Munir El Haddadi

This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is El Hadaddi and the second or maternal family name is Mohamed.
Munir

Munir playing for Barcelona in 2014
Personal information
Full name Munir El Haddadi Mohamed
Date of birth (1995-09-01) 1 September 1995
Place of birth El Escorial, Spain
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[1]
Playing position Forward
Club information
Current team
 Valencia
(on loan from Barcelona)
Number 9
Youth career
2007–2009 Galapagar
2009–2010 Santa Ana
2010–2011 Atlético Madrid
2010–2011 → Rayo Majadahonda (loan)
2011–2014 Barcelona
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2014–2015 Barcelona B 28 (8)
2014– Barcelona 26 (4)
2016– → Valencia (loan) 10 (2)
National team‡
2014 Spain U19 4 (6)
2014– Spain U21 16 (10)
2014– Spain 1 (0)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 1 December 2016.

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 11 November 2016

Munir El Haddadi Mohamed (Arabic: منير الحدادي محمد‎‎; born 1 September 1995), known simply as Munir, is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a forward for Valencia CF on loan from FC Barcelona.

He began his career in the youth ranks of Atlético Madrid before transferring to Barcelona in 2011,[2] where he won the 2013–14 UEFA Youth League. He made his debut for the B-team in March 2014, and scored in his first match for the senior team in August of that year, at the start of a season in which they won the treble. The following year he was one of five top scorers in the Copa del Rey, which his team won.

Munir earned his first cap for the Spanish national team against Macedonia on 8 September 2014.

Early life

Munir was born in San Lorenzo de El Escorial,[3] Madrid, and grew up in nearby Galapagar, on a street likened to a "Little Morocco" by El Mundo.[4] His Moroccan father,[3] Mohamed El Haddadi Arbrqui, came to Spain in a fishing boat at the age of 18 and is now a chef. His mother, Zaida, hails from the Spanish autonomous city of Melilla on the north coast of Africa, she is a former kitchen hand who now looks after Munir's three siblings.[4] Up to the age of 14, Munir was a fan of Real Madrid.[4]

Club career

Early career

After starting at Galapagar and DAV Santa Ana, Munir scored 32 goals in 29 matches playing for CF Rayo Majadahonda's Cadete A team, on loan from Atlético Madrid, after impressing in a trial in 2010. However, both Atlético and Real Madrid turned down the opportunity to bring him into their ranks.[5] As a result, he attracted interest from a number of sides such as Manchester City, but signed for FC Barcelona's youth academy the following summer.[6]

Barcelona

Munir made his UEFA Youth League debut against Ajax U19 where he scored two goals.[7] He scored braces against Milan U19 and Copenhagen U19, finishing the tournament scoring 11 goals in 10 matches. He scored a brace in the final against Benfica U19.[8] On 3 March 2014, he extended his contract with the club keeping him with the club until June 2017.[9]

After being an unused substitute against CD Tenerife and Deportivo La Coruña, Munir made his professional debut for FC Barcelona B on 2 March 2014, in a 1–2 away win against RCD Mallorca in the second division, coming as a 72nd-minute substitute for Sandro Ramírez.[10] He scored his first goal as a senior player in a 2–1 home win against Girona FC on 19 April.[11]

Rafinha, Gerard Piqué and Munir warming up for Barcelona in August 2014

On 24 August 2014, Munir made his official debut for the first team in La Liga, against Elche CF at the Camp Nou. He started the match and scored the second goal of an eventual 3–0 win before being substituted after 67 minutes for Pedro.[12] Eight days short of his 19th birthday, he became Barcelona's third-youngest goalscorer after Bojan Krkić and Lionel Messi.[5] Munir was a nominee for the 2014 Golden Boy Award.[13]

On 22 February 2015, he was sent off for two bookings in Barcelona B's 0–1 defeat at UE Llagostera,[14] as the season ended with relegation to Segunda División B.[15] Munir played three games apiece in Barcelona's successful runs in the Copa del Rey and UEFA Champions League, but was not included in the matchday squads for either final.

He was an unused substitute for their 5–4 win over Sevilla FC in the 2015 UEFA Super Cup on 11 August.[16] On 2 December, he scored his first Barcelona goals since his debut, netting two in a 6–1 win over CF Villanovense as Barcelona advanced by the same score on aggregate in the domestic cup.[17] On 17 December, starting due to Messi and Neymar's injuries in the semi-finals of the year's FIFA Club World Cup in Yokohama, Munir won a penalty kick when fouled by Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao F.C.'s Huang Bowen, from which Luis Suárez finished his hat-trick to send Barcelona into the final 3–0.[18] The South American duo returned for the final, which Barcelona won 3–0 against Club Atlético River Plate with Munir unused.[19]

On 13 January 2016, profiting from Suárez's suspension, Munir scored both goals in a cup win at city rivals RCD Espanyol, putting Barcelona into the quarter-finals 6–1 on aggregate.[20] He was unused for the final, a 2–0 extra-time win over Sevilla on 22 May, but with five goals was one of as many players to finish as the tournament's top scorer, among them Messi and Suárez.[21]

On 14 August 2016, Munir came on as substitute on the 76th–minute and scored to double Barcelona's lead over Sevilla FC in the 2016 Supercopa de España first leg to give Barcelona a lead of two goals in the second leg.[22]

Valencia (loan)

On 30 August 2016, Munir moved to fellow La Liga team Valencia on a season-long loan.[23] He was handed the number 9 previously worn by Paco Alcácer, who had moved in the opposite direction.[24] He made his debut on 11 September, replacing Santi Mina after 63 minutes of a home game against Real Betis, and his rebounded header was scored by Ezequiel Garay in a 2–3 defeat.[25] On 22 October he scored his first goal for the Che, coming on at half time for Martín Montoya and equalising at Mestalla against his parent team in a loss by the same score.[26]

International career

Munir was born and raised in Spain, the son of Moroccan parents, and was eligible to represent either nation internationally. It was rumoured that Qatar had offered Munir a financial deal to take that country's nationality and represent the team who are set to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup.[4]

On 29 August 2014, Munir was called up for the first time as one of 21 players for Albert Celades' Spain Under-21 team to face Hungary and Austria in September.[27] However, after an injury to Diego Costa, Vicente del Bosque called Munir up to the senior squad for the first time ahead of a UEFA Euro 2016 qualifier against Macedonia on 8 September.[28] He made his debut in that match, replacing Koke for the final 13 minutes of a 5–1 victory at the Estadi Ciutat de València.[29] He said after the game that he never considered playing for Morocco.[30]

Style of play

As a child, Munir idolised Messi and Moroccan international Adel Taarabt.[31] A report from FourFourTwo magazine noted his composure on the ball, tricks, speed, and highlighted his finishing ability and set-pieces; his ability with his weaker right foot was criticised.[31]

After his goalscoring debut, Barcelona manager Luis Enrique praised Munir as a player whose effort in training matches that on the pitch, but warned against getting carried away with his performance.[31]

Statistics

Club

As of 1 December 2016.[32]
Club Season League Copa del Rey Europe Other Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Barcelona B 2013–14 114—114
2014–15 174—174
Total 288—288
Barcelona 2014–15 101303[lower-alpha 1]0—161
2015–16 153554[lower-alpha 1]02[lower-alpha 2]0268
2016–17 1 0 0 0 0 0 2[lower-alpha 3] 1 3 1
Total 2648570414510
Valencia (loan) 2016–17 10 2 1 1 — 11 3
Career total 64149670418421
  1. 1 2 All appearances in UEFA Champions League
  2. ↑ One appearance in Supercopa de España and one appearance in FIFA Club World Cup
  3. ↑ Both appearances in Supercopa de España

International

As of match played 8 September 2014[33]
Spain
YearAppsGoals
201410
Total10

Honours

Barcelona[32]

References

  1. ↑ "Munir El Haddadi". Retrieved 24 August 2014.
  2. ↑ "Barcelona sign 15year child prodigy". Ahram. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  3. 1 2 "El Haddadi promise excites Barcelona". UEFA. Retrieved 4 May 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Mucha, Martín (31 August 2014). "El padre de Munir, la esperanza musulmana del Barça: 'Llegué en patera'" [The father of Munir, Barça's Muslim hope: 'I arrived in a small boat']. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 September 2014.
  5. 1 2 "Munir tripping the light fantastic". FIFA. 9 September 2014. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  6. ↑ "Five facts about Arsenal linked Munir El Haddadi". Hereisthecity. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  7. ↑ "Barcelona 4 Ajax 1". UEFA. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  8. ↑ "Munir El Habbadi". UEFA. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  9. ↑ "Munir El Haddadi extended his contract with Barcelona". Starafrica. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  10. ↑ "RCD Mallorca vs Barcelona B". Soccerway. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  11. ↑ "Barcelona B vs Girona FC". Marca. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  12. ↑ Cryer, Andy (24 August 2014). "Barcelona 3–0 Elche". BBC Sport. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
  13. ↑ Richards, Alex (28 October 2014). "England pair Raheem Sterling and Calum Chambers join Adnan Januzaj in Golden Boy award nominations". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
  14. ↑ "El Llagostera hunde al Barça B, con el viento como protagonista" [Llagostera sink Barça B, with the wind as the protagonist] (in Spanish). Marca. 22 February 2015. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  15. ↑ Güell, Robert (31 May 2015). "FC Barcelona B fall to Leganés, and down to the Second Division B, 5–2". FC Barcelona. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  16. ↑ "Barcelona 5–4 Sevilla". BBC Sport. 11 August 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  17. ↑ "Night for Barcelona youth as Sandro Ramirez and Munir El Haddadi star – in pictures". The National. 3 December 2015. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
  18. ↑ "Barcelona 3–0 Guangzhou Evergrande". 17 December 2015. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
  19. ↑ Begley, Emlyn (20 December 2015). "River Plate 0–3 Barcelona". BBC Sport. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  20. ↑ "Espanyol 0–2 Barcelona". BBC Sport. 13 January 2016. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  21. ↑ "Guidetti acaba como pichichi de la Copa del Rey" [Guidetti finishes as Copa del Rey Pichichi] (in Spanish). El Desmarque. 23 May 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
  22. ↑ "Sevilla 0-2 Barcelona: Suarez and Munir strike for Barca". Retrieved 2016-08-15.
  23. ↑ "Agreement with Valencia for Munir loan". FC Barcelona. Retrieved 2016-08-30.
  24. ↑ "VCF Official Statement | Munir". Valencia CF. Retrieved 2016-08-30.
  25. ↑ "Munir El Haddadi's fine Valencia debut spoiled by Castro". Sport. 11 September 2016. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
  26. ↑ "Valencia 2-3 Barcelona". BBC Sport. 22 October 2016. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  27. ↑ "OFFICIAL: Call up list for the matches against Hungary and Austria". RFEF. 29 August 2014. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  28. ↑ "Costa ruled out of Spain squad, Munir is replacement". Goal.com. 5 September 2014. Retrieved 5 September 2014.
  29. ↑ Jenson, Pete (8 September 2014). "Spain 5–1 Macedonia: David Silva stars as reigning champions get their Euro 2016 qualifying campaign off to a winning start". Daily Mail. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  30. ↑ Corrigan, Dermot (8 September 2014). "Spain forward Munir El-Haddadi never considered playing for Morocco". ESPN FC. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
  31. 1 2 3 Yu, Cronan (31 August 2014). "What you need to know about Barca's Munir El Haddad". FourFourTwo. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
  32. 1 2 Munir El Haddadi profile at Soccerway
  33. ↑ Munir El Haddadi at National-Football-Teams.com
  34. ↑ "First Youth League title goes Barcelona's way". UEFA.com. 14 April 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2015.

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