Youssef En-Nesyri ( ar, يوسف النصيري; pronounced ; born 1 June 1997) is a Moroccan professional

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 le ...

who plays as a striker for

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...

club

Sevilla Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Gua ...

and the Morocco national team. En-Nesyri has spent his entire senior footballing career in Spain, representing

Málaga Málaga (, ) is a municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 578,460 in 2020, it is the second-most populous city in Andalusia after Seville and the sixth most pop ...

Leganés Leganés () is a city in the Community of Madrid, Spain. Considered part of the Madrid metropolitan area, it is located about 11 km southwest of the centre of Madrid. , it has a population of 188,425, making it the region's fifth most popul ...

and

. He has made over 150

appearances and scored over 40 goals. He made his international debut in 2016 aged 18, after previously being

capped In sport, a cap is a player's appearance in a game at international level. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of rugby football and association football. In the ea ...

by the nation's youth teams at under-20 level. He was chosen in Morocco's squads for the

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

and

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 ...

, helping the team to fourth place at the latter. He was also picked for the

Africa Cup of Nations The Africa Cup of Nations referred to as AFCON (french: Coupe d'Afrique des Nations, sometimes referred to as CAN, or TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons), and sometimes as African Cup of Nations, is the main internati ...

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

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 ...

and

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...

Club career

Málaga

After starting his youth career at

Maghreb de Fès Maghreb Association Sportive de Fès ( ar, المغرب الرياضي الفاسي) is a Moroccan professional football club based in Fez, that competes in Botola, the top flight of Moroccan football. The club was founded in 1946. The club ...

and

Mohammed VI Football Academy The Mohammed VI Football Academy ( ar, أكاديمية محمد السادس لكرة القدم, ʽakādīmiyya Muḥammad as-sādis l-kurat al-qadam, french: Académie Mohammed VI de football) is a football academy located in Salé, Morocco. It ...

, En-Nesyri joined

Málaga CF Málaga Club de Fútbol (, ''Málaga Football Club''), or simply Málaga, is a association football, football club based in Málaga, Andalusia, Spain, that competes in the Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish football league system, ...

for a fee of €125,000 in 2015. Initially assigned to the ''Juvenil'' squad, he made his senior debut for the reserves on 16 April 2016, scoring the last goal in a 3–1

Tercera División Tercera División ( en, Third Division) was the fourth tier of the Spanish football league system. Founded in 1929, it was below the ''Primera División'' (also known as La Liga), the ''Segunda División'', and the semi-professional ''Segunda Di ...

away win against

Guadix CF Guadix Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football team based in Guadix, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It plays in Primera Andaluza, holding home matches at ''Estadio Municipal de Guadix'', which holds a capacity of 3,000 people. History Fo ...

. He netted back-to-back goals in the following three matches against

CD Huétor Tájar Club Deportivo Agroisa Huétor Tájar is a Spanish football team based in Huétor-Tájar, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1940, it plays in Tercera División RFEF – Group 9, holding home matches at ''Estadio Municipal Mig ...

, River Melilla CF and

FC Vilafranca Futbol Club Vilafranca is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football team based in Vilafranca del Penedès, Catalonia. Founded in 1904, it currently plays in Tercera División RFEF, Tercera División RFEF – Group 5, holding home matche ...

and went on to become an integral player for the reserve side which narrowly missed promotion to the

Segunda División B Segunda División B ( en, Second Division B) was the third tier of the Spanish football league system containing 102 teams divided into five groups, until it was replaced by the new structure in 2021. It was administered by the Royal Spanish Foot ...

. On 8 July 2016, En-Nesyri was included in first team manager

Juande Ramos Juan de la Cruz "Juande" Ramos Cano (born 25 September 1954) is a Spanish former footballer and manager. After playing and managing at an amateur level, Ramos led Rayo Vallecano to promotion to La Liga, followed by reaching the quarter-finals o ...

' pre-season squad, and scored a double in a 4–0 friendly win against

Algeciras CF Algeciras Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football team based in Algeciras, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1909 it plays in Primera División RFEF – Group 1, holding home matches at ''Estadio Nuevo Mirador''. History Foot ...

eight days later. On 23 August 2016, after scoring six goals during the pre-season, En-Nesyri agreed to a contract extension until 2020. Three days later he made his professional – and

– debut, coming on as a late substitute for Keko in a 2–2 away draw against

RCD Espanyol Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona (; "Royal Spanish Sports Club of Barcelona"), commonly known as Espanyol, is a professional sports club based in Barcelona, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish football league sy ...

. En-Nesyri scored his first professional goal on 21 September 2016, netting the winner in a 2–1 home victory against

SD Eibar Sociedad Deportiva Eibar (in eu, Eibar Kirol Elkartea) is a professional Spanish football club based in Eibar, Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous Basque Country. Founded on 30 November 1940, the team currently plays in the Segunda División, the s ...

, after coming on as a substitute for

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...

. He contributed with four goals in 25 league appearances during the 2017–18 campaign, as his side suffered relegation.

Leganés

On 17 August 2018, following Malaga's relegation from the La Liga, En-Nesyri signed a five-year contract with

CD Leganés Club Deportivo Leganés, S.A.D. is a football club based in Leganés, Community of Madrid, Spain, that currently competes in Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish league system. It was founded on 23 June 1928. It holds home games at ...

in the main category. He scored his first goals in his ninth game, to earn a 2–2 home draw with nearby

Rayo Vallecano Rayo Vallecano de Madrid, S.A.D. (), often abbreviated to Rayo (Spanish for "thunderbolt"), is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid, in the neighbourhood of Vallecas. Rayo was founded on 29 May 1924, and currently compete in La Lig ...

in the first leg of the last 32 of the Copa del Rey on 30 October, and on 23 November he netted his first league goal, the only one of a victory also at the

Estadio Municipal de Butarque The Estadio Municipal de Butarque is a multi-use stadium located in Leganés, Spain. It is currently used for football matches and is the home stadium of CD Leganés. History and characteristics The stadium shares its name (Butarque) with that ...

against a

Deportivo Alavés Deportivo Alavés, S.A.D. (; ''Sporting Alavés''), usually abbreviated to Alavés, is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football club based in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Álava, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of the ...

team that was challenging for top spot. In late January to February 2019, En-Nesyri scored six goals in three games as Leganés avoided defeat: a brace in a 2–2 draw with Eibar, the late winner at Rayo and then all three goals against Real Betis; this last result made him the first ''Pepinero'' to net a hat-trick in La Liga.

Sevilla

On 16 January 2020,

Sevilla FC Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville, the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. It plays in Spanish football's top flight, La Liga. Sevilla have won the UEFA Euro ...

signed En-Nesyri from Leganés for a reported €20 million, on a contract lasting to June 2025; the Andalusians had recently sold their strikers Mu'nas Dabbur and

Javier Hernández Javier Hernández Balcázar (; born 1 June 1988), commonly known by the nickname Chicharito (, Mexican Spanish: ''little pea''), is a Mexican professional footballer who plays as a striker for Major League Soccer club LA Galaxy. He is known ...

. He debuted two days later in a 2–1 loss at

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...

, as a 65th-minute substitute for

Munir El Haddadi Munir El Haddadi Mohamed ( ar, منير الحدادي; born 1 September 1995), or simply Munir, is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish club Getafe and the Morocco national team. Munir began his career in the youth ra ...

, and on his first start on 9 February he opened the scoring on a trip to

RC Celta de Vigo Real Club Celta de Vigo (; ), commonly known as Celta de Vigo or simply Celta, is a Spanish professional football club based in Vigo, Galicia, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of Spanish football. Nicknamed ''Os Celestes'' (The Sky Blues), ...

with the same result. En-Nesyri made his debut in European competitions on 20 February 2020, in the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...

last 32 first leg away to

CFR Cluj Fotbal Club CFR 1907 Cluj, commonly known as CFR Cluj ( or ), is a Romanian professional association football, football club based in the city of Cluj-Napoca, Cluj County, which competes in the Liga I. It was founded in 1907 as ''Kolozsvári Vas ...

in Romania. He scored the late equaliser in a 1–1 draw, that put his team through on the

away goals rule The away goals rule is a method of tiebreaker, tiebreaking in association football and other sports when teams play each other twice, once at each team's home ground. Under the away goals rule, if the total goals scored by each team are equal, the ...

. On 6 August 2020, he scored a goal in a 2–0 win over

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...

in the round of 16. Sevilla went on to win the 2020 UEFA Europa League. On 4 November 2020, he scored a brace in a 3–2 win over

FC Krasnodar FC Krasnodar is a Russian professional football club based in Krasnodar that plays in the Russian Premier League. The club was founded in 2008. In 2009, the club was promoted to the Russian First Division, the second highest division of the Ru ...

in the

2020–21 UEFA Champions League The 2020–21 UEFA Champions League was the 66th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 29th season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League. Chelsea defeat ...

, to be his first goals in the competition. On 8 December, he scored another brace in 3–1 away win over

Rennes Rennes (; br, Roazhon ; Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France at the confluence of the Ille and the Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department ...

. In January 2021, En-Nesyri scored hat-tricks in home wins over

Real Sociedad Real Sociedad de Fútbol, S.A.D., more commonly referred to as Real Sociedad (; ''Royal Society''), La Real in Spanish, Erreala in Basque, is a Spanish professional sports club in the city of San Sebastián, Basque Country, founded on 7 Septem ...

(3–2) and

Cádiz CF Cádiz Club de Fútbol, S.A.D., known simply as Cádiz, is a Spanish professional football club based in Cádiz, Andalusia. Founded in 1910, the club competes in the La Liga, holding home games at Nuevo Mirandilla, with a seating capacity of 20 ...

(3–0). On 9 March 2021, he scored a brace in a 2–2 away draw against

Borussia Dortmund Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, commonly known as Borussia Dortmund (), BVB (), or simply Dortmund (), is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is best known for its men's professional footb ...

in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16; however, Sevilla were eliminated as they lost 4–5 on aggregate. On 14 March, he scored the winning goal in a 1–0 win over

Real Betis Real Betis Balompié, known as Real Betis () or just Betis, is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1907, it plays in La Liga. It holds home games at the Estadio Benito Vill ...

in the

Seville derby The Seville derby (''Derbi Sevillano''), also known as The Great Derby (''El Gran Derbi''), is the name of a local city derby located in Seville, Spain contested between Real Betis and Sevilla. Sevilla FC were founded in 1890. This was followe ...

. On 4 April 2021, En-Nesyri marked his hundredth match played for the team against

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

International career

After representing

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

at under-20 level, En-Nesyri was called up to the full squad by manager

Hervé Renard Hervé Jean-Marie Roger Renard (born 30 September 1968) is a French professional football coach and former player who is the manager of the Saudi Arabia national team. Renard has previously been the manager of Zambia national team, with whom ...

on 22 August 2016, for friendlies against

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

and

São Tomé and Príncipe São Tomé and Príncipe (; pt, São Tomé e Príncipe (); English: " Saint Thomas and Prince"), officially the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe ( pt, República Democrática de São Tomé e Príncipe), is a Portuguese-speaking i ...

. He made his debut against the former nine days later, starting in a 0–0 draw at the

Loro Boriçi Stadium The Loro Boriçi Stadium ( sq, Stadiumi "Loro Boriçi"), previously known as Vojo Kushi Stadium ( sq, Stadiumi Vojo Kushi) is a multi-purpose stadium in Shkodër, Albania, which is used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of Vllazni ...

Shkodër Shkodër ( , ; sq-definite, Shkodra) is the fifth-most-populous city of the Republic of Albania and the seat of Shkodër County and Shkodër Municipality. The city sprawls across the Plain of Mbishkodra between the southern part of Lake Shkod ...

. En-Nesyri was called up for the

2017 Africa Cup of Nations The 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (abbreviated as AFCON 2017 or CAN 2017), known as the Total 2017 Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 31st edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial international men's football champions ...

in Gabon, and scored in the second group game in a 3–1 win over

Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...

. He was a late addition to the squad for the

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national Association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awa ...

in Russia, at the expense of defender

Badr Banoun Badr Benoun (also spelt as Badr Banoune; ar, بدر بانون; born 30 September 1993) is a Moroccan professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Qatar Stars League club Qatar SC and the Morocco national team. He is nicknamed "Sultan ...

. In the last group game against

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

at the

Kaliningrad Stadium Kaliningrad Stadium (russian: Стадион Калининград, ''Stadion Kaliningrad''), also called Arena Baltika, is a football stadium on Oktyabrsky Island, Kaliningrad, Russia, which hosted four games of the 2018 FIFA World Cup. It w ...

, he gave the team a late lead in a 2–2 draw. At the

2019 Africa Cup of Nations The 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (abbreviated as AFCON 2019 or CAN 2019), known as the Total 2019 Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 32nd edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial international men's football champion ...

in Egypt, En-Nesyri scored the only goal of a win over the

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...

to send the ''Atlas Lions'' into the last 16. There, he equalised against

Benin Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north ...

as the game went to a

penalty shootout The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pen ...

, in which Saturnin Allagbé saved from him to knock the Moroccans out. En-Nesyri was also called up for the

2021 Africa Cup of Nations The 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (also referred to as AFCON 2021 or CAN 2021), known as the TotalEnergies 2021 Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 33rd edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial international men's foo ...

in Cameroon. In his first game back after a long injury, he came on in the 65th minute for

Ayoub El Kaabi Ayoub El Kaabi ( ar, أيوب الكعبي; born 25 June 1993) is a Moroccan professional footballer who plays as a forward or winger for Hatayspor and the Morocco national team. He started his professional career playing for Racing de Casab ...

and missed a penalty in a 2–0 win over

Comoros The Comoros,, ' officially the Union of the Comoros,; ar, الاتحاد القمري ' is an independent country made up of three islands in southeastern Africa, located at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean. It ...

. He scored the equaliser in a 2–1 win over

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...

in the last 16. On 10 November 2022, he was named in Morocco's 23-man squad for the

2022 FIFA World Cup The 2022 FIFA World Cup is an international association football, football tournament contested by the men's national teams of FIFA's member associations. The 22nd FIFA World Cup is taking place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022 ...

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 ...

. On 10 December, in their quarter-final match against

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

, En-Nesyri jumped to score the lone goal to put Morocco through to the semi-finals, the first African nation to do so.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Morocco's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each En-Nesyri goal''.

Honours

Sevilla *

: 2019–20 *

UEFA Super Cup The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions; the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's official name was originall ...

runner-up:

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

Individual *Leganés Player of the Season: 2018–19 *

La Liga Player of the Month The Player of the Month is an association football award that recognises the best La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countrie ...

January 2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after ...

France Football ''France Football'' is a French weekly magazine containing football news from all over the world. It is considered to be one of the most reputable sports publications in Europe, mostly because of its photographic reports, in-depth and exclusiv ...

CAF Men Team of The Year: 2021 Orders *

Order of the Throne The Order of the Throne (Arabic: ''Wissam al-Arch'', French: ''Ordre du Trône'') is a state decoration of the Kingdom of Morocco awarded for distinguished services of a civil or military nature. The Order was instituted on 16 May 1963 by King H ...

: 2022

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:En-Nesyri, Youssef 1997 births Living people People from Fez, Morocco Moroccan footballers Association football forwards La Liga players Tercera División players Mohammed VI Football Academy players Atlético Malagueño players Málaga CF players CD Leganés players Sevilla FC players Morocco under-20 international footballers Morocco international footballers Moroccan expatriate footballers Moroccan expatriate sportspeople in Spain Expatriate footballers in Spain 2017 Africa Cup of Nations players 2018 FIFA World Cup players 2019 Africa Cup of Nations players 2021 Africa Cup of Nations players 2022 FIFA World Cup players UEFA Europa League winning players