Abdelhamid Abuhabib

Abdelhamid Abuhabib (Arabic: عبد الحميد أبو حبيب‎; born 6 August 1989) is a Palestinian footballer currently playing for Hebron-based Shabab Al-Khaleel of the West Bank Premier League.

Abdelhamid Abuhabib
Personal information
Date of birth (1989-06-08) 8 June 1989
Place of birth Khan Younis, Palestine
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Playing position(s) Attacking Midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Shabab Al-Khaleel
Number 19
Youth career
2000–2005 Shabab Khan Younis
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2005–2009 Shabab Khan Younis
2009–2012 Merkaz Balata (27)
2012– Shabab Al-Khaleel (1)
National team‡
2009–2013 Palestine U23 6 (1)
2011– Palestine 28 (7)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of June 06, 2014
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of January 20, 2015

Early years

Abuhabeeb grew up playing football in the streets of Khan Younis from an early age. He joined his local club Shabab Khan Younis's youth team as an adolescent, following in the footsteps of his older brother Mohammed. Despite his small stature, it didn't take long before Abuhabib joined his older brother on the senior side earning his first cap in 2005.

Club career

Merkaz Balata

Like many other Gazan footballers Abuhabib went to the West Bank in search of more steady league play as the Gazan league had been victim of political turmoil. He signed with Merkaz Shabab Balata in 2009 and was able to secure an exit visa to travel to the West Bank. Upon his arrival, he was surprised to learn that he had not signed with a top tier side, but with a side playing in the second division. Abuhabib had a fantastic first season with Balata, scoring 9 goals and helping them earn promotion to the West Bank Premier League. His sublime skill caught the eye of the more established Shabab Al-Khaleel whom he signed with but voided the contract over undisclosed disputes. In 2010, Abuhabib signed a one-year deal keeping him in Nablus with Balata.[1]

His second season with the club would prove to be even more spectacular. In the league, Abuhabib scored 12 goals in 22 matches helping power the newly promoted side to fourth place in the 12-team league. He also turned in numerous man of the match performances in the Palestinian FA Cup scoring 8 goals in 8 games helping Balata reach the final where they lost to Hilal Al-Quds. In Abuhabib's first season in the Palestinian top flight he had 22 goals in the three competitions (12 league goals, 8 FA Cup goals, 2 Yasser Arafat Cup goals). He once again opted to extend his contract for an added year at the end of the season.[2] He moved to Shabab Al-Khaleel at the end of the 2011–12 season.

International career

Abuhabib received his first call-up to the Olympic team in 2009 to face Tunisia. He played a pivotal role in Palestine's attempt to qualify for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Having been barred from traveling to Thailand by Israeli authorities for the first leg of the first round of Olympic Qualifying Abuhabib would start the second leg. He scored the only goal of the game- and the first goal in a competitive international in Palestine- in the 43rd minute on a spectacular volley from 25 meters.

Abuhabib also played well in the next round against Bahrain helping Palestine win 0–1 in Manama and helping them take 1–0 halftime lead in the return leg in Palestine. Palestine would eventually go out on away goals falling just short of 3rd round of Olympic Qualifying.

Abuhabib was called up to the senior team in July 2011 to face Thailand but had to withdraw from training after suffering an abdominal injury. He made his debut as a late substitute in an October 2011 friendly against Iran. He scored his first and second goals in the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup third place playoff against the Philippines.

International goals

Senior team
Scores and results list the Palestine's goal tally first.
#DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.19 March 2011Dasarath Rangasala Stadium, Kathmandu Philippines
1–1
3–4
2012 AFC Challenge Cup
2.19 March 2011Dasarath Rangasala Stadium, Kathmandu Philippines
2–3
3–4
2012 AFC Challenge Cup
3.4 March 2013Dasarath Rangasala Stadium, Kathmandu Northern Mariana Islands
2–0
9–0
2014 AFC Challenge Cup qualifier
4.4 March 2013Dasarath Rangasala Stadium, Kathmandu Northern Mariana Islands
4–0
9–0
2014 AFC Challenge Cup qualifier
5.19 May 2014National Football Stadium, Malé Kyrgyzstan
1–0
1–0
2014 AFC Challenge Cup
6.21 May 2014National Football Stadium, Malé Myanmar
1–0
2–0
2014 AFC Challenge Cup
7.9 November 2014Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi Vietnam
1–0
3–1
Friendly

Olympic team
Scores and results list the Palestine's goal tally first.
#DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.9 March 2011Faisal Al-Husseini International Stadium, Al-Ram Thailand
1–0
1–0
2012 Summer Olympics qualifier

Honours

National team
gollark: You could also use actual steganography, but sure?
gollark: Not THAT secret but yes.
gollark: You can't see it without bots, inspect element, or CSS which makes profile pictures square.
gollark: The corners are transparent instead of opaque white now.
gollark: I actually changed my profile picture today.

References
  1. "الأقصى سبورت ©™ - ضابط الإيقاع أبو حبيب : أتمني تقبيل يد أمي وأبي .. والجدعان في أمان .. ومن تواضع لله رفعه". Aqsasport.org. Retrieved 2011-10-14.
  2. "أبو حبيب يجدد عقده مع مركز بلاطة :: الأقصى الرياضي". Alaqsasport.ps. Retrieved 2011-10-14.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.