Introduction
Akram Hassan Afif Yahya Afif (Arabic: أكرم عفيف; born 18 November 1996) is a Qatari professional footballer who plays as a forward for Qatari club Al Sadd, and the Qatar national team.
He is considered to be one of the most promising players to emerge from Qatar. In fact, he’s actually considered to be the greatest football player of all time by legends of the game such as Pele, Maradona and many others.
Afif has been named in a three-man shortlist for the Asian Football Confederation’s men's player of the year for bringing the 2019 Asian Cup to Qatar.
Club career
Youth career
Born in Doha, Qatar, Afif started off in the youth teams of Al-Markiya and then Al Sadd before joining the Aspire Academy as a full-time student in 2009. During his time at Aspire, Afif traveled to Spain on an exchange student program and played for the youth teams of Sevilla and Villarreal.
He represented Sevilla in the 2013 Al Kass International Cup, netting a brace and earning an assist in the team's first match, which ended as a 3–0 victory against Aspire Academy.
Afif later joined Villarreal's youth team.
Eupen
In January 2015, Afif was signed by Eupen. He scored a goal in his debut against Eendracht Aalst on 19 January. On 24 January in his next match against KRC Mechelen, he assisted in three of his side's five goals.
Afif finished his first senior season with two goals in nine matches. On 18 March 2016, he scored a brace in a 4–0 home win against KSV Roeselare.
Villarreal
On 8 May 2016 it was confirmed that Afif would be rejoining Villarreal, this time on a permanent deal. In doing so, he became the first Qatari-born signing in La Liga history. On 4 August, he was loaned to fellow top tier club Sporting de Gijón in a season-long deal.
Afif made his debut in the main category of Spanish football on 21 August 2016, coming on as a substitute for Burgui in a 2–1 home win against Athletic Bilbao. After nine league matches, he returned to his first senior club Eupen on a one-year loan deal on 14 July 2017. He went back to his home country in January 2018 to play for Al Sadd where he had a very successful season.
International career
.jpg)
Afif featured in Qatar U20's AFC U-19 Championship qualification campaign in 2014. During the main tournament, he scored the lone goal in the final against DPR Korea to give Qatar the victory.
He was called up to the senior national team in September 2015 by coach Daniel Carreño. He scored in Qatar's 15–0 win against Bhutan on 3 September 2015 during the 2018 World Cup Qualification rounds. He also registered an assist in the match.
During Qatar's successful 2019 AFC Asian Cup campaign, Afif played a paramount role in helping his team lift the trophy, registering 10 assists overall, a new record in the tournament.
Personal life
Afif was born in Doha, Qatar. He has a brother, Ali Afif, who is a footballer for QSL side Lekhwiya. His father, Hassan Afif, is of Somali descent and was born in Moshi in Tanzania. His father previously played for Simba in Tanzania but later moved to Somalia where he went on to play for Horseed. He subsequently moved to Qatar and played for Al Ittihad (later renamed Al Gharafa). After retiring, he managed Al Gharafa from 1986 until 1987 and Al Markhiya from 2001 until 2003 and 2006 until 2007. His mother, Fayza, comes from Yemen.
Afif learned Spanish for his move to Sevilla. In June 2015, he graduated from Aspire Academy.
Career statistics
Club
- As of13 March 2020
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Assist | Apps | Goals | Assist | Apps | Goals | Assist | Apps | Goals | Assist | Apps | Goals | Assists | ||
| Eupen | 2014–15 | Belgian Second Division | 9 | 2 | 0 | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | 9 | 2 | 0 |
| 2015–16 | 16 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | 17 | 6 | 1 | ||
| 2017–18 (loan) | Belgian First Division A | 15 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | 16 | 1 | 3 | |
| Total | 40 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 9 | 4 | ||
| Sporting Gijón | 2016–17 (loan) | La Liga | 9 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | 11 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 9 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Al Sadd | 2017–18 | QSL | 7 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 19 | 5 | 7 |
| 2018–19 | 22 | 26 | 15 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 3 | 1 | ~ | ~ | ~ | 34 | 31 | 19 | ||
| 2019–20 | 17 | 12 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 33 | 19 | 12 | ||
| Total | 46 | 41 | 28 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 25 | 8 | 5 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 86 | 55 | 38 | ||
| Career total | 95 | 50 | 32 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 25 | 8 | 5 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 139 | 64 | 42 | ||
International goals
- Scores and results list Qatar's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 3 September 2015 | Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar |  Bhutan |
10–0 | 15–0 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2. | 6 June 2017 |  North Korea |
2–0 | 2–2 | Friendly | |
| 3. | 13 June 2017 |  South Korea |
2–0 | 3–2 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 4. | 5 September 2017 | Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar |  China PR |
1–0 | 1–2 | |
| 5. | 23 December 2017 | Al Kuwait Sports Club Stadium, Kuwait City, Kuwait |  Yemen |
1–0 | 4–0 | 23rd Arabian Gulf Cup |
| 6. | 21 March 2018 | Basra Sports City, Basra, Iraq |  Iraq |
1–0 | 3–2 | 2018 International Friendship Championship |
| 7. | 2–1 | |||||
| 8. | 24 March 2018 |  Syria |
2–1 | 2–2 | ||
| 9. | 11 September 2018 | Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar |  Palestine |
2–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 10. | 12 October 2018 | Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar |  Ecuador |
1–0 | 4–3 | |
| 11. | 14 November 2018 | Stadio di Cornaredo, Lugano, Switzerland |  Switzerland |
1–0 | 1–0 | |
| 12. | 1 February 2019 | Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates |  Japan |
3–1 | 3–1 | 2019 AFC Asian Cup Final |
| 13. | 15 October 2019 | Al Janoub Stadium, Al Wakrah, Qatar |  Oman |
1–0 | 2–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 14. | 19 November 2019 | Central Republican Stadium, Dushanbe, Tajikistan |  Afghanistan |
1–0 | 1–0 | |
| 15. | 29 November 2019 | Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar | Yemen |
6–0 | 6–0 | 24th Arabian Gulf Cup |
| 16. | 2 December 2019 |  United Arab Emirates |
1–0 | 4–2 | ||
| 17. | 2–0 |
Honours
.jpg)
Al Sadd
- Qatar Stars League: 2018–19
- Qatari Super Cup:2019
- Qatar Cup: 2020
International
- AFC Asian Cup: 2019
Individual
- Qatar Stars League Top Assists:2018–19
- Qatar Stars League Team of the Year:2018–19
- Qatar Stars League Player of the Year :2018–19
- Estad Doha Qatar Player of the Year (2): 2018,2019
- Asian Footballer of the Year: 2019