Riyad Mahrez

Riyad Mahrez

Mahrez with Algeria in 2014
Personal information
Full name Riyad Mahrez[1]
Date of birth (1991-02-21) 21 February 1991
Place of birth Sarcelles, France
Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[2]
Playing position Winger
Club information
Current team
 Leicester City
Number 26
Youth career
2004–2009 AAS Sarcelles
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2009–2010 Quimper 27 (1)
2010–2013 Le Havre II 60 (24)
2011–2014 Le Havre 60 (6)
2014– Leicester City 100 (27)
National team‡
2014– Algeria 27 (6)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 10:17, 4 December 2016 (UTC).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 21:00, 12 November 2016 (UTC)

Riyad Mahrez (Arabic: رياض محرز‎‎; born 21 February 1991) is a professional footballer who plays for English club Leicester City and the Algerian national team as a winger.

Mahrez began his career as a youth player for French club AAS Sarcelles. He turned professional in 2009 with Quimper, where he played for only one season before moving to Le Havre, spending a total of three years with them, initially playing for their reserve team and then becoming a first-team regular. In January 2014, Mahrez signed for English side Leicester City, helping them win the Football League Championship and promotion to the Premier League at the end of his first season. In the 2015–16 season he was the Algerian Footballer of the Year, the PFA Players' Player of the Year, and was a member of the Premier League PFA Team of the Year as he helped Leicester City win the Premier League.

Mahrez made his international debut for Algeria in 2014 and represented them at the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.

Early and personal life

Mahrez was born in Sarcelles, France, to an Algerian father and a mother of Algerian and Moroccan descent.[3] His father Ahmed was from Beni Snous, Tlemcen District.[4] Growing up, Mahrez would regularly spend his holidays in Algeria.[5][6]

Mahrez's father had played football in Algeria.[6] When Mahrez was fifteen, his father died of a heart attack. He reflected that "I don't know if I started to be more serious but after the death of my dad things started to go for me. Maybe in my head I wanted it more".[6]

Mahrez married his English girlfriend in 2015.[6][7] Their daughter was born later that year.[8]

Mahrez is a practising Muslim.[9][10]

Club career

Early career

Although often overlooked by teams due to his slender build, Mahrez developed ball skills that brought him attention.[6]

He joined AAS Sarcelles in 2004.[11]

In 2009, Mahrez joined CFA side Quimper from AAS Sarcelles, making 22 appearances and scoring 2 goals in his first season with the club.[12] While playing for Quimper he lived with Mathias Pogba.[11]

He joined Le Havre in 2010, turning down offers from leading French teams Paris Saint-Germain and Marseille to join them, being enticed by their youth system.[6] He initially played for their reserve team, Le Havre II, before going on to play 60 times and score 6 goals for the first team in the French Ligue 2 from 2011 until leaving in January 2014.[13][14] He criticised Ligue 2 for what he saw as a reliance on defence and teams aiming for a goalless draw in every match.[6]

Leicester City

Mahrez playing for Leicester in 2014
Mahrez taking a free kick away to Arsenal in February 2015.

2013–14 season

While Mahrez was playing for Le Havre, English Football League Championship club Leicester City's scout Steve Walsh was monitoring teammate Ryan Mendes, but was instead impressed by Mahrez.[15] Mahrez had never heard of Leicester, whom he initially presumed to be a rugby club.[16] On 11 January 2014, he signed a three-and-a-half-year contract.[17][18] His friends and family were initially sceptical of a move to English football due to its physical nature, believing that his style of play would be more suited to Spain.[6]

Mahrez made his debut on 25 January 2014, coming on in the 79th minute as a substitute replacing fellow winger Lloyd Dyer, in the 2–0 win against Middlesbrough.[19] After making four substitute appearances for Leicester, including scoring his first goal for the club, an 82nd-minute equaliser against local rivals Nottingham Forest, manager Nigel Pearson announced in February 2014 that he thought Mahrez was ready to start games.[20] Leicester ended the season as winners of the Championship, returning to the Premier League for the first time in ten years.[21]

2014–15 season

Mahrez made his Premier League debut on 16 August 2014, and scored his first goal in the division on 4 October 2014 in a 2–2 draw with Burnley.[22][23] Mahrez was part of the Leicester team that won seven of its final nine matches of the season to avoid relegation to the Football League. He scored both goals in a 2–0 defeat of Southampton on 9 May[24] and ended the season with four goals and three assists from 30 appearances.[25]

2015–16 season

He signed a new four-year contract with Leicester in August 2015.[26] On 8 August 2015, Mahrez scored two goals in the season opener against Sunderland in a 4–2 home win.[27] He was later described as the club's "match winner" by captain Wes Morgan, following "superb form" which saw him score four goals in the first three games of the season.[28]

After scoring four goals in the opening four games of the 2015–16 season, Mahrez was nominated for the Premier League Player of the Month award.[29] By 3 November 2015 he had scored seven goals in 10 Premier League games.[30] On 5 December, Mahrez scored a hat-trick as Leicester defeated Swansea City 3–0 to go top of the Premier League, putting him on ten league goals for the season and making him the first Algerian to score a Premier League hat-trick.[31] Mahrez and his midfield partners Marc Albrighton, N'Golo Kanté and Danny Drinkwater received plaudits for their part in Leicester's early season run of form,[32] and manager Claudio Ranieri described Mahrez and forward Jamie Vardy as "priceless" ahead of the January transfer window.[33]

In January 2016 Mahrez's transfer value was said to have risen from £4.5 million to £30.1 million, ranking him among the top 50 most valuable players in Europe.[34][35] In the same year, Mahrez's popularity in his homeland led Leicester to have over almost three times as many Facebook fans in Algeria than in the UK.[36] The barbershop in Sarcelles that he frequented from his childhood became a destination for fans from as far as Belgium, desiring the same haircut.[11]

Mahrez was one of four Leicester players named in the PFA Team of the Year in April 2016,[37] and later that month he won the PFA Players' Player of the Year award.[38] He was the first African to earn the accolade.[39] When Leicester finished the season as champions, Mahrez became the first Algerian to win a Premier League medal.[40]

2016–17 season

He signed a new four-year contract with Leicester in August 2016.[41] He was nominated for the FIFA Ballon d'Or in October 2016.[42]

International career

Mahrez (right) playing for Algeria against Belgium at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

In November 2013 Mahrez expressed his desire to represent Algeria internationally.[43] He was called up to the provisional Algerian squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.[44] On 31 May 2014, Mahrez made his international debut for the Desert Foxes as a starter in a pre-World Cup friendly match against Armenia, and he was subsequently called up to the full squad for the tournament on 2 June.[45] The Algerian media were critical of his inclusion, and alleged that he had paid manager Vahid Halilhodžić for a place in the squad.[46][47] Mahrez played in the opening group game against Belgium, then was dropped for the remainder of the tournament, in which Algeria reached the last 16.[47]

On 15 October 2014, Mahrez scored his first international goal, as well as setting up Islam Slimani in Algeria's 3–0, Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Malawi.[48] In December 2014 he was announced as a member of Algeria's squad for the final tournament in Equatorial Guinea.[49] He featured in every game as they reached the quarter-finals, and opened a 2–0 win over Senegal in the last group game to send his team through.[50]

Career statistics

Club

As of 4 December 2016[12][13][22][51][2]
Club Season League Cup[lower-alpha 1] League Cup[lower-alpha 2] Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Quimper 2009–10 CFA 271––––--271
Le Havre II 2010–11 32130000--3213
2011–12 25110000--2511
2012–13 300000--30
Total 60240000--6024
Le Havre 2011–12 Ligue 2 900000--90
2012–13 3444110--395
2013–14 1720023--195
Total 6064133--6710
Leicester City 2013–14 Championship 1930000--193
2014–15 Premier League 3041010--324
2015–16 37170021--3918
2016–17 14300005[lower-alpha 3]41[lower-alpha 4]0207
Total 100271031541011032
Career total 247585164541026467
  1. ↑ Includes the Coupe de France and FA Cup
  2. ↑ Includes the Coupe de la Ligue and League Cup
  3. ↑ All appearance(s) in UEFA Champions League
  4. ↑ Appearance in Community Shield

International

As of match played 12 November 2016[2]
Algeria
YearAppsGoals
201492
2015132
201652
Total276

International goals

As of 6 September 2016[52]
GoalDateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1 15 October 2014 Stade Mustapha Tchaker, Blida, Algeria  Malawi 2–0 3–0 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
2 15 November 2014 Stade Mustapha Tchaker, Blida, Algeria  Ethiopia 2–1 3–1 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
3 27 January 2015 Nuevo Estadio, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea  Senegal 1–0 2–0 2015 Africa Cup of Nations
4 17 November 2015 Stade Mustapha Tchaker, Blida, Algeria  Tanzania 3–0 7–0 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
5 4 September 2016 Stade Mustapha Tchaker, Blida, Algeria  Lesotho 2–0 6–0 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
6 6–0

Honours

Club

Leicester City

Individual

References

  1. ↑ "Barclays Premier League: notification of shirt numbers" (PDF). Premier League. p. 10. Retrieved 16 August 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 "Riyad Mahrez". National Football Teams. Retrieved 10 June 2014.
  3. ↑ "Riyad Mahrez : "On a une équipe capable de faire de belles choses"" (in French). DjaZairess. 10 January 2015. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  4. ↑ "Mahrez honoré à Tlemcen" (in French). El Heddaf. 4 June 2015. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  5. ↑ "Comment la FAF a chipé Mahrez au Maroc" (in French). Le Buteur. 9 May 2014. Retrieved 10 June 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Paul Doyle (12 September 2015). "Leicester City's Riyad Mahrez is fast fulfilling his late father's dreams". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
  7. ↑ "Mais qui est Rita, la très jolie femme de Mahrez ?". Sports.fr (in French). 30 April 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
  8. ↑ Percy, John (13 December 2015). "'Flying' Riyad Mahrez coming to terms with dramatic ascent and comparisons with Lionel Messi". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
  9. ↑ Dave Kidd (16 November 2015). "Thriving Premier League a shining example of multiculturalism in week of Paris terrorist attack". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
  10. ↑ Duchâteau, Romain (29 August 2015). "Riyad Mahrez, l'enfant chéri de Sarcelles" (in French). SoFoot. Retrieved 13 May 2016.
  11. 1 2 3 Steve Crossman (10 March 2016). "Riyad Mahrez: Leicester forward's journey to top of Premier League". BBC Sport. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  12. 1 2 "QUIMPER 17e CFA Groupe D" (in French). Stat2foot.com. Retrieved 11 January 2014.
  13. 1 2 Riyad Mahrez profile at Soccerway
  14. ↑ Riyad Mahrez – French League Stats at LFP.fr (French)
  15. ↑ "Leicester City star Riyad Mahrez not target of original scouting mission says head of recruitment". Leicester Mercury. 22 October 2015. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  16. ↑ Brewin, Joe (25 April 2016). "Riyad Mahrez: The street-schooled dreamer whose ambition knew no limits". FourFourTwo. Retrieved 1 September 2016.
  17. ↑ "Riyad Mahrez Signs For Leicester City". Leicester City F.C. 11 January 2014. Retrieved 11 January 2014.
  18. ↑ "Transfer window: Riyad Mahrez joins Leicester from Le Havre". BBC Sport. 11 January 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2014.
  19. ↑ "Leicester 2 – 0 Middlesbrough". BBC Sport. 25 January 2014. Retrieved 25 January 2014.
  20. ↑ "Riyad Mahrez: Nigel Pearson says winger ready to start games". BBC Sport. 21 February 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  21. 1 2 "Leicester City promoted to Premier League after 10-year absence". BBC Sport. 5 April 2014. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  22. 1 2 Riyad Mahrez career statistics at Soccerbase
  23. ↑ "'Unknown' Riyad Mahrez making impressive strides, says Nigel Pearson". Leicester Mercury. 8 October 2014. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  24. ↑ "Leicester 2-0 Southampton".
  25. ↑ "Riyad Mahrez". Premier League. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  26. ↑ "Riyad Mahrez: Leicester City winger signs new contract". BBC Sport. 5 August 2015. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
  27. ↑ "Leicester City 4–2 Sunderland". Soccerway. 8 August 2015. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  28. ↑ "We can't rely on Riyad Mahrez all the time, says Wes Morgan". Leicester Mercury. 9 September 2015. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
  29. ↑ "Andre Ayew & Manuel Pellegrini win Premier League awards". BBC Sport. 11 September 2015. Retrieved 13 September 2015.
  30. ↑ "Riyad Mahrez wary of Leicester City's rising expectations". BBC Sport. 3 November 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  31. ↑ Pritchard, Dafydd (5 December 2015). "Swansea 0-3 Leicester". BBC Sport. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  32. ↑ Laurence, Martin (8 December 2015). "Why Riyad Mahrez, and not Jamie Vardy, has been the player of the season so far". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 January 2016.
  33. ↑ "Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez priceless - Claudio Ranieri". BBC Sport. 15 December 2015. Retrieved 17 January 2016.
  34. ↑ "Leicester City winger Riyad Mahrez ranked in top 50 most valuable players in Europe at nearly £30m". Leicester Mercury. 6 January 2016. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  35. ↑ "Leicester City: Why we are all rooting for the Foxes". BBC Sport. 3 February 2016. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  36. ↑ "African players in the Premier League". BBC Sport. 18 March 2016. Retrieved 18 March 2016.
  37. 1 2 "PFA awards: Leicester and Spurs dominate Premier League team". BBC Sport. 21 April 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
  38. 1 2 "Riyad Mahrez: Leicester City forward named PFA Player of the Year". BBC Sport. 25 April 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
  39. ↑ "Bargain of the century Riyad Mahrez first African to win EPL player of the season". TVNZ. Associated Press. 25 April 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
  40. 1 2 "Leicester City: The ridiculous statistics". Football 365. 3 May 2016. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  41. ↑ "Riyad Mahrez: Leicester City winger signs new four-year deal". BBC Sport. 17 August 2016. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
  42. ↑ "Ballon d'Or: Jamie Vardy, Riyad Mahrez, Gareth Bale & Sergio Aguero on shortlist". BBC Sport. 24 October 2016. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  43. ↑ "Riyad Mahrez "Je sais que je peux jouer en EN"" [Riyad Mahrez "I know that I can play in the national team"] (in French). DZFoot. 11 November 2013. Retrieved 11 January 2014.
  44. ↑ "World Cup 2014: Nabil Bentaleb in Algeria's 30-man squad". BBC Sport. 12 May 2014. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  45. ↑ "World Cup Beckons For Mahrez". Leicester City F.C. 2 June 2014. Retrieved 2 June 2014.
  46. ↑ Tironi, Hrvoje (13 February 2016). "People accused Mahrez of giving me money to go to the World Cup! – Halilhodzic". Goal.com. Retrieved 4 May 2016.
  47. 1 2 Ouali, Amer (29 February 2016). "Leicester City and Riyad Mahrez gaining fans in Algeria". MSN. AFP. Retrieved 4 May 2016.
  48. ↑ "Mahrez Stars In Algeria Win". Leicester City F.C. 15 October 2014. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  49. ↑ "Nations Cup 2015: Newcastle's Mehdi Abeid in Algeria squad". BBC Sport. 15 December 2014. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  50. ↑ Hughes, Ian (27 January 2015). "Senegal 0-2 Algeria". BBC Sport. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  51. ↑ "Riyad Mahrez". Footballdatabase. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
  52. ↑ "La fiche de Riyad Mahrez". DZFoot. Retrieved May 9, 2015.
  53. ↑ "Riyad Mahrez Named Algerian Footballer of the Year". Leicester City F.C. 25 January 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2016.
  54. ↑ "Leicester City's Riyad Mahrez named as PFA Fans' Player of the Season". Sports Mole. 17 May 2016. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
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