Ibrahim Afellay

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Personal information
Ibrahim Afellay
Full name	Ibrahim Afellay
Date of birth	April 2, 1986 (age 21)
Place of birth	Utrecht, Netherlands
Playing position	Midfielder
Club information
Current club	PSV Eindhoven
Number	20
Senior clubs¹
Years	Club	App (Gls)*
2003-2007	PSV Eindhoven	50 (8)
National team²
2007-	Netherlands	1 (0)
¹ Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 4 January 2007. ² National team caps and goals correct as of 29 March 2007. * Appearances (Goals)

Ibrahim Afellay (Arabic: ابراهيم أفيلاي) (born April 2, 1986 in Utrecht) is a Dutch footballer playing for PSV Eindhoven. Even though he has Moroccan roots, he plays for the Dutch national youth teams and has been pre-selected for the Dutch national team.

Afellay played for the youth of PSV since childhood (after spending his earliest years at amateur team Elinkwijk in Utrecht), and finally in February 2004, at the age of 17, he made his debut for PSV in the Dutch Cup match against NAC Breda. He would go on to play 2 league matches in the remainder of that season. In the following season (2004/2005), PSV's most successful since 1988 (winning the double and reaching the semi-final of the European Champions League), Afellay did not break through until the end of the year, with as highlight 2 goals in PSV's 4-2 win against Feyenoord in May 2005. He finished the season having played 7 matches and scored 2 goals.

In the 2005/2006 season, following the departure of many important players including midfielders Johann Vogel and Mark van Bommel, Afellay grew to be a first-team regular, and was even pre-selected for the Dutch national team. He played a total of 23 league matches during the season, in which he scored 2 goals. This number could have been higher were it not for the minor injuries he suffered throughout the season; one of his weaker points is indeed his lack of physical power. He weighs only 68 kilograms and is 1.81 metres tall.

After both the Morocccan and the Dutch national teams managers selected him for their squads, he was caught in the dilemma to either play for the Moroccan national team, because of his Moroccan descent, or to play for the Dutch team, the Netherlands being his homeland, but has finally decided to play for the Dutch national team and has officially been selected for it.^[1] He made his international debut in a Euro 2008 qualifier against Slovenia on 28 March 2007.

[edit] Notes

^ - KNVB Official Selection

[edit] Career Stats

Season	Club	Country	Competition	Matches	Goals
2003/04	PSV	Netherlands	Eredivisie	2	0
2004/05	PSV	Netherlands	Eredivisie	7	2
2005/06	PSV	Netherlands	Eredivisie	23	2
2006/07	PSV	Netherlands	Eredivisie	18	4
			Total	50	8

[edit] External links

Ibrahim Afellay photos by Tvw

PSV Eindhoven - Current Squad
1 Gomes \| 2 Kromkamp \| 3 Reiziger \| 4 Alex \| 6 Simons \| 7 Väyrynen \| 8 Cocu \| 9 Kluivert \| 10 Koné \| 11 Méndez \| 13 Alcides \| 14 da Costa \| 15 Čulina \| 16 Aissati \| 17 Farfán \| 18 Addo \| 19 Lamey \| 20 Afellay \| 21 Moens \| 22 Fehér \| 23 Salcido \| 24 Nguyen \| 25 de Jong \| 26 Tardelli \| 28 Sun \| 30 Plá \| 31 Boffin \| 39 Marcellis \| Manager: Koeman