Kassem El Zein

Kassem Mohammed El Zein (Arabic: قاسم محمد الزين, Lebanese Arabic pronunciation: [ˈʔæːsim mˈħammad zˈzeːn]; born 2 December 1990) is a Lebanese footballer who plays as a defender for Lebanese Premier League club Nejmeh and the Lebanon national team.[3]

In this Lebanese name, the father's name is Mohammed and the family name is El Zein.
Kassem El Zein
El Zein with Nejmeh in 2019
Personal information
Full name Kassem Mohammed El Zein[1]
Date of birth (1990-12-02) 2 December 1990
Place of birth Maarakeh, Lebanon[1]
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[2]
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 Nejmeh
Number 18
Youth career
Nejmeh
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2011– Nejmeh 111 (5)
2020 → Al-Mina'a (loan) 4 (0)
2020–2021 → Al-Nasr (loan) 17 (1)
International career‡
2014– Lebanon 34 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:37, 2 September 2021 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 10 September 2023

El Zein began his senior career in 2011 at Nejmeh, playing over 100 league matches. In 2020 he was sent on a loan, to Iraqi club Al-Mina'a and Kuwaiti club Al-Nasr, respectively. El Zein made his international debut for Lebanon in 2014, and was part of the 2019 AFC Asian Cup squad.

Club career

Al-Mina'a

On 28 January 2020, El Zein was sent on a three-month loan to Iraqi Premier League side Al-Mina'a.[4][5] He made his debut on 17 February 2020, in a 1–0 home win over Naft Al-Janoob in the first matchday of the season.[6] El Zein played four league games for Al-Mina'a; however, the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[7]

Al-Nasr

On 18 June 2020, El Zein was sent on a one-year loan to Kuwaiti club Al-Nasr.[8] He made his debut on 16 October, in a 2–1 win against Al-Shabab in the classification league between Kuwait Premier League and Kuwaiti Division One clubs.[9] El Zein helped his side finish first in the qualifying stage.[10][11]

His debut in the 2020–21 Kuwaiti Premier League came on 22 January 2021, in a 1–0 away win against Al-Shabab.[12] El Zein scored a goal on 25 April, helping his side to a 2–1 away win against Al-Fahaheel.[13] He finished the season with 17 league games.[14]

Nejmeh

El Zein returned to Nejmeh for the 2021–22 season. His contract was renewed in 2022.[15]

International career
El Zein training with the Lebanon national team in 2021

El Zein debuted for the Lebanon national team on 14 October 2014, in a friendly against Saudi Arabia.[3] In December 2018, he was called up for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup,[2] where he played a group stage game against Saudi Arabia.[3]

El Zein scored his first international goal against India on 10 September 2023, to help Lebanon finish third in the 2023 King's Cup.[16]

Style of play

Initially starting out as a full-back, El Zein progressed into a centre-back with the years; his main abilities are his tackling and reading of the game.[17]

Personal life

El Zein works as a part-time chef at L'Avenue Du Parc, a restaurant in Beirut.[18] He stated that "while in other countries football can be a full-time job, in Lebanon it’s necessary for a player to have a second job."[18][19]

El Zein's favourite club is Manchester United, while his favourite player is former Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidić.[20]

Career statistics

International
As of match played 19 November 2022[14]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Lebanon 201410
201500
201600
201740
201870
201970
202000
2021100
202230
Total 320
Scores and results list Lebanon's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each El Zein goal.
List of international goals scored by Kassem El Zein
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 10 September 2023 700th Anniversary Stadium, Chiang Mai, Thailand  India 1–0 1–0 2023 King's Cup

Honours

Nejmeh[21]

Individual

References
  1. "Kassem El Zein". Global Sports Archive. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  2. "AC2019 Final Squads". Asian Football Confederation. p. 19. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
  3. "Kassem El Zein". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  4. Lebanon, Football. "الزين إلى الميناء العراقي لمدة 3 أشهر". football-lebanon.com. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
  5. Nehme, Ale (18 February 2020). "Lebanese abroad: winter transfer window summary". FA Lebanon. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  6. "الزين يقود الميناء لفوزه الأول". football-lebanon.com. 17 February 2020. Retrieved 20 February 2020.
  7. "الغاء دوري الكرة الممتاز بتوصيات من خلية الازمة". Almaalomah (in Arabic). 3 June 2020. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  8. "نادي النصر يتعاقد مع قاسم الزين مدافع النجمة اللبناني لمدة موسم على سبيل الاعارة". q8hashtagat.com. 18 June 2020. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
  9. Abou Diab, Rami (19 October 2020). "Lebanese Players Abroad: October 2020, Week 3". FA Lebanon. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
  10. "النصر يقسو على العربي.. والسالمية يكتسح التضامن". كووورة. 26 December 2020. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
  11. Mahfoud, Maroun (1 February 2021). "Lebanese Players Abroad: January 2021, Week 4". FA Lebanon. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
  12. Abou Diab, Rami (25 January 2021). "Lebanese Players Abroad: January 2021, Week 4". FA Lebanon. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
  13. Abou Diab, Rami (27 April 2021). "Lebanon Players Abroad: April 2021, Week 4". FA Lebanon. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  14. "Kassem El Zein". FA Lebanon. Retrieved 19 November 2022.
  15. "رسميا.. النجمة يحسم مصير قاسم الزين". كووورة. 13 June 2022. Retrieved 14 June 2022.
  16. "India lose 0-1 to Lebanon in King's Cup third-place game". The Economic Times. 10 September 2023. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  17. "The final 23: who are they?". Lebanese Football Review. 9 January 2019. Retrieved 26 July 2019.
  18. "Lebanon and Nejmeh player Kassem Zein's second job: Chef of an excellent restaurant in Beirut". @falebanon. 7 October 2019. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  19. اللواء, جريدة. "السلة ليست وحدها!." جريدة اللواء (in Arabic). Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  20. "الزين في حوار لكووورة: منتخب لبنان سيتأثر سلبًا بالتوقف". كووورة. 14 January 2021. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
  21. "Lebanon - Kassem Al Zein - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
  22. "معتوق ومرمر الأفضل هذا الموسم بحسب مهرجان المنار الـ 23". Mulhak (in Arabic). Retrieved 12 June 2019.
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