Wikipedia

Sofiane Feghouli

Sofiane Feghouli (Arabic: سفيان فيغولي; born 26 December 1989) is a professional footballer who plays for the Algeria national team. He mainly operates as a midfielder, but can also play as a winger and as an attacking midfielder.

Sofiane Feghouli
Feghouli playing for Algeria in 2014
Personal information
Full name Sofiane Feghouli[1]
Date of birth (1989-12-26) 26 December 1989 (age 34)
Place of birth Levallois-Perret, France
Height 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)[2]
Position(s) Attacking midfielder
Youth career
1998–2003 Red Star Paris
2003–2004 Paris FC
2004–2007 Grenoble
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2007–2010 Grenoble 60 (3)
2010–2016 Valencia 146 (20)
2011 → Almería (loan) 9 (2)
2016–2017 West Ham United 21 (3)
2017–2022 Galatasaray 125 (25)
2023–2024 Fatih Karagümrük 34 (2)
International career‡
2006–2007 France U18 2 (0)
2008–2010 France U21 3 (0)
2012– Algeria 82 (19)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  Algeria
Africa Cup of Nations
Winner 2019 Egypt
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 25 June 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 20 January 2024

Feghouli made his senior international debut for Algeria in February 2012. He represented Algeria at the 2013, 2015, 2019 and 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (winning the 2019 tournament), as well as the 2014 FIFA World Cup, where he scored Algeria's first goal in the competition since 1986.

Personal life

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Feghouli was born in Levallois-Perret to Algerian parents. His father is from Tiaret, while his mother is from Ghazaouet. He has 4 brothers.[3]

Club career

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Grenoble

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Feghouli began his career with Grenoble, after French team Paris Saint-Germain decided not to sign him after a trial.[4] For the latter portion of the 2006–2007 season, he was promoted to the first-team squad and given the number 33 shirt. He made his highly anticipated debut, at the age of 17, for the club on 27 April 2007 in a Ligue 2 match against Reims, appearing as a substitute. Grenoble won the match 1–0.[5] He made two more appearances that season, including his first start on the final match day of the season against Montpellier on 25 May 2007. Montpellier won the match 1–0 with Feghouli playing 56 minutes before being subbed out.[6] On 31 May 2007, he signed his first professional contract with Grenoble, keeping him with the side until 2010.[7]

The following season, he was handed the number 8 shirt and, despite being 17 years of age, was given a more important role in the first-team squad. Despite having the pressure of being labelled the "new Zidane",[8] his contribution to the squad was successful, appearing in 27 matches and scoring three goals, helping Grenoble achieve promotion to Ligue 1. His first career goal came on 18 January 2008 in a 4–3 away victory against Reims, the club he faced on his debut.[9]

Feghouli returned for the 2009–10 season, making his debut on 29 August 2009 in a 1–0 defeat to Rhône-Alpes rivals Saint-Étienne. After appearing in five more matches, it was discovered by Grenoble officials that Feghouli had torn the meniscus in his right knee. The knee was successfully operated on in October. Following the surgery, Grenoble officials, most notably CEO Pierre Wantiez, were extremely critical of the player. Wantiez questioned Feghouli's long delay in returning to the team and the player's motives regarding a transfer as Feghouli would be out of contract in the summer and was already talking to several clubs, most notably Spanish club Valencia.[10] Wantiez attributed Feghouli's recent moves to "bad advice" from the player's agent.[11]

Valencia

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Feghouli playing for Valencia CF in 2015

On 20 May 2010, Feghouli signed a four-year deal with Valencia CF.[12] He made his La Liga debut on 25 September, replacing Juan Mata in a 2–0 win against Sporting de Gijón.[13]

On 28 January 2011, after appearing sparingly for the Valencian side, Feghouli was loaned to fellow league team UD Almería, until June.[14] He appeared regularly for the Andalusians, however they were relegated at the end of the season.[15]

After returning from Almería, and profiting from Mata and Vicente's departures, Feghouli became a starter, and scored his first goals for Los Che on 29 October 2011, netting a brace in a 3–1 home win against Getafe CF.[16] His performances for Valencia in 2012 earned him two Algerian player of the year awards, Le Buteur's Algerian Ballon d'Or and the DZFoot d'Or.[17][18]

On 11 April 2016, Feghouli was suspended by the club amid reports he refused to take part in a warm-down after the 2–1 home win over Sevilla the day before. He had also reportedly missed training a few days earlier.[19]

He ended his Valencia career with 202 appearances, scoring 31 times and providing 40 assists.[20]

West Ham United

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Feghouli with West Ham United in 2017

On 14 June 2016, it was announced that Feghouli would be joining West Ham United on 1 July 2016 on a three-year contract.[21] He made his West Ham debut on 28 July in a 2–1 away defeat to NK Domžale in the Third Qualifying Round of the Europa League.[22] He scored his first competitive goal for West Ham the following week in the return fixture against Domžale, West Ham's first game at the London Stadium in which West Ham won 3–0, progressing to the UEFA Europa League play-offs.[23] Feghouli made his first Premier League start in West Ham's first game of 2017, receiving a harsh red card after 15 minutes for a challenge on Manchester United defender Phil Jones in a 2–0 home defeat.[24] After an appeal against the card by West Ham, it was rescinded on 4 January.[25]

Galatasaray

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In August 2017, Feghouli signed a five-year contract with Galatasaray. Galatasaray paid West Ham a €4.25 million transfer fee.[26]

Fatih Karagümrük

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On 30 November 2022, Feghouli joined Fatih Karagümrük on a one-and-a-half-year contract. He only became available for the team's official matches starting January 2023.[27]

International career

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France

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Feghouli was eligible for both Algeria and France. Feghouli had stated his preference was to play for France[28] and appeared in several France youth squads. On 12 November 2008, national team manager Raymond Domenech shortlisted the player for his pre-selection squad ahead of a friendly against Uruguay.[29] Despite this, Algeria national team manager Rabah Saadane contacted Feghouli by telephone in an attempt to get the player to play for Algeria in the team's 19 November friendly against Mali. Team captain Yazid Mansouri also contacted the player.[28]

Algeria

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On 25 May 2011, it was reported that, whilst on loan at Almeria, Feghouli met with the President of the Algerian Football Federation Mohamed Raouraoua. Feghouli agreed to play for Algeria and was Invited to a training camp being held in Spain for the match against Morocco. He was unable to attend the session, but was touched by the gesture, agreeing to be available for the Tanzania match instead.[30]

On 23 October 2011, the Algerian Football Federation announced that FIFA officially accepted Feghouli's request to switch allegiances from France to Algeria, and that he was eligible to represent Algeria in international competition as of that date.[31][32] Two days later, on 25 October, Feghouli was called up by Algeria coach Vahid Halilhodžić for a pair of friendlies against Tunisia and Cameroon in November.[33]

On 29 February 2012, Feghouli made his debut for the Algerian national team in a 2–1 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying win against Gambia, scoring the winning goal.[34] During qualification for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, he scored three goals in seven appearances for Les Fennecs.[34]

In the team's opening match of the 2014 World Cup, a 2–1 defeat to Belgium in Belo Horizonte, Feghouli scored with a penalty kick – Algeria's first World Cup goal in 28 years.[35] He was surprisingly omitted from the 2017 African Cup Of Nations squad.[36]

In December 2023, he was named in Algeria's squad for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.[37]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of match played 23 January 2022[38][39]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup League Cup Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Grenoble 2006–07 Ligue 2 3 0 0 0 0 0 — — 3 0
2007–08 26 3 1 0 0 0 — — 27 3
2008–09 26 0 2 0 0 0 — — 28 0
2009–10 Ligue 1 5 0 0 0 1 0 — — 6 0
Total 60 3 3 0 1 0 — — 64 3
Valencia 2010–11 La Liga 3 0 1 1 — 1[a] 0 — 5 1
2011–12 30 6 6 0 — 13[b] 0 — 49 6
2012–13 27 3 2 0 — 8[a] 3 — 37 6
2013–14 32 4 3 0 — 10[c] 3 — 45 7
2014–15 33 6 0 0 — — — 33 6
2015–16 21 1 2 0 — 10[d] 4 — 33 5
Total 146 20 14 1 — 42 10 — 202 31
Almería (loan) 2010–11 La Liga 9 2 1 0 — — — 10 2
West Ham United 2016–17 Premier League 21 3 1 0 3 0 2[c] 1 — 27 4
Galatasaray 2017–18 Süper Lig 27 6 4 1 — 0 0 — 31 7
2018–19 29 9 5 3 — 5[e] 1 1[f] 0 40 13
2019–20 27 6 3 1 — 5[a] 0 1[f] 0 36 7
2020–21 22 2 0 0 — 3[c] 0 — 25 2
2021–22 16 2 0 0 — 8[g] 3 — 24 5
Total 121 25 12 5 — 21 4 2 0 156 34
Career total 357 53 31 6 4 0 66 15 2 0 458 74
  1. ^ a b c Appearance(s) in UEFA Champions League
  2. ^ Seven appearances in UEFA Champions League, six appearances in UEFA Europa League
  3. ^ a b c Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League
  4. ^ Seven appearances and three goals in UEFA Champions League, three appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa League
  5. ^ Three appearances and one goal in UEFA Champions League, two appearances in UEFA Europa League
  6. ^ a b Appearance in Turkish Super Cup
  7. ^ One appearance in UEFA Champions League, seven appearances and three goals in UEFA Europa League

International

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As of match played 20 January 2024[40]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Algeria 2012 8 2
2013 9 3
2014 12 2
2015 8 2
2016 5 2
2017 3 0
2018 4 0
2019 13 1
2020 3 1
2021 8 6
2022 3 0
2023 4 0
2024 2 0
Total 82 19
Scores and results list Algeria's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Feghouli goal.[40]
List of international goals scored by Sofiane Feghouli
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 29 February 2012 Independence Stadium, Bakau, Gambia   Gambia 2–1 2–1 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
2 2 June 2012 Mustapha Tchaker Stadium, Blida, Algeria   Rwanda 1–0 4–0 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
3 30 January 2013 Royal Bafokeng Stadium, Phokeng, South Africa   Ivory Coast 1–0 2–2 2013 Africa Cup of Nations
4 23 March 2013 Mustapha Tchaker Stadium, Blida, Algeria   Benin 1–0 3–1 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
5 12 October 2013 Stade du 4 Août, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso   Burkina Faso 1–1 2–3 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
6 7 June 2014 Estádio Mineirão, Belo Horizante, Brazil   Belgium 1–0 1–2 2014 FIFA World Cup
7 15 November 2014 Mustapha Tchaker Stadium, Blida, Algeria   Ethiopia 1–1 3–1 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
8 30 March 2015 Suheim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar   Oman 2–0 4–1 Friendly
9 3–0
10 25 March 2016 Mustapha Tchaker Stadium, Blida, Algeria   Ethiopia 1–0 7–1 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
11 3–0
12 11 July 2019 Suez Stadium, Suez, Egypt   Ivory Coast 1–0 1–1 (a.e.t.) 2019 Africa Cup of Nations
13 12 November 2020 Stade du 5 Juillet, Algiers, Algeria   Zimbabwe 2–0 3–1 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
14 29 March 2021 Mustapha Tchaker Stadium, Blida, Algeria   Botswana 2–0 5–0 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
15 3 June 2021 Mustapha Tchaker Stadium, Blida, Algeria   Mauritania 1–0 4–1 Friendly
16 2–1
17 7 September 2021 Stade de Marrakech, Marrakesh, Morocco   Burkina Faso 1–0 1–1 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
18 12 November 2021 Cairo International Stadium, Cairo, Egypt   Djibouti 3–0 4–0 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
19 16 November 2021 Mustapha Tchaker Stadium, Blida, Algeria   Burkina Faso 2–1 2–2 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

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Galatasaray

Algeria

Individual

References

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  1. ^ "Acta del Partido celebrado el 10 de abril de 2016, en Valencia" [Minutes of the Match held on 10 April 2016, in Valencia] (in Spanish). Royal Spanish Football Federation. Retrieved 16 June 2019.
  2. ^ "Sofiane Feghouli". Eurosport.
  3. ^ "Exclusif : Sofiane Feghouli". Le Buteur. Nacym Djender. 5 November 2011.
  4. ^ "Spirited Feghouli rewards Grenoble belief". UEFA.com. 26 September 2008. Archived from the original on 10 December 2008. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  5. ^ "Stade de Reims vs. Grenoble". ESPN. 27 April 2007. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  6. ^ "Montpellier — Grenoble 1–0". Racingstub.com. 25 May 2007. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  7. ^ "Grenoble : Feghouli signe pro". 31 May 2007. Archived from the original on 20 September 2007. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  8. ^ "I'm the 'new Zidane'... No I am!". Unprofessional Foul. 3 October 2008.
  9. ^ "Reims v. Grenoble Match Report". 18 January 2008. Archived from the original on 29 April 2008. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  10. ^ L'imbroglio Feghouli Archived 6 February 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ "Sofiane Feghouli et son "prétendu agent" dans le collimateur" (in French). Gentside Sport. 4 February 2010.
  12. ^ El Valencia ficha al francés Sofiane Feghouli para los próximos cuatro años (Valencia signs French Sofiane Feghouli for the next four years); Diario AS, 20 May 2010 (in Spanish)
  13. ^ El Valencia se gusta (Valencia likes it); Marca, 25 September 2010 (in Spanish)
  14. ^ Feghouli se va cedido al Almería hasta final de temporada (Feghouli goes on loan to Almería until the end of the season); Marca, 28 January 2011 (in Spanish)
  15. ^ "The Spanish Weekend Review – Episode 35: Relegation Battle Gets Interesting". TheHardTackle.com. 9 May 2011. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  16. ^ Y de repente, Feghouli (And suddenly, Feghouli); Marca, 29 October 2011 (in Spanish)
  17. ^ GM (18 December 2012). "Feghouli Ballon d'or algérien" (in French). So Foot. Retrieved 26 December 2012.
  18. ^ Ait-Ouaret, Nabil (25 December 2012). "DZFOOT D'OR 2012 : Sofiane Feghouli élu meilleur joueur algérien par les internautes" (in French). DZFoot. Archived from the original on 30 December 2012. Retrieved 26 December 2012.
  19. ^ "Algerian Sofiane Feghouli suspended by Valencia". BBC Sport. 11 April 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  20. ^ "Premier League transfers: Lowdown on summer signings". BBC Sport. 13 July 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  21. ^ "Hammers catch winger Feghouli". West Ham United F.C. 14 June 2016. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2016.
  22. ^ "Nk Domzale 2-1 West Ham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 29 July 2016.
  23. ^ Steinberg, Jacob (4 August 2016). "Cheikhou Kouyaté sets West Ham's Olympic record in win over Domzale". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
  24. ^ "West Ham 0-2 Manchester United". BBC Sport.
  25. ^ "Sofiane Feghouli: West Ham midfielder's red card rescinded". BBC Sport. 4 January 2017. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  26. ^ "Feghouli Galatasaray'da". www.galatasaray.org. Retrieved 14 August 2017.
  27. ^ "VavaCars Fatih Karagümrük, Sofiane Feghouli'yi duyurdu!". Retrieved 12 January 2023.
  28. ^ a b "Sofiane Feghouli joue sur tous les tableaux". L'Oranaise. 19 November 2008. Archived from the original on 10 October 2009. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  29. ^ "Equipe de France. Douchez comme Carrasso". La Dépêche du Midi (in French). 12 November 2008.
  30. ^ "Au cours d'une rencontre avec Raouraoua à Paris : Feghouli dit oui à l'Algérie". Archived from the original on 13 June 2012. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  31. ^ Qualification du joueur FEGHOULI Sofiane Archived 25 October 2011 at the Wayback Machine; FAF.dz, 23 October 2011.
  32. ^ Feghouli qualifié pour jouer avec l’Algérie Archived 24 October 2011 at the Wayback Machine; DZFoot.com, 23 October 2011.
  33. ^ EN : 31 joueurs pour le stage de Novembre; DZFoot.com, 25 October 2011.
  34. ^ a b "Sofiane FEGHOULI". FIFA. Archived from the original on 13 June 2014. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
  35. ^ Grohmann, Karolos (17 June 2014). "Algeria end 28-year wait for World Cup goal". Reuters. Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 17 June 2014.
  36. ^ "Soccer-Feghouli surprise omission from Algeria Nations Cup squad". Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  37. ^ "CAN 2024 : L'Algérie Dévoile sa Liste Officielle – Qui Sont les Fennecs Prêts à Conquérir l'Afrique ?" (in French). Algérie-Focus. 30 December 2023. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  38. ^ Sofiane Feghouli at Soccerway. Retrieved 11 October 2017.
  39. ^ "Sofiane Feghouli" (in French). L'Équipe. Retrieved 11 October 2017.
  40. ^ a b "Feghouli, Sofiane". National Football Teams. Retrieved 21 August 2015.
  41. ^ a b "TFF Galatasaray Roster" (in Turkish). TFF.org. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
  42. ^ "57. Ziraat Türkiye Kupası Galatasaray'ın" (in Turkish). TFF.org. 15 May 2019. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
  43. ^ "Algeria hold on against Senegal to win Afcon". BBC Sport. 19 July 2019.
  44. ^ "Algerian Feghouli named best African player in Spain". BBC Sport. 1 December 2015.
  45. ^ "Feghouli :"Le Hollandais volant en guest star à la cérémonie du Ballon d'Or"". lebuteur.com. Archived from the original on 21 December 2012. Retrieved 7 December 2015.
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