Kamel Ghilas

Kamel Ghilas

Ghilas in 2012
Personal information
Full nameKamel Fathi Ghilas
Date of birth9 March 1984
Place of birthMarseille, France
Height1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Playing positionForward
Club information
Current team
None
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2001–2003Vitrolles6(1)
2003–2006Cannes86(22)
2006–2008Vitória Guimarães59(18)
2008–2009Celta33(13)
2009–2012Hull City13(1)
2010–2011Arles-Avignon (loan)19(2)
2011–2012Reims (loan)35(14)
2012–2014Reims24(0)
2014Charleroi5(0)
National team
2007–Algeria19(3)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 02:31, 5 May 2014 (UTC).

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 00:00, 27 May 2012 (UTC)

Kamel Fathi Ghilas (born 9 March 1984) is an Algerian professional footballer who plays as a forward.

Club career

Early years

Born in Marseille, France, Ghilas started his career in amateur football, with ES Vitrolles. At the age of 19 he joined AS Cannes in the Championnat National, quickly breaking into the first team and featuring mostly as a winger.

In the 2004–05 season Ghilas established himself as a starter, going on to lead the club in scoring by netting seven times in 31 appearances. The following year he contributed with 13 as the French Riviera side narrowly missed out on promotion to Ligue 2, finishing two points behind FC Libourne-Saint-Seurin for the third and final spot.

Vitória Guimarães

In the 2006 summer Ghilas signed for Vitória S.C. in Portugal, penning a two-year contract.[1] In his first year he ranked first in goals scored in his team, helping to a return to the top division after one year out.[2]

Ghilas made his debut in the competition on 19 August 2007, starting in a 1–1 home draw against Vitória de Setúbal. He scored six times in a further 20 league appearances to help the club finish a best-ever third and qualify to the UEFA Champions League; however, following a contract dispute, he left the Minho Province side as a free agent.[3]

Celta

On 12 July 2008 Celta de Vigo announced the signing of Ghilas from Vitória,[4] with the player penning a three-year contract worth 300,000 a year.[5] He scored his first goals for the Galicians on 28 September in a 2–1 home win over CD Tenerife, in what was the season's first win.[6]

On 28 July 2009, a fee of £1.7 million was agreed for Ghilas to transfer to Blackburn Rovers in the Premier League – the move was set to be completed pending on the player agreeing personal terms and passing a medical. However, the transfer broke down in the 11th hour, with conflicting reports on the grounds: the English claimed he had failed the medical, whereas the Spaniards claimed that Blackburn had attempted to renegotiate the transfer fee and player's wages at the last minute; they attempted to disprove Rovers' claims by playing him in a friendly the following day.[7]

Hull City

On 13 August 2009 Ghilas agreed terms with Hull City, signing a four-year deal for which Celta was paid £1.7 million. Nine days later he made his debut for his new team, scoring in a 1–0 victory over Bolton Wanderers in the 61st minute after being fed a through ball from Jozy Altidore.[8]

However, Ghilas failed to perform for the East Yorkshire outfit subsequently, being loaned to French clubs AC Arles-Avignon[9] and Stade de Reims.[10] He made his debut for the latter on 15 August 2011, netting in a 2–1 win over AS Monaco FC.[11]

Late career

After scoring 14 goals in the 2011–12 campaign, being an essential offensive unit as Reims returned to Ligue 1 after more than three decades, Ghilas joined the club on a permanent deal.[12] On 30 January 2014 he moved teams and countries again, joining Belgian Pro League's R. Charleroi S.C. for six months.[13]

International career

Although French-born, Ghilas opted to represent Algeria, making his international debut on 2 June 2007 in an 2008 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Cape Verde. Five months later he scored his first goal, in a 3–2 friendly win over Mali.

Kamel Ghilas: International goals
Goal Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 20 November 2007 Stade Robert Diochon, Rouen, France  Mali 2–2 3–2 Friendly
2 26 March 2008 Stade Maurice Bacquet, Paris, France  DR Congo 1–1 1–1 Friendly
3 11 February 2009 Stade Mustapha Tchaker, Blida, Algeria  Benin 2–1 2–1 Friendly

Club statistics

As of 6 October 2013.[14]
Club performance League Cup League Cup Total
Season Club League Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
France League Coupe de France Coupe de la Ligue Total
2001–02VitrollesCFA61??????
2002–03CFA 200??????
2003–04CannesChampionnat National180??????
2004–05317??????
2005–063513??????
Portugal League Taça de Portugal Taça da Liga Total
2006–07Vitória GuimarãesLiga de Honra2912??????
2007–08Primeira Liga30620????
Spain League Copa del Rey Supercopa de España Total
2008–09CeltaSegunda División331300N/AN/A3313
England League FA Cup League Cup Total
2009–10Hull CityPremier League1311020161
France League Coupe de France Coupe de la Ligue Total
2010–11Arles-AvignonLigue 11921000202
2011–12ReimsLigue 2351410003614
2012–13Ligue 12301000230
2013–1410000010
Total France 16837??????
Portugal 5918??????
Spain 331200N/AN/A3312
England 1311020161
Career total 27368602028168

Personal life

Ghilas' younger brother, Nabil, is also a footballer and a forward. He too played in France, Portugal and for Algeria.[15]

References

  1. "Ghilas assinou por 2 anos" [Ghilas signed for 2 years] (in Portuguese). Record. 15 June 2006. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  2. "Ghilas: "Não estou cansado"" [Ghilas: "I am not tired"] (in Portuguese). Record. 28 March 2008. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  3. "Direcção desiste da renovação de Ghilas" [Board of directors give up on Ghilas renewal] (in Portuguese). Record. 20 May 2008. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  4. "El Celta se adelanta al Arsenal y ficha a Kamel Ghilas" [Celta gets ahead of Arsenal and signs Kamel Ghilas] (in Spanish). Marca. 12 July 2008.
  5. "Ghilas no Celta de Vigo para tentar a subida" [Ghilas in Celta de Vigo to attempt promotion] (in Portuguese). Record. 13 July 2008. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  6. "El Celta consigue su primera victoria" [Celta gets first win] (in Spanish). Marca. 28 September 2008.
  7. "La venta de Ghilas se rompe" [The sale of Ghilas breaks down] (in Spanish). Atlántico. 31 July 2009.
  8. Hull City 1–0 Bolton Wanderers; ESPN Soccernet, 22 August 2009
  9. "Tigers offload Ghilas on loan". Sky Sports. 30 July 2010. Retrieved 30 July 2010.
  10. "Hull sign Austrian winger Martin Pusic following trial". BBC Sport. 10 August 2011. Retrieved 10 August 2011.
  11. "Verts: Première réussie pour Ghilas contre Monaco" [Greens: First strike for Ghilas against Monaco] (in French). DZFoot. 15 August 2011. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  12. Ghilas leaves Hull for Reims; Yahoo! Sports, 6 July 2012
  13. "L’international Algérien Kamel Ghilas attaquant au Sporting." [Algerian international forward Kamel Ghilas at Sporting.] (in French). Sporting de Charleroi. 30 January 2014. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
  14. "K. Ghilas". Soccerway. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  15. "Nabil Ghilas : "Je veux faire mieux que mon frère"" [Nabil Ghilas : "I want to do better than my brother"] (in French). Le Buteur. 28 August 2012. Retrieved 16 December 2013.

External links

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