Ali Adnan Kadhim

Ali Adnan
Personal information
Full name Ali Adnan Kadhim Al-Tameemi
Date of birth (1993-12-19) 19 December 1993
Place of birth Baghdad, Iraq
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position Left back
Club information
Current team
 Udinese Calcio
Number 53
Youth career
2003–2008 Ammo Baba School
2008–2009 Al-Zawraa
2009–2010 Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2010–2013 Baghdad (7)
2013–2015 Çaykur Rizespor 41 (3)
2015– Udinese 42 (1)
National team‡
2011–2013 Iraq U20 15 (4)
2012–2016 Iraq U23 10 (5)
2012– Iraq 50 (3)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 14 May 2017.
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 13 Jun 2017

Ali Adnan (Arabic: علي عدنان; born December 19, 1993 in Baghdad, Iraq), is an Iraqi professional footballer who plays as a left back for Italian club Udinese and as a left winger for the Iraqi national team. Ali Adnan has won the 2013 Asian Young Footballer of the Year award,[1] and is often referred to as the "Iraqi Gareth Bale"[2] or the "Iraqi Roberto Carlos".[3] Ali Adnan is not only known for his solid defence, but also for his ability going forward and creating dangerous attacks. He is a versatile player and has been played across the left hand side as well as in holding midfield. Adnan played in the 2016 Rio Olympics and was one of Iraq's best players as they battled against Brazil, Denmark and South Africa, getting knocked out at the group stage. Despite his explosive pace, Adnan is also tall and physically strong, making him a very good full-back.

Personal life

Ali Adnan Kadhim Nassir Al-Tameemi was born in the Iraqi capital Baghdad in the Aadhimiya vicinity on December 19, 1993. The attack minded left back comes from strong footballing stock with both his father and uncle having played at the top level during the 1970s and 80s. His father Adnan Kadhim played for the Iraqi youth team in 1977, and won the 1977 AFC Youth Championship in Tehran, and was a part of the squad of the first Iraqi youth side to play at the 1977 FIFA World Youth Championship in Tunis, that same year. However, even though he played for first division clubs Al-Shabab, Al-Tijara and Al-Rasheed, he never made the ascent from club football to senior international football.[4]

His uncle Ali Kadhim is considered one of the best strikers in the history of the national team, and scored 35 goals for the national team, from 1970 to 1980. This was the national record until Hussein Saeed broke it in 1982.[4]

Ali Adnan Kadhim regards his father as his idol and teacher in both life and sport. Throughout his career, his father has been by his side and was often seen at the Baghdad FC stadium watching his son from the sidelines. When Ali Adnan came out with his shock retirement from international football in 2016, his father called him on air and spoke to him about reversing his decision and Ali Adnan eventually returned to the national team.

Club career

Early years

Ali Adnan was graduated from the prestigious Ammo Baba Football School situated opposite the Al-Shaab Stadium,[5] where he spent the early part of his football education. In his five years at the school, and despite being one of the youngest kids at the time, he excelled and progressed from the Baraem ("Buds") and Ashbal ("Cubs") teams. The player sees his time at the school as an important foundation of his career and a key part of his development. He moved from the school, to one of Iraq's top clubs Al-Zawraa – joining one of the best youth set-ups in the country, and also his uncle’s former club, playing at Nasha’een (Under 17) level and then the youth team. After spending a season in the youth team at city rivals Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya, he transferred to big spenders Baghdad FC.[4]

Baghdad FC

There he first played for the Baghdad FC’s youth side and was invited to the senior team by head coach Yahya Alwan, at a relatively young age but because of the depth in the squad, he returned to the youth set-up. It was only after Karim Kurdi was appointed head coach of the club in 2010, that Ali Adnan became a regular with the seniors. The coach was able to give the attacking left sided player the confidence in his own abilities and Ali Adnan went from strength to strength, dislodging his idol and team-mate, the Iraqi international Bassim Abbas on the left flank, first at club level and then with Iraq.[4] It has been alleged that Adnan was actually born in 1991 as opposed to 1993, due to the fact that in 2010, he was registered with Baghdad FC as having been born in 1991, but a few years later, he was now registered as being born in 1993.[6] He scored seven goals for Baghdad FC in total. Two were in the 2010/11 season (against Naft Maysan and Al-Hassanin), three were in the 2011/12 season (two against Kirkuk FC and one against Al-Sinaa) and two were in the 2012/13 season (against Al-Minaa and Al-Kahraba).[7]

During the 2013 winter transfer window, the player received an offer from Saudi club Ittihad Jeddah FC, to replace Croatian player Anas Sharbini. However the deal fell through when his agent was unable to complete the transfer. The player had been expected to fly to Saudi Arabia to hold negotiations but obtaining a visa to Saudi Arabia would have taken two days and the transfer window would close on the following day, so the deal could not be completed.[4]

Çaykur Rizespor

On August 1, 2013 Ali Adnan officially agreed to sign a five-year contract deal with Çaykur Rizespor. Ali Adnan chose the shirt number 53, as it was the same year the club Çaykur Rizespor was established, in 1953, stating that he feels that Çaykur Rizespor is like his home.[8] On September 1, 2013 Ali Adnan scored his first goal in the Turkish Süper Lig for Çaykur Rizespor against Kayseri Erciyesspor in the 7th minute from long distance. On September 14, 2013 Ali Adnan scored his second goal with Çaykur Rizespor against Gaziantepspor from a free kick from 35 metres.

Ali Adnan playing for Çaykur Rizespor against Galatasaray, 28 September 2013

During the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup, several clubs had shown interest. Ali Adnan has been linked with Spanish Club Sevilla, English club Arsenal, Turkish clubs Galatasaray, Bursaspor and Çaykur Rizespor, Italian clubs Genoa and Livorno. Also the Qatari club Al-Gharrafa showed interest in him.[9][10][11][12]

Galatasaray was set to sign Iraq U-20 star Ali Adnan Kadhim, the Turkish media reported on July 12. The Turkish champions were set to finalize talks with the 19-year-old left-back. Galatasaray has been looking for a player for the left back position, where it had faced problems last season.[13]

On September 2, 2013 Napoli made a €7 Million transfer bid to Çaykur Rizespor for Ali Adnan on a five-year deal, but it was rejected by Çaykur Rizespor's board of directors.[14]

On September 10, 2013, the Turkish media reported that Galatasaray would make a second attempt to sign Ali Adnan in the winter transfer window but the transfer never occurred.

Udinese

On 1 July 2015, Ali Adnan was announced as Udinese's new signing with a five-year contract. This made Ali the first ever Iraqi player to play in the Serie A.[15] He made his competitive debut for the club in a 3–1 victory against Novara in the Coppa Italia, and his Serie A debut came in a 1–0 win away to defending champions Juventus. Ali Adnan scored his first goal for the club by a free kick against Genoa where the game ended in a 2-1 defeat for his side. Ali became a fan favorite at Udinese and impressed when he played. He had an impressive debut season in the Serie A, but his chances were limited in his second season after the arrival of a new manager and he was linked with moves away from the Italian club.[16] Ali Adnan impressed when he did play for Udinese, but his chances were limited as he was mainly used as a bench player and he has been linked with multiple moves away from the club.

International career

Iraq National Team

On December 3, 2012 at the age of 18, he announced his arrival on the international stage when he made his debut for the national side against Bahrain in Doha. In the process, Ali Adnan became the first graduate from Ammo Baba’s football school to play for the senior team, only eleven years after the foundation of the school.[4]

The player had not been selected by Brazilian coach Zico prior to the Bahrain game, but after he left the job, due to a dispute over unpaid wages, Hakim Shaker, Ali Adnan's youth coach, was appointed to take charge of the senior side, and his first decision was to take the step to call-up the left back for the game. His display cemented his place as the best left back in the country, winning plaudits for his displays at the 2012 WAFF Championship.[4]

He scored his first goal for Iraq national team in a 3–1 win over China PR during 2015 AFC Asian Cup qualification.

Adnan had an important part in the Asian Cup 2015 where he made the important assist which helped Iraq beat Iran.

Ali has established himself as one of Iraq's best players and there are signs of him becoming one of the best ever Iraqi footballers. Since moving from Iraq, initially to Turkey and then to Italy, he has continuously improved and keeps on showing his quality with the national side, where he is often the main man on the pitch.

Retirement

In August 2016, after the Olympics, Ali Adnan announced his shock retirement from international football via Twitter. The announcement came as a shock to all Iraqis and it was met with a lot of criticism as well as pleads for him to return. In the video, posted to Twitter, Adnan said that he would not play for Iraq at any level and that he was putting an "X" on his international career. The decision reportedly came after the Iraqi Olympic team were criticised following their performance in Brazil. After his retirement, Ali Adnan's father, Adnan Kadhim, was on a popular Iraqi football talk show and he spoke to Ali via phone live on air in front of millions of viewers and spoke to him about reversing his decision. Ali Adnan eventually went back on his decision and came out of retirement and has since played for Iraq.

Iraq Under-20 National Team

Ali Adnan's breathtaking and scintillating performances were the highlight of the Iraq U-20's fairytale run to the semi-finals at the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Turkey. His goal against England U-20, that brought Iraq level at 2-2, epitomized his never-ending dynamism and drive. In the 93rd minute of the game, he cut inside from the by-line, bamboozling the opposition with his trickery, before darting past the English defense and blasting the ball past the keeper. His eagerness to get down the flank with his marauding runs; the ability to strike the ball from anywhere outside the penalty box with such ferocity and accuracy, and his all-round physical superiority over his competitors had caught the attention of observers at the tournament, and there were rumors that scouts from clubs from top European leagues had been watching the 19 year-old.[4] Adnan eventually signed for Caykur Rizespor.

Iraq Under-23 National Team

Ali Adnan was chosen as part of the olympic team squad that represented Iraq in the Rio Olympics 2016 and was very crucial to the games providing many chances and was chosen as man of the match against Denmark. But after Iraq's 1-1 draw with South Africa (in which Ali Adnan played a great deal of even providing an assist), Iraq finished with only 3 points as 3rd place in the table after Brazil and Denmark. This caused Iraq to crash out of the Rio olympics in the group stage.

Playing style

Ali Adnan is somewhat the Iraqi Ian Harte, a left-back with a ferocious set piece. He is a tall and physical but fast player, which lends well to Iraq’s counter-attack philosophy,[17] and to Turkish media, Ali Adnan is known as the new Gareth Bale or Asia's Gareth Bale.[2] Ali Adnan is an attack-minded left back, possesses a strong physique and a powerful long-range shooting ability. Ali Adnan bursts from the back straight into the opposite half of the field with some sublime footworks propelling him to go past defenders and midfielders with ease. Always brimming with energy and full of athletism coupled with his unrivaled strength, opponents find it a tough task taming the wild and audacious left-back who is often than not, seen in the third half of the field entertaining viewers with dazzling skills and screamers from long ranges. Ali Adnan has still managed to stand out on account of his marauding runs down the left wing, as well as his useful habit of popping up with vitally important goals. In spite of his attacking prowess, Ali Adnan serves as a good pillar for his team when defending. With regard to his delivery crosses, overconfidence serves as his bane and falters on quite few occasions but looking at his tender age, with hard work he could overcome this and be a star to watch in the future.[18]

International statistics

Iraq national team goals

Scores and results list Iraq's goal tally first.
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 5 March 2014 Sharjah Stadium, Dubai  China PR 3–0 3–1 2015 AFC Asian Cup qual.
2. 3 September 2015 PAS Stadium, Teheran  Chinese Taipei 1–0 5–1 2018 FIFA World Cup qual.
3. 24 March 2016 PAS Stadium, Teheran  Thailand 2–2 2–2 2018 FIFA World Cup qual.

Honours

International

Iraq U-20
Iraq U-23
Iraq

Individual

  • Sky Sports' 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup XI Team of the Tournament - Left back position.[19]
  • Goal.com's 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup chosen among best top 10 players.[20]
  • World Soccer Magazine's Top 10 stars of the under 20 World Cup.

References

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