Omid Popalzay (Dari: امید پوپلزی; born 25 January 1996) is an Afghan professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Liga 2 club PSPS Pekanbaru and the Afghanistan national team.
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Omid Popalzay | ||
| Date of birth | 25 January 1996 | ||
| Place of birth | Kabul, Afghanistan | ||
| Height | 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | PSPS Pekanbaru | ||
| Number | 10 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| SV Estria | |||
| –2015 | NEC | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2015–2018 | Achilles '29 | 53 | (5) |
| 2018 | FC Lienden | 11 | (0) |
| 2019 | Adelaide Comets | 4 | (1) |
| 2019–2020 | Sint-Eloois-Winkel | 4 | (0) |
| 2020–2021 | Olimpia Grudziądz | 30 | (3) |
| 2021–2022 | Chittagong Abahani | 20 | (5) |
| 2023 | Ariana | 3 | (0) |
| 2023 | Nejmeh | 2 | (0) |
| 2023– | PSPS Pekanbaru | 22 | (7) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2015– | Afghanistan | 41 | (6) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19 November 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17 October 2023 | |||
Youth
editBefore joining Achilles '29 in 2015 Omid Popalzay played in the youth of SV Estria and N.E.C./FC Oss.[citation needed]
Career
editAchilles '29
editHe signed in July 2015 his first professional contract for Achilles '29.[1] He was signed to play for the second team of Achilles '29 but was given a change for the first team after he impressed. On 11 September 2015 he made his debut for Achilles '29 against Sparta Rotterdam. He scored his first goal in a 2–1 win against FC Den Bosch.[2] One week after the win against FC Den Bosch he scored another goal and made an assist against Jong PSV with the result being a 3–2 win for Achilles '29.[3]
Australia and Belgium
editIn the beginning of 2019, Popalzay moved abroad to Australia and joined Adelaide Comets.[4] In May 2019, he left the club to join Belgian club Sint-Eloois-Winkel.[5]
Olimpia Grudziądz
editOn 11 August 2020, Popalzay signed a contract with Polish club Olimpia Grudziądz.[6]
Chittagong Abahani
editOn 22 November 2021, Popalzay joined Bangladesh Premier League club Chittagong Abahani.
Ariana
editAfter a failed move to Kelantan,[7] Popalzay signed a deal with Swedish Ettan Fotboll club Ariana at the end of March 2023.[8]
Nejmeh
editOn 11 June 2023, Popalzay joined Lebanese Premier League club Nejmeh.[9]
International career
editOmid Popalzay made his debut for the Afghanistan national team in their World Cup Qualification match against Singapore on 8 October 2015.[10] They lost the match 1–0. After this match, he also played for the national team against Syria and Cambodia.
Personal life
editPopalzay holds both Dutch and Afghan passports.[citation needed]
Career statistics
editClub
editStatistics accurate as of last match played on 9 November 2016.
| Club performance | League | Cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Netherlands | League | KNVB Cup | Europe1 | Other2 | Total | |||||||
| 2015–16 | Achilles '29 | Eerste Divisie | 19 | 4 | — | — | — | 19 | 4 | |||
| 2016–17 | Achilles '29 | Eerste Divisie | 12 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 1 | ||
| Total | Netherlands | 31 | 5 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 32 | 5 | |||
| Career total | 31 | 5 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 32 | 5 | ||||
1 Includes UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League matches.
2 Includes Johan Cruijff Shield matches.
International
edit- Scores and results list Afghanistan's goal tally first.[11]
| No | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 28 December 2015 | Trivandrum International Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram, India |  Maldives |
2–1 | 4–1 | 2015 SAFF Championship |
| 2. | 4–1 | |||||
| 3. | 6 June 2017 | Al-Rashid Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates | Maldives |
2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 4. | 11 June 2021 | Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar |  Oman |
1–1 | 1–2 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 5. | 16 November 2021 | Gloria Sports Complex, Antalya, Turkey |  Indonesia |
1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 6. | 12 September 2023 | Rizal Memorial Stadium, Manila, Philippines |  Philippines |
1–0 | 1–2 |
Honours
editNejmeh
References
edit- ^ "Boelens, Popalzay, Witteveen en Deckers definitief naar Achilles 1".
- ^ "Gelukkige zege Achilles dankzij een te late wissel".
- ^ "Omid Popalzay speler van de week, Hidde Jurjus nieuwe koploper".
- ^ NPL SA: Afghanistan international Omid Popalzay signs for Adelaide Comets, adelaidenow.com.au, 1 February 2019
- ^ Afghaanse Nederlander derde versterking voor Winkel Sport, kw.be, 21 May 2019
- ^ Omid Popalzay piłkarzem Olimpii!, 11 August 2020
- ^ Pemain tengah Afghanistan gagal diserap TRW, tapi bekas 'striker' Sabah pula meroyan, majoriti.com.my, 15 February 2023
- ^ Ariana stänger truppen med flera nyförvärv, arianafc.com, 31 March 2023
- ^ "النجمة اللبناني يضم لاعب أفغانستان". كووورة. 11 June 2023. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
- ^ "Singapore vs. Afghanistan - 8 October 2015 - Soccerway".
- ^ "Popalzay, Omid". National Football Teams. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
External links
edit- Omid Popalzay at National-Football-Teams.com
- Omid Popalzay at Global Sports Archive
- Omid Popalzay at Soccerway