Moussa_Marega

Moussa Marega

Moussa Marega

Malian footballer (born 1991)

Moussa Marega (born 14 April 1991) is a professional footballer who plays as a second striker for UAE Pro League club Sharjah. Born in France, he plays for the Mali national team.

Quick Facts Personal information, Full name ...

He began his career in France, playing no higher than the Championnat National. After one year with Espérance in Tunisia, he moved to Marítimo of the Primeira Liga in 2015. Shortly afterwards, he signed for Porto. After spending 2016–17 on loan at Vitória de Guimarães, he became a regular in the Porto side and won two league titles in four years. In 2021, he signed with Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal, where he won the AFC Champions League in his first year.

Marega made his international debut for Mali in 2015, and was part of their squad at the Africa Cup of Nations in 2017 and 2019.

Club career

Early career

Born in Les Ulis, Essonne, to Malian parents, Marega began his career at Évry FC, before moving to Vendée Poiré-sur-Vie Football of the Championnat National in 2012, and fellow league team Amiens a year later. He spent the second half of 2014 in ES Tunis,[3] but could not make a single appearance due to bureaucratic problems.[4]

He subsequently moved to Marítimo in Portugal's Primeira Liga in January 2015. In November 2015, he was sent off in a 1–0 loss at Amarante with two yellow cards and then gestured at the bench; he was suspended from training with the club as a result.[5]

Porto

Both Marega and Marítimo goalkeeper José Sá were on the cusp of a move to Sporting CP in January 2016, but FC Porto signed the pair on contracts lasting to 2020; Marega's buyout clause was set at €40 million.[6] He made 13 appearances in his first campaign at the Estádio do Dragão – mostly as a substitute – and scored once in a 2–0 home win over Gil Vicente in the Taça da Liga on 2 March.[7] His early poor performances drew vocal criticism from some Porto fans, and he took training from a friend on how to become mentally resilient.[4]

On 20 July 2016, Marega was loaned to Vitória de Guimarães for the upcoming season.[8] He made his debut a month later in a 2–0 win against his former team, Marítimo, scoring the second goal,[9] and on 30 October, he scored all three goals in a 3–0 win against Rio Ave to reach 10 goals from 8 games.[10] On 4 November, he received a straight red card in the first half-hour of a 2–1 home win over Nacional for striking Nuno Sequeira, receiving a three-match ban.[11]

Marega against Lokomotiv Moscow in October 2018

On his return to Porto, Marega scored twice in the opening game of the 2017–18 season, a 4–0 home win over Estoril, as a first-half substitute for Tiquinho.[12] He was part of a three-pronged attack made of African players, alongside the Cameroonian Vincent Aboubakar and the Algerian Yacine Brahimi.[13] He scored 14 league goals in 14 starts, and reportedly began to attract the interest of Premier League sides Manchester United and Chelsea in January 2018.[14] Porto won the league for the first time in five years and Marega was their top scorer (third overall behind Jonas and Bas Dost) with 22 goals.[15]

In November 2018, Marega was awarded the Dragão de Ouro (Golden Dragon) as Porto's best player of the calendar year.[16] Having not previously scored in a European match, Marega scored a goal in six consecutive appearances in the 2018–19 UEFA Champions League, starting with a goal in 1–0 win over Galatasaray,[17] and ending with one in a 3–1 win over Roma, that put Porto in the quarter-finals for the first time in four years.[18]

On 16 February 2020, after scoring the winning goal on his return to Vitória, Marega gave the middle finger to the home fans who had been racially abusing him. The insults continued after this incident and in response, he walked out of the game, and was subsequently substituted.[19] His reaction to the abuse was praised by the Portuguese press, with A Bola newspaper giving Marega a perfect 10 rating in its player ratings.[20] He scored in a 2–0 home win over Sporting on 15 July that year, as his team won the title with two games left to play.[21] On 17 February 2021, he scored a goal in a 2–1 win over Juventus in the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League round of 16.[22]

Al-Hilal

On 10 May 2021, Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal announced the signing of Marega on a three-year contract as a free transfer, with a salary of €5 million per year.[23] He won the AFC Champions League in his first year, with a goal in the semi-final 2–1 win at compatriots Al Nassr,[24] followed by one in the 2–0 final victory over South Korea's Pohang Steelers.[25]

At the 2022 FIFA Club World Cup, held the following February in Morocco, Marega scored in the final, a 5–3 loss to Real Madrid.[26]

Sharjah

On 8 September 2023, Marega joined UAE Pro League club Sharjah.[27]

International career

Marega made his debut for the Mali national team on 25 March 2015, in a friendly against Gabon in Beauvais, France; he started in the 4–3 defeat. On 4 September 2016, he scored his first international goal in a 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification game against Benin, helping towards a 5–2 win at the Stade du 26 Mars.[28]

In January 2017, he was called up for Mali's squad at the final tournament in Gabon.[29] In the Eagles' opening game against Egypt in Port-Gentil, he was named man of the match in a goalless draw.[30] He also started the other two games of the group stage elimination.

Marega was also called up for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.[31] He scored in their opening game, a 4–1 win over Mauritania, as they made the last 16.[32] Having not played since the 2019 edition, Marega was not called up for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon.[33]

Personal life

Marega is a practising Muslim and moved to Saudi Arabia for reasons of faith.[34] He became father to a son in 2017.[35]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 27 January 2024[36][37]
More information Club, Season ...
  1. Includes Coupe de France, Taça de Portugal, King Cup
  2. Includes Taça da Liga
  3. Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. Appearances in UEFA Champions League
  5. Two appearances in UEFA Champions League, seven appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa League
  6. Appearance in Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira
  7. Appearances in AFC Champions League
  8. One appearance in Saudi Super Cup, three appearances and one goal in FIFA Club World Cup

International

As of 15 July 2019[38]
More information National team, Year ...
Scores and results list Mali's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Marega goal.[38]
More information No., Date ...

Honours

Porto

Al Hilal

Individual

References

  1. [1]
    "Mali" (PDF). Confederation of African Football. 15 June 2019. p. 14. Retrieved 16 August 2019.
  2. [2]
    "FIFA Club World Cup Morocco 2022™: List of Players: Al Hilal SFC" (PDF). FIFA. 7 February 2023. p. 2. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 February 2023. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  3. [3]
    Chachois, Alexandre (20 June 2014). "Amiens : Moussa Marega file en Tunisie" [Amiens: Moussa Marega heads off to Tunisia] (in French). Foot National. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  4. [4]
    Nogueira, Carlos (1 May 2018). "O caminho tortuoso de Marega até se tornar herói do dragão" [Marega's torturous path to becoming Dragon hero]. Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese). Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  5. [5]
    "Marítimo suspende Moussa Marega" [Marítimo suspend Moussa Marega]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). 25 November 2015. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  6. [6]
    "FC Porto paga cinco milhões e desvia Marega e José Sá de Alvalade" [FC Porto pay five million and lure Marega and José Sá from the Alvalade] (in Portuguese). Diário de Notícias. 26 January 2016. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
  7. [7]
    "ALL SET FOR JAMOR". FC Porto. 2 March 2016. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  8. [8]
    "Marega assina pelo Vitória de Guimarães" [Marega signs for Vitória de Guimarães] (in Portuguese). O Jogo. 20 July 2016. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  9. [9]
    "Vitória de Guimarães bate Marítimo no Funchal por 2-0" [Vitória de Guimarães beat Marítimo 2–0 in Funchal] (in Portuguese). SAPO. 20 August 2016. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  10. [10]
    "Moussa Marega, l'Aigle qui survole le Portugal" [Moussa Marega, the Eagle who soars over Portugal] (in French). RFI. 31 October 2016. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  11. [11]
    "CD MANTÉM CASTIGO DE TRÊS JOGOS A MAREGA" [CD PUNISH MAREGA FOR THREE GAMES] (in Portuguese). Record. 23 November 2016. Retrieved 3 December 2016.
  12. [12]
    "Marega só precisou de meia hora para bisar frente ao Estoril" [Marega only needed half an hour to score twice against Estoril]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). 9 August 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2017.
  13. [13]
    Chukwu, Solace (1 November 2017). "The three-headed Dragon: Brahimi, Marega, Aboubakar powering Porto". Goal.com. Retrieved 10 December 2017.
  14. [14]
    "Who is Moussa Marega? Meet the €40m Porto striker attracting interest from Man Utd and Chelsea". Goal.com. 11 January 2018. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  15. [15]
    "A Bola de Prata - 2017/2018". A Bola (in Portuguese). Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  16. [16]
    "Marega recebe Dragão de Ouro: "Para terminar, não tenho uma barriga grande"" [Marega receives Dragão de Ouro: "To conclude, I don't have a big belly"]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). 21 November 2018. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  17. [17]
    "Porto 1–0 Galatasaray". UEFA. 3 October 2018.
  18. [18]
    "Porto 3-1 Roma: Champions League at a glance". UEFA. 6 March 2019. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  19. [19]
    "Porto's Moussa Marega gives Vitoria fans finger after apparent racist abuse". The Guardian. 16 February 2020. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
  20. [20]
    "Mousa Marega handed perfect 10 rating by A Bola as Porto star hailed for racism stand". The Mirror. 17 February 2020.
  21. [21]
    "Juventus held by Sassuolo in thriller, Porto win Primeira Liga title". The Guardian. Reuters. 16 July 2020. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  22. [22]
    "Porto 2–1 Juventus". UEFA. 17 February 2021.
  23. [23]
    Soliman, Seif (10 May 2021). "OFFICIAL: Al Hilal sign Mali striker Marega from FC Porto". KingFut. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  24. [24]
    "Saudi football titans Al-Hilal squeeze past Al-Nassr to reach AFC Champions League final". Al Araby. 20 October 2021. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  25. [25]
    "Asian Champions League: Al Hilal cement place as 'best team' in region after beating Pohang Steelers to claim record fourth title". South China Morning Post. 24 November 2021. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  26. [26]
    Lewis, Aimee (12 February 2023). "Real Madrid wins Club World Cup after eight-goal thriller in Morocco". CNN. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
  27. [27]
    "OFFICIAL: Sharjah FC beat Mosimane's Al-Wahda to signing of Moussa Marega". KingFut. 9 September 2023.
  28. [28]
    "Marega, Moussa". National Football teams. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  29. [29]
    Teye, Prince Narkortu (5 January 2017). "Mali announce final squad for Afcon 2017". Goal.com. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  30. [30]
    "Total Man of the Match". CAF. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  31. [31]
    Barrie, Mohamed Fajah (1 June 2019). "Africa Cup of Nations: Mali goalkeeper Samassa clarifies absence from squad". BBC Sport. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
  32. [32]
    "Mali thrash Mauritania, Angola and Tunisia draw, Ivory Coast off to winning start". France 24. 25 June 2019. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
  33. [33]
    Rossi, Tom (25 December 2021). "CAN 2021: la liste des Aigles du Mali avec le retour d'Yves Bissouma" [2021 ACN: the Mali Eagles' squad with the return of Yves Bissouma] (in French). Radio France Internationale. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  34. [34]
    "Marega elogia FC Porto e diz: "Queríamos viver noutro lugar, sobretudo num país islâmico"" [Marega praises FC Porto and says: "We wanted to live somewhere else, especially in an Islamic country"]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). 26 July 2021. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  35. [35]
    ""Dia mais feliz da minha vida", diz Marega" ["Happiest day of my life", says Marega]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). 15 July 2017. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  36. [36]
    "Marega". ForaDeJogo. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
  37. [37]
    Moussa Marega at Soccerway. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
  38. [38]
    "Moussa Marega". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  39. [39]
    "Porto break Benfica dominance in Portugal to win first league title since 2013 and have a massive party". Talksport. 7 May 2018. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  40. [40]
    "Porto defeat Benfica to win 17th Portuguese Cup". Yahoo!. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  41. [41]
    Ribeiro, Patrick (23 December 2020). "FC Porto claim Super Cup joy over rivals Benfica". PortuGOAL. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
  42. [42]
    "Al Hilal power past Pohang Steelers to create history". Asian Football Confederation. 23 November 2021. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
  43. [43]
    Sharma, Rohan (11 January 2023). "Real Madrid vs Al-Hilal 5–3: Club World Cup 2022 – as it happened". Aljazeera. Retrieved 13 January 2023.
  44. [44]
    "FC Porto lidera Onze do Ano". Liga Portugal. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
  45. [45]
    "Vencedores dos prémios mensais da Liga Portugal 2017–18". Liga Portugal. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
  46. [46]
    "Jonas e Rui Costa eleitos "Jogador do Mês" de dezembro". Liga Portugal. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
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