Alaa Abdul-Zahra Khashen Al-Azzawi ( ar, علاء عبدالزهرة خشَن العزاوي , born 22 December 1987 in

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

), is an Iraqi football player who currently plays for

Al-Shorta Al-Shorta Sports Club ( ar, نادي الشرطة الرياضي, lit=''Police Sports Club'') is an Iraqi sports club based in Al-Rusafa, Baghdad. It has teams in 17 different sports, more than any other Iraqi club, and the best known sectio ...

in the

Iraqi Premier League The Iraqi Premier League ( ar, الدوري العراقي الممتاز) is the top level of the Iraqi football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it is operated by the Iraq Football Association (IFA) and operates on a system of promotion ...

. He is also a member of Iraq national team. He can be deployed as an

attacking midfielder A midfielder is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As #Cent ...

or a

second striker Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

, and since 2016 plays a striker. He is the third-most capped player in the history of the Iraq national team.

Club career

Early life

Affectionately nicknamed 'the

Kaká Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite (; born 22 April 1982), commonly known as Kaká () or Ricardo Kaká, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. In his prime as a playmaker at AC Milan, a period marke ...

of Iraq' Alaa's road towards fame looked relatively straightforward. At the age of 16, he got his playing career off to a dream start when he was discovered and signed by Iraqi powerhouses

Al-Zawraa Al-Zawraa Sports Club ( ar, نادي الزوراء الرياضي) is an Iraqi sports club based in Utayfia, Karkh District (near Tigris River), Baghdad. Their football team compete in the Iraqi Premier League, the top-flight of Iraqi footbal ...

Al-Zawraa

In 2004 at the age of 16, Alaa Abdul-Zahra made a move to

. He was part of Al-Zawraa's squad for the

AFC Champions League The AFC Champions League (abbreviated as ACL) is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition ...

in 2005 with the number 29 shirt. A year later he won with them the

Iraq Super League The Iraqi Premier League ( ar, الدوري العراقي الممتاز) is the top level of the Iraqi football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it is operated by the Iraq Football Association (IFA) and operates on a system of promotion an ...

in 2006.

Mes Kerman

After the

AFC Youth Championship 2006 The 2006 AFC Youth Championship was the 34th instance of the AFC Youth Championship. It was held from 29 October to 12 November 2006 in India. It was the first time for India to host this tournament. Sixteen teams from the AFC qualified to the f ...

, Alaa Abdul-Zahra signed a one-year contract with the newly promoted

Iranian Premier League The Persian Gulf Pro League ( fa, لیگ برتر خلیج فارس, ''Lig-e Bartar-e Xalij-e Fârs''), formerly known as the Iran Pro League ( fa, links=no, لیگ برتر ایران, ''Lig-e bartar-e Irân''), is the highest division of profe ...

club

Mes Kerman Mes Kerman Football Club ( fa, باشگاه فوتبال صنعت مس کرمان, ''Bashgah-e Futbal-e Sân't-e Mes Kârman'') is an Iranian professional association football, football team based in Kerman, Iran. They were promoted to Iran's top ...

. He played 11 times for them and scoring 4 goals, as the team finished in 7th place, before moving to play in

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

Shabab Al-Ordon

Alaa Abdul-Zahra signed with

Duhok FC Duhok Sports Club ( ar, نادي دهوك الرياضي, ku, یانه‌یا وه‌رزشی یا دهوکێ), founded in 1970, is a Kurdish professional sports club, based in Duhok, Iraqi Kurdistan, that competes in the Iraqi Premier League, ...

Before the start of

Iraq Super League (2007-2008) The Iraqi Premier League ( ar, الدوري العراقي الممتاز) is the top level of the Iraqi football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it is operated by the Iraq Football Association (IFA) and operates on a system of promotion an ...

but he didn't go to Iraq, Instead he signed another contract with the Jordanian club

Shabab Al-Ordon Shabab Al-Ordon Club ( ar, نادي شباب الأردن, lit=''Jordan Youth Club'') is a Jordanian professional Association football, football club based in Amman, that competes in the Jordanian Pro League. The club was established in 2002 an ...

, and claimed that signing with Duhok FC was incomplete. On 29 December 2007 in his first appearance with

, Alaa Abdul-Zahra scored his first goal with his new team against Hussein Irbid in Jordan Cup, helped his team to win 3–2 and qualify to the

quarterfinals A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

, then on 3 Jan 2008 Alaa Abdul-Zahra played his 2nd and last match with

this season against Al-Arabi Irbid in

Jordan League The Jordanian Pro League ( ar, الدوري الأردني للمحترفين) is a Jordanian professional league for men's football clubs and represents the top flight of Jordanian football. The championship consists of twelve competing teams in ...

, which they won 2–3.

Al-Merrikh

Alaa Abdul-Zahra and his Olympic team's mate

Saad Attiya Saad Attiya (Arabic: سعد عطية حافظ, born February 26, 1987 in Iraq) is a former Iraqi football (soccer) defender. Career Saad Attiya was the youngest member of Iraq’s successful Olympic team. He was selected by Olympic coach Hamad f ...

signed a Contract with Sudan giant club

Al-Merrikh Al-Merrikh Sporting Club ( ar, نادي المريخ الرياضي) is a Sudanese football club based in Omdurman. Their home stadium is Al-Merrikh Stadium, which is locally known as The Red Castle. Founded in 1908, Al-Merrikh is one of the o ...

. He won

Sudan Premier League Sudan Premier League ( ar, الدوري السوداني الممتاز) is the top division of the Sudan Football Association, it was created in 1965. It starts on August 1 and ends May 31. Sudan Premier League Clubs 2022-23 Championship hist ...

and

Sudan Cup The Sudan Cup is the top knockout tournament of the Sudanese football. It was created in 1990. Preliminaries Pegin 1 Agustus / End 31 May *Round 32 ( Sudan Premier League Clubs and National League 1 Clubs) *Round 16 *Quarter-Finals *Semi-fi ...

2008, and scored 9 goals.

Time in Qatar

After the success in the Sudanese League, Alaa signed a contract with the Qatari side

Al-Khor Al Khor ( ar, الخور; also spelled ''Al Khawr''), officially Al Khor and Al Thakhira, is a municipality in coastal northeastern Qatar. Al Khor City, the municipal seat, is located in the northeast coast of Qatar, around from the capital, ...

. which he played with 14 league matches scoring eight goals. After the great months he spent in Al-Khor Alaa moved to another Qatari club this time with

Al Kharaitiyat Al Kharaitiyat ( ar, الخريطيات, Al Khurayţīyāt) is a town in the municipality of Umm Salal in Qatar. Etymology "Kharaitiyat" is the plural form of the Arabic term "khurat", which roughly translates to "map-like". The town received its ...

. Scoring 16 goals in 42 occasions, the club finished 8th in the league that season. In June 2011, Alaa signed a one-year deal with Qatar side

Al-Wakrah Al Wakrah ( ar, الوكرة, al-Wakra) is the capital city of the Al Wakrah Municipality in Qatar. Al Wakrah's eastern edge is the shores of the Persian Gulf and Qatar's capital Doha is situated to the city's immediate north. Governed by Sheikh ...

. playing 10 times and scoring 3 goals, the team finished 7th in the league. In June 2012, Alaa signed a Half Season with Qatar side

Qatar SC Qatar Sports Club ( ar, نادي قطر الرياضي) is a sports club based in Doha, Qatar. It is best known for its football team which competes in the Qatar Stars League. The club was founded in 1961 as a merger of two Qatari football club ...

. and scored 2 goals.

Duhok

Before the start of the 2012-13 season, Abdul-Zahra signed with

and made a total of 47 appearances in the

2012–13 Iraqi Premier League 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

and 2013–14 scoring 31 goals.

Tractor Sazi

On 20 July 2014, Abdul-Zahra joined

Tractor Sazi Tractor Cultural Sports Economic Club ( fa, باشگاه فرهنگی ورزشی اقتصادی تراکتور, ''Bâšgâh-e Farhangi Varzeši Eqtesâdi-ye Terâktor''), commonly known as Tractor, formerly Tractor Sazi, is an Iranian football ...

with signing a one-season contract with the club. He played his first match for Tractor Sazi on 8 August 2014 against Zob Ahan. after a Less than two months with Tabrizi side, decided leave

. After pressure from the national team coach to leave the club, And his desire to play the striker instead of the midfielder. He officially released on 10 September 2014.

Al-Shorta

Alaa Abdul-Zahra signed with

in September 2014. and scored 8 goals. the club finished 3rd in the league that season.

Return to Al-Zawraa

Alaa Abdul-Zahra returned to

in July 2015. he became instrumental to the team as Al Zawraa went on to win the Iraqi League 2015–16. The team also finished second in the

Iraq FA Cup The Iraq FA Cup, known as the Iraq Cup ( ar, كأس العراق) in Arabic, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic Iraqi football. First held in the 1948–49 season for clubs and institutions before returning in 1975–76 ...

, after a 2–0 loss to

Al Quwa Al Jawiya Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya ( ar, نادي القوة الجوية الرياضي, lit=Air Force Club) is an Iraqi sports club based in Rusafa District, Baghdad that competes in the Iraqi Premier League, the top-flight of Iraqi football. Founded in 1931 ...

. The following season, Ala'a finished as the top goal scorer of the Iraqi league for the first time in his career with 23 goals, however Al Zawraa failed to retain the title and finished in a disappointing 4th place. The team reached the final of the Iraqi FA cup once again, where he scored the winner in the 94th minute to win the championship.

Second stint at Al-Shorta

On 13 September 2017, Abdul-Zahra signing a one-season contract with

. He scored many goals continuously after sacked Brazilian coach

Marcos Paquetá Marcos César Dias de Castro (born 27 August 1958), known as Marcos Paquetá, is a former Brazilian footballer who played as a central midfielder and a current manager. Career Born in Rio de Janeiro but raised in the Paquetá Island, he started ...

in 27 March 2018. He finished his season with Al Shorta with 22 goals (5pen) in 37 matches in the league. The team finished in 4th position.

International career

He first made his mark on the international scene with Iraq's youth team at the

2004 AFC Youth Championship The 2004 AFC Youth Championship was the 33rd instance of the AFC Youth Championship. It was held from 25 September to 9 October 2004 in Malaysia. The tournament was won by for the eleventh time by South Korea in the final against China PR. Qu ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

. Two years later, he would repeat this feat by figuring prominently at the

2006 AFC Youth Championship The 2006 AFC Youth Championship was the 34th instance of the AFC Youth Championship. It was held from 29 October to 12 November 2006 in India. It was the first time for India to host this tournament. Sixteen teams from the AFC qualified to the ...

, where the striking prodigy finished as the tournament's second-top scorer with four goals despite his team's early exit at the quarter-final stage. From there, he went on to showcase his predatory talents in Asia's qualifying final round for the Olympic Football Tournament

Beijing 2008 The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

by topping the scoring charts with a six-goal haul. At senior level, he featured in two of Iraq's eight qualifying matches for the

2010 FIFA World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

at South Africa, coming off bench to play in a goalless draw against

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

before featuring in the 2–0 loss to

Qatar Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it sh ...

. Alaa played for the Iraq national team from June 2007 to January 2018, scoring 15 goals. In October 2019, he was called up by Iraq team for games against

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

and

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...

International goals

''As of 29 May 2021''

Style of play

Abdul-Zahra, a playmaker and offensive play, and is often involved in passing moves which lead to goals, through their vision, technique, ball control, creativity, and passing ability. and More recently play striker.

Honours

Club

;

: 2005–06, 2015–16 *

: 2016–17 ; Al-Merreikh *

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

;

: 2018–19, 2021–22 *

Iraqi Super Cup The Iraqi Super Cup ( ar, كأس السوبر العراقي), previously called Iraqi Perseverance Cup ( ar, كأس المثابرة العراقي), is Iraqi football's annual match contested between the champions of the previous Iraqi Premier ...

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

International

* 2012 Arab Nations Cup: Bronze Medal *

21st Arabian Gulf Cup The 21st Arabian Gulf Cup ( ar, كأس الخليج العربي) was the twenty-first edition of the biennial football competition. It took place in Bahrain in January 2013. The competition was originally scheduled to be hosted in the city of ...

: Runner-up *

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until t ...

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

: Runners-up

Individual

* 2016–17 Iraqi Premier League: Top scorer (23 goals) * 2018–19 Iraqi Premier League: Top scorer (28 goals) * 2008 Summer Olympics qualification (AFC): Top scorer *

20th Arabian Gulf Cup The 20th Arabian Gulf Cup ( ar, كأس الخليج العربي) was the twentieth edition of the biannual Gulf Cup competition, and took place in Aden, Yemen, from 22 November to 5 December 2010. The tournament was held in Yemen for the first ...

: joint top scorer (3 goals)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Abdul-Zahra, Alaa 1987 births Living people Iraqi footballers Iraq international footballers 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2011 AFC Asian Cup players 2015 AFC Asian Cup players Iraqi expatriate footballers Sportspeople from Baghdad Sanat Mes Kerman F.C. players Expatriate footballers in Iran Expatriate footballers in Jordan Expatriate footballers in Sudan Expatriate footballers in Qatar Association football forwards Al-Zawraa SC players Al Kharaitiyat SC players Qatar SC players Al-Wakrah SC players Al-Khor SC players Qatar Stars League players Al-Merrikh SC players Asian Games medalists in football Footballers at the 2006 Asian Games Al-Shorta SC players FIFA Century Club Asian Games silver medalists for Iraq Medalists at the 2006 Asian Games