A. Gent. 2 February 2016. Archived from the original on 4 February 2016.
- Ten Cate krijgt bij Al-Jazira beschikking over Boussoufa - Voetbal International (in Dutch)
- Studios, XS. "Stats - Arabian Gulf League - UAE Pro League Committee". uae.agleague.ae. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
- Studios, XS. "UAE Pro League Committee". uae.agleague.ae. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
- "Moroccan international footballer Mbark Boussoufa joins Saudi club Al Shabab". yabiladi.com. 4 January 2019. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
- Gleeson, Mark (17 May 2018). "Boufal left out by Morocco after Southampton fallout". Reuters. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
- "Africa Cup of Nations: Mbark Boussoufa retires from internationals after Morocco exit". BBC News. 6 July 2019.
- Mbark Boussoufa at Soccerway
- "Moubarak Boussoufa » Club matches". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
- Mbark Boussoufa at National-Football-Teams.com
- "Erelijst Trofee Jean-Claude Bouvy". Het Nieuwsblad (in Flemish). Retrieved 8 November 2020.
- "Ebbenhouten schoen". Malinwa Statistics (in Dutch). 28 November 2011. Retrieved 8 November 2020.
- Profile on Anzhi Makhachkala official website
- Mbark Boussoufa at National-Football-Teams.com
- Mbark Boussoufa at Soccerway
- Boussoufa named as Belgium's finest By Berend Scholten @ UEFA.com Boussoufa named as Belgium's finest By Berend Scholten @ UEFA.com