Selim Amallah
{{Short description|Footballer (born 1996)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2022}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Selim Amallah
| image = Amellah (cropped).jpg
| caption = Amallah with Morocco in 2023
| full_name = Selim Amallah{{cite web |url=https://fdp.fifa.org/assetspublic/ce44/pdf/SquadLists-English.pdf |title=FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 – Squad list: Morocco (MAR) |publisher=FIFA |page=19 |date=15 November 2022 |access-date=15 November 2022}}
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1996|11|15|df=y}}
| birth_place = {{Interlanguage link|Hautrage|fr|3=Hautrage}} , Belgium{{cite web |url=https://standard.be/fr/news/selim-amallah-rejoint-les-rouches |title=Selim Amallah Rejoint Les Rouches |date=13 May 2019 |website=Standard Liege |publisher=Standard Liege |access-date=26 May 2022}}
| height = 1.89 m
| position = Midfielder
| currentclub = Valladolid
| clubnumber = 21
| youthyears1 = 2003–2008
| youthclubs1 = RAEC Mons
| youthyears2 = 2008–2012
| youthclubs2 = Anderlecht
| youthyears3 = 2012–2015
| youthclubs3 = RAEC Mons
| years1 = 2015–2016
| clubs1 = Mouscron
| caps1 = 3
| goals1 = 0
| years2 = 2016–2017
| clubs2 = Tubize
| caps2 = 24
| goals2 = 0
| years3 = 2017–2019
| clubs3 = Mouscron
| caps3 = 52
| goals3 = 14
| years4 = 2019–2023
| clubs4 = Standard Liège
| caps4 = 80
| goals4 = 24
| years5 = 2023–
| clubs5 = Valladolid
| caps5 = 24
| goals5 = 5
| years6 = 2023–2024
| clubs6 = → Valencia (loan)
| caps6 = 20
| goals6 = 0
| nationalyears1 = 2019–
| nationalteam1 = Morocco
| nationalcaps1 = 31
| nationalgoals1 = 4
| club-update = 17 February 2025
| nationalteam-update = 12 September 2023 (UTC)
}}
Selim Amallah (Berber: ⵙⴰⵍⵉⵎ ⴰⵎⴰⵍⵍⴰⵃ) ({{langx|ar|سليم أملاح}}; born 15 November 1996) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for La Liga club Real Valladolid. Born in Belgium, he plays for the Morocco national team.
Club career
=Early career=
Amallah was born in {{Interlanguage link|Hautrage|fr|3=Hautrage}}, Belgium, to a Moroccan father, Houcine Amallah, and a Belgian mother of Belgian and Italian descent, Antoinette Caufriez.{{cite web |title=Amallah nommé au "Lion Belge" |url=https://www.sudinfo.be/art/224550/article/2018-04-27/amallah-nomme-au-lion-belge |publisher=SUDINFO |archive-url=https://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/index2.php?url=https%3A%2F%2Fnordeclair-mouscron.sudinfo.be%2F224550%2Farticle%2F2018-04-27%2Famallah-nomme-au-lion-belge#federation=archive.wikiwix.com&tab=url |archive-date=27 April 2018|language=fr |date=27 April 2018}}{{cite book |last1=Geril |first1=Jürgen |title=Marokkaan Selim Amallah zag Belgische moeder sterven en eert haar nu met kwartfinale op het WK: "Hij speelt elke match voor zijn mama" |date=6 December 2022 |publisher=Gazet van Antwerpen |url=https://www.gva.be/cnt/dmf20221206_94739650 |access-date=25 March 2023 |language=nl}} He is a cousin of fellow footballer Maximiliano Caufriez.{{cite web |title="C'est la raison pour laquelle Selim Amallah joue" |url=https://www.footnews.be/news/348229/cest-la-raison-pour-laquelle-selim-amallah-joue |publisher=FootNews.BE |access-date=25 March 2023}} Amallah began his senior career with Royal Excel Mouscron in 2015. He moved to Tubize in the following year, before returning to Mouscron in 2017.
File:2018-02-22 Entrainement excel-39 Selim Amallah.jpg in 2018]]
=Standard Liège=
Amallah joined Standard Liège in 2019. On 12 December 2019, he scored Standard's second goal to put the club up on Premier League club Arsenal during the group stage of the Europa League; but Arsenal scored twice in the final 12 minutes to snatch a 2–2 draw.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/50749747|title=Arsenal came back from two goals down to draw 2-2 at Standard Liege and progress to the last 32 of the Europa League as group winners.|website=BBC|date=12 December 2019|accessdate=23 October 2020}} Three days later, he scored in Standard's 1–1 draw against his former club and rivals Anderlecht.{{cite web|url=https://www.goal.com/en/news/selim-amallah-scores-as-10-man-anderlecht-hold-standard/15c0t7mfj7u531u1n7pm13tfe4|title=Selim Amallah scores as 10-man Anderlecht hold Standard Liege|website=Goal|date=15 December 2019|accessdate=23 October 2020}}
On 1 October 2020, in a UEFA Europa League play-off match against Fehérvár, Amallah scored twice from the penalty-spot to help secure a 3–1 win and qualification to the group stage.{{cite web|url=https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/match/2030550/|title=Standard Liège 3-1 Fehérvár|website=UEFA|date=1 October 2020|accessdate=23 October 2020}} In November 2020, he was awarded with the Belgian Lion Award, given to the best player of Arab origin playing in Belgium. He succeeded his compatriot, Mehdi Carcela, who won the previous two editions. On 13 March 2021, he scored the only goal as Standard defeated Eupen to reach the final of the Belgian Cup.{{cite web|url=https://sporza.be/nl/matches/voetbal/croky-cup/2020-2021/halve-finale/01/kas-eupen-standard-standard-is-eerste-bekerfinalist-na-klasseflits-van-amallah-tegen-eupen~1602577141122/|title=Standard is eerste bekerfinalist na klasseflits van Amallah tegen Eupen|website=Sporza|date=13 March 2021|accessdate=11 April 2021|language=Dutch}}
=Valladolid=
On 31 January 2023, Amallah signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with La Liga side Real Valladolid.{{cite web|url=https://www.realvalladolid.es/noticia/selim-amallah-2027|title=Selim Amallah 2027|publisher=Real Valladolid|language=es|date=31 January 2023|accessdate=31 January 2023}} He scored twice in seven appearances during the remainder of the season, as the club suffered relegation.
==Loan to Valencia==
On 29 August 2023, Amallah moved to Valencia CF in the Spanish top tier on a one-year loan deal.{{cite web|url=https://www.realvalladolid.es/noticias/amallah-cedido-al-valencia-cf|title=Amallah, cedido al Valencia CF|trans-title=Amallah, loaned to Valencia CF|publisher=Real Valladolid|language=es|date=29 August 2023|accessdate=29 August 2023}}{{Cite web |date=2023-08-30 |title=Morocco’s Selim Amallah Signs for Valencia CF |url=https://en.hespress.com/70028-moroccos-selim-amallah-signs-for-fc-valencia.html |access-date=2023-08-31 |website=HESPRESS English - Morocco News |language=en-US}}
International career
Amallah was born in Belgium and is of Moroccan and Italian descent.{{cite web|url=http://lionsdelatlas.ma/14538-selim-amallah-travailler-dur-car-le-travail-paye-toujours|title=Sélim Amallah : Travailler dur car le travail paye toujours|last=Tarik|website=lionsdelatlas.ma}} He chose to represent the Morocco national team at the international level and made his competitive debut in a 0–0 draw with Mauritania on 15 November 2019 in qualification match for the 2022 Africa Cup of Nations.{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/soccer/match?gameId=558142|title=Morocco 0:0 Mauritania|website=ESPN|date=15 November 2019|accessdate=23 October 2020}}
On 9 October 2020, he scored his first goal for the Atlas Lions in a match against Senegal after being set up by Achraf Hakimi. He then provided an assist for Youssef En-Nesyri's goal in the 71st minute as Morocco won 3–1.{{cite web|url=https://www.goal.com/en-us/news/tunisia-thump-sudan-traores-burkina-faso-down-congo/1wn84r01tou3v1k182lrdo6hxt|title=African friendly results: Morocco dispatch Senegal, Tunisia thump Sudan|website=Goal|date=9 October 2020|accessdate=11 April 2021}}
On 10 November 2022, he was named in Morocco's 23-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.{{Cite web |title=Morocco World Cup 2022 squad: Who's in and who's out? {{!}} Goal.com |url=https://www.goal.com/en-bh/lists/morocco-2022-world-cup-squad-hakimi-ziyech-mazraoui-qatar/blta36257fc4feeb66a |access-date=10 November 2022 |website=www.goal.com}}{{Cite web |date=10 November 2022 |title=Moroccan coach unveils list of 26 Atlas Lions in 2022 World Cup |url=https://en.hespress.com/52697-moroccan-coach-unveils-list-of-26-atlas-lions-in-2022-world-cup.html |access-date=10 November 2022 |website=HESPRESS English - Morocco News |language=en-US}}
Personal life
His mother Antoinette died when he was 14 years old. Amallah has since played every game for her, and honored her at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, where he played an important role for Morocco, eventually reaching the semifinals and finishing the tournament in 4th place.{{cite web |title=Trotse familie van Belgo-Marokkaan Selim Amallah, in de basis bij Marokko: ‘Hij realiseert zijn droom voor onze overleden moeder’ |url=https://www.demorgen.be/nieuws/trotse-familie-van-belgo-marokkaan-selim-amallah-in-de-basis-bij-marokko-hij-realiseert-zijn-droom-voor-onze-overleden-moeder~b620c3b8/ |publisher=De Morgen |access-date=25 March 2023}}
Career statistics
=Club=
{{updated|matches played 15 April 2024}}{{cite web|title=Selim Amallah|url=https://int.soccerway.com/players/selim-amallah/409847/|website=Soccerway|accessdate=23 October 2020}}
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competition | ||||||||||
| rowspan="2"|Club
!rowspan="2"|Season !colspan="3"|League !colspan="2"|Cup !colspan="2"|Europe !colspan="2"|Other !colspan="2"|Total | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| rowspan="3"|Mouscron
|21 | 5 | 2 | 0 | colspan="2"|– | 8{{efn|name=BPO}} | 4 | 31 | 9 | ||
| 2018–19
|Belgian First Division A |19 | 3 | 1 | 0 | colspan="2"|– | 4{{efn|name=BPO|Appearances in Europa League play-offs}} | 2 | 24 | 5 | ||
| colspan="2"|Total
!40 | 8 | 3 | 0 | colspan="2"|– | 12 | 6 | 55 | 14 | ||
| rowspan="5"|Standard Liège
|Belgian First Division A |25 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 5{{efn|name=UEL}} | 2 | colspan="2"|– | 32 | 9 | ||
| 2020–21
|Belgian First Division A |27 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 6{{efn|name=UEL|Appearances in UEFA Europa League}} | 4 | colspan="2"|— | 35 | 15 | ||
| 2021–22
|Belgian First Division A |19 | 3 | 0 | 0 | colspan="2"|— | colspan="2"|— | 19 | 3 | |||
| 2022–23
|Belgian First Division A |9 | 4 | colspan="2"|— | colspan="2"|— | colspan="2"|— | 9 | 4 | ||||
| colspan="2"|Total
!80 | 24 | 4 | 1 | 11 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 95 | 31 | |
| Real Valladolid
|7 | 2 | colspan="2"|— | colspan="2"|— | colspan="2"|– | 7 | 2 | ||||
| Valencia (loan)
|La Liga |18 | 0 | 2 | 0 | colspan="2"|— | colspan="2"|— | 20 | 0 | |||
| colspan="3"|Career total
!145 | 34 | 9 | 1 | 11 | 6 | 12 | 6 | 177 | 47 |
{{notelist}}
=International=
:Scores and results list Morocco's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Amallah goal.{{NFT player|76182|access-date=14 January 2022}}
| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ List of international goals scored by Selim Amallah | ||||||
| scope="col"|No.
!scope="col"|Date !scope="col"|Venue !scope="col"|Opponent !scope="col"|Score !scope="col"|Result !scope="col"|Competition | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| align="center"|1 | 9 October 2020 | Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat, Morocco | {{fb|SEN}} | align="center"|1–0 | align="center"|3–1 | Friendly |
| align="center"|2 | rowspan="2"|12 October 2021 | rowspan="2"|Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat, Morocco | rowspan="2"|{{fb|GUI}} | align="center"|2–1 | rowspan="2" align="center"|4–1 | rowspan="2"|2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| align="center"|3 | align="center"|3–1 | |||||
| align="center"|4 | 14 January 2022 | Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé, Cameroon | {{fb|COM}} | align="center"|1–0 | align="center"|2–0 | 2021 Africa Cup of Nations |
Honours
Individual
- Mouscron Player of the Year: 2019
- Belgian Lion Award: 2020{{cite web|url=https://www.archyde.com/selim-amallah-named-belgian-lion-of-the-year/|title=Selim Amallah named "Belgian Lion" of the year|website=Archyde|date=17 November 2020|accessdate=11 April 2021}}
Orders
- Order of the Throne: 2022{{Cite web |date=2022-12-20 |title=King receives members of national soccer team, decorates them with Royal wissams |url=https://en.hespress.com/55519-king-receives-members-of-national-soccer-team-decorates-them-with-royal-wissams.html |access-date=2023-06-10 |website=HESPRESS English – Morocco News |language=en-US}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- [https://www.realvalladolid.es/jugadores/selim-amallah Profile] at the Real Valladolid website {{in lang|es}}
- {{BDFutbol|49386}}
- {{soccerway|selim-amallah/409847}}
{{Real Valladolid squad}}
{{Navboxes
| title = Morocco squads
| bg = #BA1219
| fg = white
| bordercolor = #006233
| list1 =
{{Morocco squad 2021 Africa Cup of Nations}}
{{Morocco squad 2022 FIFA World Cup}}
{{Morocco squad 2023 Africa Cup of Nations}}
}}
{{Belgian Lion}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Amallah, Selim}}
Category:Moroccan men's footballers
Category:21st-century Moroccan sportsmen
Category:Men's association football midfielders
Category:Morocco men's international footballers
Category:Belgian men's footballers
Category:Moroccan people of Belgian descent
Category:Moroccan people of Italian descent
Category:Belgian sportspeople of Moroccan descent
Category:Belgian people of Italian descent
Category:R.A.E.C. Mons (1910) players
Category:Royal Excel Mouscron players
Category:Royale Union Tubize-Braine players
Category:Standard Liège players
Category:Belgian Pro League players
Category:Real Valladolid players
Category:Segunda División players
Category:2021 Africa Cup of Nations players
Category:2022 FIFA World Cup players
Category:2023 Africa Cup of Nations players
Category:Moroccan expatriate men's footballers
Category:Moroccan expatriate sportspeople in Spain