Youssef El-Arabi

Youssef El-Arabi (Arabic: يوسف العربي; born 3 February 1987) is a professional footballer who plays as a striker for Greek Super League club Olympiacos and the Morocco national team.[1]

Youssef El-Arabi
El-Arabi with Caen in 2010
Personal information
Full name Youssef El-Arabi
Date of birth (1987-02-03) 3 February 1987
Place of birth Caen, France
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Striker
Team information
Current team
 Olympiacos
Number 11
Youth career
2001–2002 Caen
2002–2004 SC Hérouville Football
2004–2007 USON Mondeville
2007–2009 Caen
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2008–2011 Caen 75 (28)
2011–2012 Al-Hilal 21 (12)
2012–2016 Granada 130 (44)
2016–2019 Al-Duhail 60 (76)
2019– Olympiacos 138 (65)
International career‡
2010– Morocco 46 (16)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 31 August 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 30 March 2021

He began his career with hometown club Caen in Ligue 1, making his debut in 2008. After a season in Saudi Arabia with Al Hilal he signed for La Liga club Granada for a club record €5 million in 2012. He scored 45 goals in 134 official games before leaving for Al-Duhail in 2016. In three years in the Qatar Stars League, he was top scorer twice, and totalled 102 goals in 89 games across all competitions before returning to Europe with Olympiacos.[2]

Born in France, El-Arabi chose to represent Morocco at international level, making his debut in 2010. He represented them at three Africa Cup of Nations tournaments.

Club career

Caen/Al-Hilal

On 20 December 2008, El-Arabi made his debut for Caen, coming on as a substitute in the 76th minute against Lyon in Ligue 1. He played 2 more games that season (coming on in both as a substitute), and scored no goals (2008–09). The following season (2009–10) saw El-Arabi score 11 goals in 34 games (he came on in 11 of these games as a substitute) for Caen, as well as claiming eight assists, in Ligue 2. This season (2010–11) has seen El-Arabi score 17 goals in 38 games for Caen, as well as claiming five assists, in Ligue 1. After rejecting bids from Sevilla FC and Genoa C.F.C, he eventually signed for Al-Hilal FC in July 2011 on a four-year contract.

Granada

On 19 July 2012, El-Arabi returned to Europe, signing a five-year contract for La Liga club Granada for a club record €5 million fee.[3] He made his debut on 20 August, starting as the season began with a 1–0 loss at Rayo Vallecano. His first goal was scored on 7 October, a penalty to open a 2–1 win at Mallorca,[4] and his total of eight goals in 31 games helped his side avoid relegation.

He scored 12 times in his second season at the Estadio Nuevo Los Carmenes, including his first La Liga hat-trick, all three goals in a 3–1 win over rivals Málaga on 8 November 2013.[5] At the end of the season, he was nominated for the Best African player at the LFP Awards, losing out to teammate Yacine Brahimi.[6]

On 4 October 2014, El-Arabi scored in the first minute against Málaga, albeit in a 2–1 away loss.[7] He put the side ahead with a penalty at Levante the following 23 February but was later sent off for scrapping with Iván Ramis in a loss by the same score.[8] Granada avoided relegation on goal difference.

In his final season at Granada, El-Arabi scored 17 times in 38 games, including a hat-trick in a 5–1 win over Levante on 21 April 2016.[9]

Al-Duhail

On 18 July 2016, El-Arabi signed for Lekhwiya SC of the Qatar Stars League.[10] He made his debut on 17 September, scoring the opening goal of a 4–0 home win over Muaither. His 24 goals in 18 games made him joint top scorer for the season alongside Al Sadd's Baghdad Bounedjah, while Lekhwiya won the title.

On 11 December 2017, El-Arabi scored six goals in one match for the renamed Al-Duhail in an 8–0 QSL Cup group stage win at Al-Khor.[11] His team retained their league title, and he was again top scorer, with 26 goals in 20 games, one more than his teammate Youssef Msakni.[12]

Olympiacos

On 6 July 2019, El-Arabi signed a three-year contract with Greek side Olympiacos, returning to Europe after three years in Qatar.[13] He made his Super League Greece debut on 24 August, scoring the only goal of a home win over Asteras Tripoli through a 7th-minute penalty.[14] Three days later, he scored both goals of a 2–1 win at FC Krasnodar in a Champions League play-off second leg match, putting the Piraeus-based team through 6–1 on aggregate.[15]

El-Arabi scored his first Champions League goal on 22 October 2019 in a 2–3 loss against Bayern Munich.[16] On 11 December 2019, El Arabi scored the only goal with a late penalty against Red Star Belgrade in their final Champions League Group B game, to book a place in the Europa League at the expense of the Serbians.[17][18] The following 12 January 2020, he scored a hat-trick in a 4–0 away win over Lamia.[19]

On 27 February 2020, Olympiacos played their second leg of the Round of 32 at the Emirates Stadium, and El-Arabi scored a goal at the 119th minute of extra time to knock Arsenal out of the UEFA Europa League on away goals.[20] He scored on 28 June as they won 2–1 at AEK to secure a 45th league title, the first in three years.[21]

In 2020–21, El-Arabi was top scorer with 22 goals as Olympiacos retained the title.[22] On 4 November 2021, in a 2–1 Europa League loss UEFA Europa League to Eintracht Frankfurt, he surpassed Predrag Đorđević and Kostas Mitroglou as the club's top European scorer with 16 goals, doing so in 33 games.[23] On 15 December, he scored a hat trick in a 3–0 home win against Atromitos F.C. to reach 50 goals in 81 league appearances; his fourth hat-trick put him equal with Giovanni, having done so in fewer games than the Brazilian's 111.[24][25][26]

International career

On 5 September 2010, El-Arabi made his debut for the Morocco national football team, coming on as a substitute in the 65th minute for Mounir El-Hamdaoui against the Central African Republic. He followed this up with games against Tanzania and Northern Ireland, coming on as a substitute in both games.

Manager Eric Gerets named El-Arabi among the 23 players for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations, where he started and played as a substitute for one game each of a group-stage exit.[27] On 13 October that year, he scored and provided an assist in a 4–0 home win over Mozambique as the Atlas Lions overturned a first-leg deficit to reach the 2013 edition;[28] in another group exit in South Africa, he scored the equaliser in a draw with Cape Verde.[29]

On 29 March 2016, El-Arabi scored both goals in a 2–0 win over the same opponents at the Stade de Marrakech to qualify for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations.[30] Hervé Renard called him up for the finals in Gabon, where he made only an 11-minute substitute appearance in a run to the quarter-finals.[31] He was a noted omission from the French manager's squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.[32]

Career statistics

Club
As of match played 31 August 2023[33]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[lower-alpha 1] League cup[lower-alpha 2] Continental Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Caen 2008–09 Ligue 1 300000–30
2009–10 Ligue 2 34113200–3713
2010–11 Ligue 1 38171000–3917
Total 75284200–7930
Al-Hilal 2011–12 Saudi Professional League 211240106[lower-alpha 3]43216
Granada 2012–13 La Liga 31810––328
2013–14 361200––3612
2014–15 28800––288
2015–16 351631––3817
Total 1304441––13445
Al Duhail 2016–17 Qatar Stars League 182411004[lower-alpha 3]32328
2017–18 202653379[lower-alpha 3]93745
2018–19 222611636[lower-alpha 3]43534
Total 607675910191695107
Olympiacos 2019–20 Super League Greece 342040–13[lower-alpha 4]75127
2020–21 332252–11[lower-alpha 5]44928
2021–22 341642–13[lower-alpha 6]55123
2022–23 34662–924910
2023–24 3100–4[lower-alpha 7]071
Total 13865196–501820789
Career total 424225381410107538547287
  1. Includes Coupe de France, King Cup, Emir of Qatar Cup, Copa del Rey, Greek Cup
  2. Includes Saudi Crown Prince Cup, Qatari Stars Cup
  3. Appearances in AFC Champions League
  4. Nine appearances and five goals in UEFA Champions League, four appearances and two goals in UEFA Europa League
  5. Seven appearances and one goal in UEFA Champions League, four appearances and three goals in UEFA Europa League
  6. Three appearances and one goal in UEFA Champions League, seven appearances and four goals in UEFA Europa League
  7. Appearances in UEFA Europa League

International
Scores and results list Morocco's goal tally first.[34]
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1.10 August 2011Stade Demba Diop, Dakar, Senegal Senegal2–02–0Friendly
2.29 February 2012Stade de Marrakech, Marrakesh, Morocco Burkina Faso2–02–0
3.13 October 2012 Mozambique3–04–02013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
4.23 January 2013Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban, South Africa Cape Verde1–11–12013 Africa Cup of Nations
5.24 March 2013Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Tanzania3–13–12014 FIFA World Cup qualification
6.8 June 2013Stade de Marrakech, Marrakesh, Morocco2–02–1
7.7 September 2013Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny, Abidjan, Ivory Coast Ivory Coast1–01–1
8.5 March 2014Stade de Marrakech, Marrakesh, Morocco Gabon1–01–1Friendly
9.23 May 2014Estádio de São Luís, Faro, Portugal Mozambique2–04–0
10.4–0
11.5 September 2015Estádio Nacional 12 de Julho, Sao Tomé, Sao Tomé & Principé São Tomé and Príncipe2–03–02017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
12.12 November 2015Stade Adrar, Agadir, Morocco Equatorial Guinea1–02–02018 FIFA World Cup qualification
13.26 March 2016Estádio Nacional de Cabo Verde, Praia, Cape Verde Cape Verde1–01–02017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
14.29 March 2016Stade de Marrakech, Marrakech, Morocco1–02–0
15.2–0
16.9 October 2020Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat, Morocco Senegal3–03–1Friendly

Honours

Caen

Al Hilal

Al Duhail

Olympiacos

Individual

Records

References
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