Mehdi Essoussi (born 28 February 2001) is a
Tunisia
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, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
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, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
n
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
who plays as a
midfielder
A midfielder is an 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 central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
with
Alliance United FC
Alliance United Futbol Club is a Canadian semi-professional soccer club based in Markham and Scarborough, Ontario. The club was founded in 2017 to compete in League1 Ontario. The club was formed as a partnership between two youth clubs - Mark ...
in
League1 Ontario
League1 Ontario (L1O) is a semi-professional men's association football, soccer league in Ontario, Canada. The league began play in 2014 and is sanctioned by the Canadian Soccer Association and the Ontario Soccer Association as a pro-am league ...
.
Early life
Essoussi was born in
Tunis, Tunisia
''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois
, population_note =
, population_urban =
, population_metro = 2658816
, population_density_km2 =
, timezone1 = CET
, utc_offset1 ...
, before moving to
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...
, Canada, when he was one, followed by a move to
Ottawa at age two.
He began playing youth soccer at age four with the Nepean Hotspurs SC,
before moving on to
Ottawa South United and spending some time in the
Ottawa Fury Academy. He then moved on to join the
Toronto FC Academy
Toronto FC Academy, also known as TFC Academy, is the Youth system, youth academy and development system of Canadian Major League Soccer club Toronto FC.
The academy has divisions from U14 to U19 and includes over 110 young players. The senior aca ...
. He also played with the
Team Ontario provincial team and attended a Canada national team identification camp.
University career
In 2023, he began attending the
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 ...
, playing for the
men's soccer team.
Club career
In 2018, he began playing for
Toronto FC III in the semi-professional
League1 Ontario
League1 Ontario (L1O) is a semi-professional men's association football, soccer league in Ontario, Canada. The league began play in 2014 and is sanctioned by the Canadian Soccer Association and the Ontario Soccer Association as a pro-am league ...
. He scored his first goal on 12 August against
Sigma FC
Sigma Sports is a Canadian youth soccer development academy and player management company based in Mississauga, Ontario. They also operate a senior academy soccer team that currently competes in League1 Ontario, as Sigma FC. Over 140 Sigma player ...
. He was named a 2nd team all-star at the end of the season.
On 27 September 2018, he signed his first professional contract with
Toronto FC II
Toronto FC II is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Toronto, Ontario, who play in MLS Next Pro, a third tier league of the United States soccer league system. It is the reserve team and minor league affiliate of Toronto FC as well a ...
to join them for the 2019 season. He made his debut on June 19 against the
Lansing Ignite
Lansing Ignite FC was a professional soccer team based in Lansing, Michigan, United States. The club began play in the newly-formed USL League One in 2019 and ceased operations following their inaugural season.
History
The formation of USL Le ...
. On 21 May 2022, he signed a short-term loan with the first team
Toronto FC
Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BM ...
.
In 2023, he played with
Alliance United FC
Alliance United Futbol Club is a Canadian semi-professional soccer club based in Markham and Scarborough, Ontario. The club was founded in 2017 to compete in League1 Ontario. The club was formed as a partnership between two youth clubs - Mark ...
in
League1 Ontario
League1 Ontario (L1O) is a semi-professional men's association football, soccer league in Ontario, Canada. The league began play in 2014 and is sanctioned by the Canadian Soccer Association and the Ontario Soccer Association as a pro-am league ...
.
International career
Eligible to represent both his native Tunisia and Canada, he was called up to the Canadian under-15 national team camp in 2016.
Career statistics
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Essoussi, Mehdi
2001 births
Living people
Canadian men's soccer players
Tunisian men's footballers
Men's association football midfielders
Footballers from Tunis
Toronto FC players
Toronto FC II players
USL League One players
League1 Ontario players
Ottawa South United players
MLS Next Pro players
Alliance United FC players
Toronto Varsity Blues men's soccer players