Youssouf Hadji

Youssouf Hadji

Hadji playing for Al Arabi
Personal information
Date of birth (1980-02-25) 25 February 1980
Place of birth Ifrane, Morocco
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position Attacking midfielder / Striker
Club information
Current team
 AS Nancy
Number 15
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1998–2003 Nancy 95 (13)
2003–2005 Bastia 61 (13)
2005–2007 Rennes 34 (3)
2007–2011 Nancy 130 (39)
2011–2012 Rennes 23 (6)
2012–2013 Al-Arabi 3 (0)
2013–2014 Elazığspor 6 (0)
2014– Nancy 64 (23)
National team‡
2003–2012 Morocco 64 (16)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19:08, 8 July 2016 (UTC).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 30 March 2012

Youssouf Hadji (Arabic: يوسف حجي‎‎, born 25 February 1980 in Ifrane Atlas-Saghir) is a Moroccan footballer who currently plays as an attacking midfielder for AS Nancy and also serves as the team captain. He also holds a French passport. He is the younger brother of former Moroccan star Mustapha Hadji and the uncle of striker Samir Hadji. On May 2016, he won the 2015–16 Ligue 2 with AS Nancy.

Career

Nancy

Hadji started his career at Nancy in Ligue 1 under the guidance of László Bölöni. Nancy were relegated to Ligue 2 in 2000, but Hadji remained loyal and played on for another three seasons.

Bastia and Rennes

In 2003, Hadji moved to Corsica to play for SC Bastia in Ligue 1. After his old team were relegated at the end of his second season there, he reunited with Bölöni at Rennes. In Brittany, he wasn't a regular starter but contributed largely to their season with 3 goals and 3 assists.

Return to Nancy

On 10 January 2007, Hadji re-joined Nancy from Rennes for an estimated £1.2m.

Rennes

On 31 August 2011, after four years at Nancy, Hadji returned to Rennes, for one season with the Ligue 1 team.

Qatar

Hadji signed a two-year contract with Qatari side Al-Arabi on 26 June 2012. Sidelined due of injuries for most of the season, he terminated his contract after only one season making only 8 appearances in all competitions.

Turkey

Hadji signed a two-year-deal with Elazığspor but he terminated his contract in February after financial problems in the club which prevented him from receiving his wages. He returned to train with his hometown club Nancy to keep fit.

Third stint with Nancy

2014–15 Ligue 2

In May 2014, Hadji came back to Nancy, making it the third stint with his debut team. He stated that he wanted to help his team promote to Ligue 1 again and to retire at his hometown club.[1] He was named as the captain of the team in the match against Stade Brest and since then he remained captain. He scored his first goal in a 2–2 draw against US Orléans on 21 December 2014.[2] His second goal was the equalizer in a 1–1 draw against Nîmes Olympique. He scored both goals in a 2–1 home win against Stade Brest, the club's first win since November 2014. Hadji scored another goal in a 2–0 away win against Sochaux followed by a brace in a 6–0 win against LB Châteauroux although playing for only 60 minutes in the game before being substituted. AS Nancy achieved three consecutive wins and gained 11 points out of a possible 15 from their last five matches, thereby moving up five positions to become 6th in Ligue 2.[3]

2015–16 Ligue 2

On 3 August 2015, Hadji started the second season of his third spell at Nancy with a 0–0 draw against Tours FC. He assisted a goal in a 3–0 home win against Stade Brest. He scored his first goal in his sixth appearance in the league in a 1–1 draw in Stade Marcel Picot against Chamois Niortais F.C.. Again he recorded a second assist on 2 October in a 3–0 win against AC Ajaccio. He returned to scoring against Dijon FCO in a home win, and again in an away win against Evian Thonon Gaillard F.C. in the Parc des Sports, Annecy helping AS Nancy jump to the top of the Ligue 2 table. He scored a brace against Nîmes Olympique in January 2016. On 25 April 2016, AS Nancy were crowned as the champions of the 2015–16 Ligue 2 after a 1–0 home win against Sochaux.[4] After the coronation, Hadji scored a brace in a 2–0 win against Tours FC, but before recorded another assist against Evian Thonon Gaillard F.C. which was relegated to 2016–17 Championnat National thanks to this goal. Hadji finished the season with 9 goals and 3 assists in 33 appearances.

Personal

Youssouf's older brother Mustapha was a Moroccan international footballer, having had a successful career in football, before ending his career in 2010. Mustapha previously played for well-known clubs such as Coventry City, Sporting and Deportivo La Coruña.

Career statistics

Club

As of 8 July 2016.[5][6]
Club Season League Cup Continental Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Nancy 1998–99 Division 1 1 0 — — 1 0
1999–00 Division 1 4 0 1 0 — 5 0
2000–01 Division 2 34 6 4 2 — 38 8
2001–02 Division 2 26 2 5 2 — 31 4
2002–03 Ligue 2 30 5 5 2 — 35 7
Total 95 13 15 6 — 110 19
SC Bastia 2003–04 Ligue 1 29 6 3 0 — 32 6
2004–05 Ligue 1 32 7 3 0 — 35 7
Total 61 13 6 0 — 67 13
Rennes 2005–06 Ligue 1 21 3 1 0 3 1 25 4
2006–07 Ligue 1 13 0 2 0 — 15 0
Total 34 3 3 0 3 1 40 4
Nancy 2006–07 Ligue 1 14 1 — — 14 1
2007–08 Ligue 1 24 7 3 0 — 27 7
2008–09 Ligue 1 36 11 2 0 2 0 40 11
2009–10 Ligue 1 26 11 2 0 — 28 11
2010–11 Ligue 1 26 8 2 0 — 28 8
2011–12 Ligue 1 4 1 1 0 — 5 1
Total 130 39 10 0 2 0 142 39
Rennes 2011–12 Ligue 1 23 6 4 1 6 1 33 8
Al-Arabi 2012–13 Qatar Stars League 3 0 1 1 — 4 1
Elazığspor 2013–14 Süper Lig 6 0 4 0 — 10 0
Nancy 2014–15 Ligue 2 31 14 3 2 — 34 16
2015–16 Ligue 2 33 9 0 0 — 33 9
Total 64 23 3 2 0 0 67 25
Career total 416 97 46 10 11 2 473 109

International

International goals

Honours

AS Nancy

Individual

References

  1. ↑ "Hadji revient à l'ASNL" (in French). asnl.net. 22 May 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2014.
  2. ↑
  3. ↑
  4. ↑ "L2 : Nancy bat Sochaux (1-0) et accompagne Dijon en Ligue 1". Ouest-France (in French). 25 April 2016. Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  5. ↑ "Youssouf Hadji". L'Equipe (in French). Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  6. ↑ "Y. Hadji". Soccerway. Retrieved 8 July 2016.
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