Brahim Abdelkader Díaz (; ar, إبراهيم عبد القادر دياز; born 3 August 1999), known as Brahim Díaz or simply Brahim, is a Spanish 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 ...

who plays as an

attacking 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 ...

right winger 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 ...

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' ...

club Real Madrid.

Club career

Manchester City

Brahim began his career at his hometown club Málaga, before moving to Manchester City in 2015 as a 16-year-old for an initial £200,000 fee. On 21 September 2016, Díaz made his first-team debut for City, coming on as an 80th-minute substitute to replace Kelechi Iheanacho in an EFL Cup tie against Swansea City. Five days later, he signed his first professional contract with City, for three years. On 21 November 2017, Brahim made his Champions League debut against

Feyenoord Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Dutch professional football club (association football), football club in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the club changed to various names bef ...

in a

group stage A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concen ...

match, coming on in injury time for

Raheem Sterling Raheem Shaquille Sterling (born 8 December 1994) is a professional footballer who plays as a winger and attacking midfielder for club Chelsea. Born in Jamaica, he represents the England national team. Born in Jamaica to Jamaican parents, S ...

. On 19 December 2017, Brahim made his first club start, playing for 88 minutes against

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...

in the

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

. He made his

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Fo ...

debut on 20 January 2018, in a 3–1 victory over Newcastle United. and on 13 May, he received a winner's medal after appearing sporadically in four more league games over the season. On 5 August 2018, Brahim played the final 15 minutes in place of

Phil Foden Philip Walter Foden (born 28 May 2000) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Manchester City and the England national team. He is considered one of the best young players in the world. Foden's breakthrough ...

a 2–0 win over

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

in the

2018 FA Community Shield The 2018 FA Community Shield (also known as The FA Community Shield supported by McDonald's for sponsorship reasons) was the 96th FA Community Shield, an annual football match played between the title holders of the Premier League and FA Cup. It w ...

. Later that season, Brahim would score his first career goal for City, netting both times in a 2–0 win over Fulham on 1 November.

Real Madrid

Following intense transfer speculation, coupled with his contract with Manchester City due to expire in June 2019, Brahim joined Real Madrid on 6 January, for a transfer fee of £15.5 million (€17 million). His contract, which runs until 2025, also includes potential add-ons, which could see the value of the transfer to rise to £22 million (€24 million). The transfer also includes clauses which stipulates a 15 per cent sell-on fee to be received by City, which would rise to 40 per cent should Brahim depart Madrid and transfer to " another Manchester club".

2018–20: First season in Spain and La Liga title

He made his debut on 9 January 2019, coming on as a substitute in a 3–0 victory over

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 ...

in the

Copa del Rey The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footb ...

. His league debut came four days later, when he again came in as a substitute in a 2–1 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 ...

. He scored his first goal on 12 May 2019, in a 1–3 defeat at Real Sociedad. He made six appearances during the league season, as Real Madrid won the

2019–20 La Liga The 2019–20 La Liga season, also known as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, was the 89th since its establishment. The season began on 16 August 2019 and was originally scheduled to conclude on 24 May 2020. Barcelona were the two-time ...

2020–23: Loan to AC Milan and Serie A champion

On 4 September 2020, Real Madrid announced that Brahim would be loaned out to

AC Milan Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 and 1982–83 seaso ...

for the duration of the 2020–21 season. On 27 September, he scored his first goal in a 2–0 away win over Crotone. On 9 May 2021, he scored a goal in a 3–0 away win over Juventus. After the 2020–21 season, he was loaned for another two years to AC Milan with a buyout option. On 15 September 2021, he scored his first Champions League goal against

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

in a 3–2 defeat in the 2021–22 Champions League group stage. On 8 October 2022, Brahim scored his second goal against Juventus in a league game, finishing after a run to double the advantage as he seized a loose pass and knocked it around the Juventus defender

Leonardo Bonucci Leonardo Bonucci (; born 1 May 1987) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back and captains both club Juventus and the Italy national team. Known for his technique and ball-playing ability, he is regarded as one of the b ...

to get through on goal, and then finished past goalkeeper

Wojciech Szczęsny Wojciech Tomasz Szczęsny (; born 18 April 1990) is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Juventus and the Poland national team. After starting his club career at Legia Warsaw, Szczęsny signed for Arsenal in Jan ...

. On 14 February 2023, he scored the only goal in a 1–0 victory over

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The team has playe ...

in the Champions League round of 16. The 23-year-old, dubbed “sensational” by the media, has been reliable, if not spectacular, in the 2022–23 season, contributing four goals and two assists in 23 games.

2023–present: Return to Real Madrid

On 10 June 2023, Real Madrid announced Brahim's return from a three-season loan at AC Milan, and upon his return, he signed a contract extension with the club until June 2027, succeeding the departing

Marco Asensio Marco Asensio Willemsen (; born 21 January 1996) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a winger and attacking midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid and the Spain national team. After starting out at Mallorca, Asensio signed w ...

. On 27 September, he scored his first goal since his return, contributing to a 2–0 triumph over

Las Palmas Las Palmas (, ; ), officially Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, is a Spanish city and capital of Gran Canaria, in the Canary Islands, on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital (jointly with Santa Cruz de Tenerife), the most populous city in the auto ...

during a La Liga game at the Santiago Bernabéu. He was subsequently awarded the Man of the Match title. On 8 November, he scored his first Champions League goal for Real Madrid, by netting the opener in a 3–0 victory over

Braga Braga ( , ; cel-x-proto, Bracara) is a city and a municipality, capital of the northwestern Portuguese district of Braga and of the historical and cultural Minho Province. Braga Municipality has a resident population of 193,333 inhabitants (in ...

, which secured his club's qualification to the knockout phase. On 6 January 2024, Brahim scored his first

goal in a match against Arandina, contributing to a 3–1 victory for Real Madrid. In the Supercopa de España semi-final on 10 January at

KSU Stadium Bill Snyder Family Stadium is a stadium in Manhattan, Kansas. It is used for American football, and is the home field of the Kansas State University Wildcats football team. It is named after the family of head coach Bill Snyder. Over the past 3 ...

in Riyadh, Brahim clinched a dramatic victory for Real Madrid over Atlético Madrid with a last-minute goal, making the score 5–3 in a match that extended into extra time. His decisive goal came as Atlético's goalkeeper

Jan Oblak Jan Oblak (born 7 January 1993) is a Slovenian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for La Liga club Atlético Madrid and captains the Slovenia national team. He is frequently ranked as one of the best goalkeepers in the world. O ...

advanced for a corner, staying in Real Madrid's half after a throw-in, allowing Brahim to score from just inside the halfway line and secure Real Madrid's place in the final. A month later, on 13 February, in the Champions League round of 16 first leg match, Brahim scored the only goal for Real Madrid against

RB Leipzig RasenBallsport Leipzig e.V. (), commonly known as RB Leipzig, and colloquially referred to as Red Bull Leipzig, is a German professional football club based in Leipzig, Saxony. The club was founded in 2009 by the initiative of the company Red Bul ...

at the Red Bull Arena, securing a 1–0 victory with a 49th-minute left-footed curler past Leipzig goalkeeper Péter Gulácsi after skillfully evading multiple defenders, earning him the Man of the Match award in a compound accomplishment.

International career

Spain

Brahim is a youth international for Spain, and made his first appearances at age 16, where he received praise for his performances for Spain's U17s in the

2016 UEFA European Under-17 Championship The 2016 UEFA European Under-17 Championship was the 15th edition of the UEFA European Under-17 Championship (34th edition if the Under-16 era is included), the annual European international youth football championship contested by the men's under- ...

. Due to the isolation of some national team players following the positive

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...

test of

Sergio Busquets Sergio Busquets Burgos (, ; born 16 July 1988) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for La Liga club Barcelona, where he is captain. He is considered to be a deep-lying playmaker capable of directing gameplay ...

, Spain's under-21 squad were called up for the international friendly against Lithuania on 8 June 2021. Brahim made his senior debut in the match and scored the second goal in a 4–0 victory against Lithuania.

Morocco

On 27 January 2023, it was announced that Brahim planned to switch allegiances to the Morocco national team. In October 2023, '' Marca'' reported that Brahim had decided to represent Morocco, with some administrative details related to change in nationality being resolved. However, he was not called up by coach

Walid Regragui Hoalid Regragui (born 23 September 1975), known as Walid Regragui ( ar, وليد الركراكي, Walīd ar-Ragrāgī), is a Moroccan professional football manager and former player who played as a right-back. He is the head coach of the Mor ...

for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, due to a pre-established agreement.

Personal life

Brahim, as he was born in Spain to a Spanish mother and a Moroccan father, was also eligible to play for

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 t ...

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Spain score listed first, score column indicates score after each Brahim goal''

Honours

Manchester City *

: 2017–18 * EFL Cup: 2017–18 * FA Community Shield:

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 Unit ...

Real Madrid *

: 2019–20 * Supercopa de España: 2023–24 AC Milan *

Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Cop ...

: 2021–22 Spain U17 *

UEFA European Under-17 Championship The UEFA European Under-17 Championship or simply UEFA Under-17 Championship, is an annual football competition contested by the European men's under-17 national teams of the member associations of UEFA. Spain is the most successful team in this ...

runner-up:

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

Individual * Serie A Goal of the Month: October 2022 * AC Milan Player of the Month: October 2022 * Real Madrid Player of the Month: December 2023

References

External links

Profile
at the Real Madrid CF website * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Diaz, Brahim 1999 births Living people Footballers from Málaga Spanish men's footballers Spain men's youth international footballers Spain men's under-21 international footballers Spain men's international footballers Men's association football forwards Málaga CF players Manchester City F.C. players Real Madrid CF players AC Milan players Premier League players La Liga players Serie A players Spanish expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in Italy Spanish expatriate sportspeople in England Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Italy Spanish sportspeople of Moroccan descent Moroccan people of Spanish descent