Khalfan Ibrahim

Khalfan Ibrahim Khalfan Al Khalfan (Arabic: خلفان إبراهيم خلفان‎; born on 18 February 1988 in Doha) is a retired Qatari international footballer who played as a winger . He was named the Asian Player of the Year in 2006,[1] becoming the first Qatari to win the title. He played for Al Arabi at youth level before moving to Al Sadd in 2004 on a professional contract.

Khalfan Ibrahim
Personal information
Full name Khalfan Ibrahim (retired) Khalfan Al Khalfan
Date of birth (1988-02-18) 18 February 1988
Place of birth Doha, Qatar
Height 1.71 m (5 ft 7 1⁄2 in)
Playing position(s) Winger
Club information
Current team
 retired
Youth career
1998–2004 Al Arabi
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2004–2017 Al Sadd 298 (78)
2017–2018 Al-Arabi 19 (5)
2018–2019 Al Rayyan 12 (0)
2019-2020 Al-Arabi 1 (0)
Total 330 (83)
National team‡
2003–2005 Qatar U–17 8 (9)
2005 Qatar U–20 2 (2)
2006 Qatar U–23 7 (3)
2006–2015 Qatar 90 (21)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 14:47, 8 January 2017 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 28 February 2017

His father, Ibrahim Khalfan Al Khalfan, is a former footballer who played for Al Arabi and the Qatar national team. He is sometimes dubbed as the "Maradona of Qatar"[2] and is also nicknamed "Khalfaninho" by his supporters in reference to Ronaldinho.[3]

Club career

Al Sadd

Early career

Khalfan started out with Al-Arabi (his father's club) and was signed by Al-Sadd in 2004.[4] He assimilated into Al Sadd's first team at the age of 17 in March 2005, under head coach Doru Isac[5] scoring against Al-Shamal.[6]

2005–06

2005–06 was a significantly improved season for him when he scored goals in the Qatar League, Crown Prince Cup and Asian Champions League.

2006–07

His performance in 2006–07 played a part in achieving the Asian Player of The Year title. He scored 5 goals in Al Sadd's start to the league campaign[7] and then was a crucial member of the Asian Games gold medal winning Qatar team. However, in an Olympic qualifying match against Bahrain in February 2007, he got himself injured and was laid-off for more than one year, missing most of Al Sadd's season.

2007–08

He wasn't able to play in the 2007–08 league season due to injury as Al-Gharafa overtook Al-Sadd for the title.

2008–09

He returned from injury in the revamped 2008–09 season. He scored 8 goals in Al-Sadd's first 6 games.

2010–11

Khalfan won the 2011 AFC Champions League with Al Sadd. Khalfan delivered an inspired performance against Suwon in the semi-final second leg to keep the club's hopes alive. He featured in the final against Jeonbuk which was won 4–2 on penalties. He assisted Keita by providing an accurate cross which Keita volleyed into the net, as well as forcing a Jeonbuk defender to head the ball into his own net on the earlier goal. The Koreans scored a late equalizer to make it 2–2, causing the game to go to extra-time and eventually penalties. His performance in the AFC Champions League earned him offers from other clubs, including a contract from Saudi club Al Nassr, however it was announced by the Al Sadd management that they would only take offers from the club in the summer transfer window, as they needed Khalfan to play in the 2011 FIFA Club World Cup.[8][9]

Al Sadd's Asian triumph took them to Japan for the Club World Cup where Khalfan featured and scored against the African champions Esperance in their first match. Abdul Kader Keita's shot from a tight angle was only parried to the far post by Moez Ben Cherifia. Khalfan then reacted the fastest to nod home on the goal-line. The match, which proved to be an ill-tempered affair, was won 2–1. It was capped off with Esperance fans throwing projectiles onto the field and attempting to get past the security barricade.[10]

During this time, Khalfan accumulated 2 red cards in a row within 2 games in the Qatar Stars League, both in the 89th minute for physical altercations with other players. Al Sadd lost both of the matches in which he was red carded. However, he did not receive any red cards in international competitions.

2011–12

Khalfan finished the 2011/12 QSL season as the top league scorer for Al Sadd, with 7 goals.[11]

He scored a goal in the 2012 Qatar Crown Prince Cup in a 4–2 win over Lekhwiya before getting involved in an altercation with Lekhwiya midfielder Nam Tae-Hee after the match for unsportsmanlike behavior.[12] He went on to score Al Sadd's only goal against Al Rayyan in the final, being named Man of the Match.[13]

2012–13

Khalfan Ibrahim had a solid start to the season, playing a critical role of an attacking trio (with Mamadou Niang and Raúl González). They led Al Sadd from a win to another in their first league games, trying to get the club back as Al Sadd had only won 2 domestic competitions and the ACL in the last 5 years after the 2006–07 season in which they won all domestic competitions.

After the first 4 games of QSL, Khalfan (with Niang and Raúl) shared the second place on the top scorer table with 3 goals each. Khalfan scored his first hat-trick this season on Al Sailiya game on 22 October, where his team won 4–1 and he was assisted twice by Niang and once by Raúl, recording the second hat-trick scored in the league this season.

Khalfan in 2011 in a QSL match

On 26 April 2013, in a Crown Prince Cup match against Al Rayyan, he scored an impressive solo goal as he dribbled 60 meters past the entire opposition defense to score a long-range goal. Some news agencies considered it a 'carbon copy' of Diego Maradona's goal against England in the 1986 World Cup,[14] and also reminiscent of Lionel Messi's 'Maradona goal' in 2007.[15] It was touted as a contender for the best goal of 2013[16] and has been described as arguably the best goal by all Qatari players in history.[17] His teammate, Raúl, stated he was the best player of the season, comparing him to Diego Maradona.[18]

On 19 May, he was named as the QFA Player of the Year, beating off competition from teammate Raúl Gonzalez.[19]

2013–14

Khalfan scored his first goal of the 2013-14 season against Al-Ahli on 20 September.

Süper Lig club Beşiktaş were rumored to be interested in signing Khalfan in the off season to replace Hugo Almeida.[20]

2014–15

On 22 September 2014, he scored his 63rd goal for Al Sadd against Al Shahania in a 3–2 win, surpassing Carlos Tenorio's 5-year-old record of 62 goals to become Al Sadd's all-time scorer.[21]

International career
Khalfan during a national team training session in Doha

Youth teams

Khalfan first played for Qatar's youth teams, scoring 6 goals in the under-17 Gulf Cup held in 2003, helping Qatar finish runners-up in the process. Qatar finished runner-up and Khalfan finished second in the scorers list with 6 goals. He was part of the Qatar squad which played at the FIFA Under-17 World Cup in Peru, scoring one goal in the match against the mighty Netherlands. He and his young teammates battled their more illustrious opponents to a 2–2 stalemate at halftime but eventually lost out 3–5. It was a performance which caught the eye and contributed greatly to his Asian Player of the Year title. In the same year he played in the West Asian Games. Qatar's campaign was unsuccessful despite Khalfan scoring two goals. In all the above tournaments he played with a number of his teammates who along with him were to become the backbone of Al-Sadd and the senior national team.

Senior team

After his stellar performances at the youth level, he and his teammates broke into the Annabi's senior team. Their first major triumph was the Asian Games title won in front of home fans, with Khalfan scoring 2 goals. He scored two superb goals against Bangladesh in their Asian Cup 2007 qualifying match.[22] He then took part in his first Gulf Cup, where Qatar couldn't defend their title despite Khalfan scoring one goal against Bahrain. In 2008, he played a prominent part in Qatar's World Cup qualifying campaign scoring against Asia's No 1 side-Australia.

Khalfan took part in Qatar's 2014 World Cup Qualifications which were held from 2011. In a match versus Indonesia, which would be Indonesia's last hopes of qualifying for the World Cup, Khalfan scored an amazing goal from a long way out after dribbling past the defenders. Qatar proved to be too much for Indonesia, eventually winning the game 3–2 in a tightly clinched match.[23] Khalfan also got a brace in the home match against Indonesia in a 4–0 win, thus officially eliminating them from qualifying, and in the process, making him the top scorer for Qatar in the 2014 WCQ.[24]

Brazilian legend Zico commented on Khalfan's performance against Indonesia, stating "I saw that (2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying match) between Indonesia and Qatar on television, and I saw this wonderful player. He has speed and great dribbling skills. He has the features of a Brazilian player. I am confident that Qatar can produce talented players like Khalfan Ibrahim".[25]

Career statistics

Club

Statistics accurate as of 11 April 2014[26][27]

Club Season League League Cup1 League Cup2 Asia3 Other4 Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Al-Sadd 2004–05 QSL 10100----00101
2005–06 12141--3100193
2006–07 16550--4120276
2007–08 6230----0092
2008–09 211510----302515
2009–10 9230006120203
2010–11 183212011171406
2011–12 1774322--302612
2012–13 21105200--513113
2013–14 2614000041003015
Total 156602774228522223776
Career total 156602774228522223776

1Includes Emir of Qatar Cup and Qatar Crown Prince Cup.

2Includes Qatari Stars Cup.

3Includes AFC Champions League.

4Includes FIFA Club World Cup and Sheikh Jassem Cup.

International goals
Scores and results list Qatar's goal tally first.[28]

Notable matches
  • Qatar vs. Bangladesh (Asian Cup 2007 Qualifiers) – First International match, scored twice.
  • Al-Sadd vs Al-Rayyan – Scored two breath taking goals in a league match in 2007.
  • Qatar vs. Indonesia (World Cup 2014 Qualifiers) – 3–2 win, scored once and assisted twice.

Honours

Club
Al Sadd

Individual
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References
  1. "Qatari teenager Ibrahim named Asian Player of the Year". China Daily. 30 November 2006. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  2. "Korea Clinches Dramatic Victory in WC Qualifier Against Qatar". chosun.com. 27 March 2013. Retrieved 27 April 2013.
  3. "Khalfan Ibrahim". capital-balls.com. 20 April 2007. Archived from the original on 11 January 2015. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  4. "Khalfan Ibrahim Khalfan - Player Profile". Qatar Stars League. 25 November 2014. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  5. "خلفان إبراهيم أفضل هداف في تاريخ السد القطري". Al Jazeera. 23 September 2014. Retrieved 12 August 2015. كان أولها في لقاء السد والشمال في الدوري القطري موسم 2004/2005 وهو اللقاء الذي انتهى بفوز السد (3-1) ويومها أحرز خلفان الهدف الثالث والأول له مع الزعيم.
  6. محمد الغريب الكويتي قد يُعاقب لخوضه مباراة تنس ضد لاعب إسرائيلي، ومدرب تشيلسي يحلم بتدريب منتخب بلاده البرتغال قبل إعتزاله (in Arabic). Al Bawaba. 29 March 2005. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  7. "2006 القطري خلفان ابراهيم افضل لاعب لعام". alghad.com. 30 November 2006. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  8. لفان و المطوع داخل اهتمامات النصر Archived 26 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine (in Arabic)
  9. القطري خلفان: لا أعرف مدى جدية عرض النصر وحلم الاحتراف مؤجل (in Arabic)
  10. Match Report: Esperance 1–2 Al Sadd – Goal.com
  11. Khalfan is the top scorer for Al Sadd
  12. تفاصيل "هوشه" خلفان ونام (in Arabic)
  13. خلفان أفضل لاعب في نهائي كأس ولي العهد (in Arabic)
  14. ""La gran Maradona" hizo este jugador en la liga de Qatar" (in Spanish). cronica.com.py. 27 April 2013. Archived from the original on 5 July 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  15. "Al Sadd gain revenge over Al Rayyan". gulf-times.com. 27 April 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  16. "VIDEO: AL SADD STAR OUTSTRIPS BALE & NEYMAR WITH SOLO STUNNER". sport360.com. 28 April 2013. Archived from the original on 30 June 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  17. "Gem of a goal by inspiring Khalfan". Doha Stadium Plus. 1 May 2013. Archived from the original on 9 May 2013. Retrieved 3 May 2013.
  18. "I am thinking only in 1001". al-saddclub.com. 2 May 2013. Archived from the original on 28 June 2013. Retrieved 3 May 2013.
  19. "Sadd's Khalfan, Raul, Amotta shine at QFA awards gala". gulf-times.com. 20 May 2013. Retrieved 22 May 2013.
  20. "Almeida yerine Katar'ın Maradonası!" (in Turkish). spor1903. 21 May 2014. Archived from the original on 22 May 2014. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
  21. "Loyal soldier". dohastadiumplusqatar.com. 24 September 2014. Archived from the original on 23 December 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2014.
  22. "خلفان إبراهيم أصغر لاعب ينال اللقب الآسيوي". elaph.com. 30 November 2006. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  23. FIFA – Qatar snatch win over Indonesia
  24. Khalfan double lifts Qatar past Indonesia Archived 13 November 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  25. QSL – Qatar has quality players, says Brazilian great Zico
  26. "QSL.com.qa – Khalfan Ibrahim". Archived from the original on 26 November 2011. Retrieved 13 November 2011.
  27. QSL 2013-14 Stats
  28. "Al-Khalfan, Khalfan Ibrahim". National Football Teams. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
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