Summary
After the Atlas Lions stunned Spain in the round of 16, Spain’s head coach Luis Enrique was left dumbfounded by one of Morocco’s breakthrough World Cup stars: Youssef En-Nesyri.
Azzedine Ounahi (Morocco) – Football
“Madre mia, de donde sale ese muchacho?” remarke
the befuddled manager of Spain’s soccer team. To phrase it another way: “Oh my goodness, where did this person come from?”
The 22-year-old Angers midfielder is currently one of the most sought-after players on the European market. As a result, many clubs, such as Leicester, Leeds, Newcastle, West Ham, and Napoli, are interested in acquiring his services. Additionally, Gunners legend Ray Parlour has urged Mikel Arteta to bring Ounahi to Arsenal.
It is reasonable to believe that Ounahi won’t be remaining in France for much longer, and he will most likely be a game-changer for any team he winds up joining.
Footballer Sofyan Amrabat, who represents Morocco,
Sofyan Amrabat, along with his colleague Ounahi, is a player who is in great demand during current transfer window. Liverpool is seeking to outbid a number of other clubs in order to get the 26-year-old midfielder into their ranks.
One of the most notable players to emerge from the 2022 World Cup, Amrabat is expected to make a significant transfer away from his present club, Fiorentina, over the next winter.
The maestro in the middle of the field was outstanding in every aspect in Doha. After the World Cup, Amrabat had everyone singing his praises, including French President Emmanuel Macron, who described him as the best midfielder of the competition. This was due to Amrabat’s fearless tackles, precise passes, and record-breaking number of recoveries. Amrabat also broke the record for the most number of recoveries in a single game.
Will he follow his fellow North African Mohamed Salah to Liverpool, where he now plays?
Mohamed Salah of Egypt is a talented football player
Mohamed Salah, who appears on our list on an annual basis, will once again have a busy year ahead of him as Liverpool strive to win the Champions League and try to make up for their slow start in the Premier League.
After a long layoff because of the World Cup, Mohamed Salah got the new season off to a flying start by scoring a goal for Liverpool against Aston Villa on Boxing Day. With that goal, Salah tied Kenny Dalglish’s record of 172 goals scored for Liverpool. They are now tied for the eighth place on the all-time list of top men’s goal scorers in the club’s history.
The Reds will face Real Madrid in the round of 16 of the Champions League in February thanks in large part to Mohamed Salah, who has scored seven goals for the Reds in only six games so far this season.
Abdullah Shelbayh (Jordan) – Tennis
Abdullah Shelbayh, a graduate of the Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca, has already established himself as a historical figure for Jordan on many occasions during his brief professional career.
The 19-year-old left-handed player made his debut in a major competition in 2021 at the Roland Garros junior tournament. He was the first player from his country to participate at a Grand Slam. One month later, he made it all the way to the final of the junior doubles event at Wimbledon.
Shelbayh became the first Jordanian to win a match on the Challenger Tour in 2022 when he made it to the semi-finals in Mallorca, which was his first appearance at that level. In the same year, he also won three ITF singles championships. Shelbayh made his debut at that level in Mallorca.
Already ranked in the top 500 after just seven months competing as a professional, Shelbayh is shaping up to be one of the most promising young Arab talents. His impressive performances at the Arab Masters tournament in Kuwait this week are testament to that, as he won the singles title and made it to the final of the doubles competition. Shelbayh is already ranked in the top 500 after just seven months competing as a professional.
The brilliant adolescent has a chance to gain the assistance he needs to progress up the ranks after recently signing with industry giants IMG.
Ramzi Boukhiam (Morocco) – Surfing
While Morocco were making history by becoming the first African or Arab team to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup, another Moroccan was quietly carving his own name into the record books off the coast of Hawaii. This record was set by a man who was also Moroccan.
At the end of November, while competing at the Haleiwa Challenger, Ramzi Boukhiam successfully qualified for the 2023 World Surf League Championship Tour. As a result, he became the first surfer from Morocco, North Africa, or the Arab world to be invited to compete on surfing’s most prestigious circuit.
“It’s been ten years since I first began competing in the World Surf League Qualifier series and began my Pro Junior career. This demonstrates that even if one puts forth a lot of effort, it is still possible to succeed. The Olympian, who is 29 years old, shared her sentiments, saying, “I am really pleased of the job I have done and of demonstrating the new Moroccan generation that we have what it takes to achieve.”
Because he has one of the most formidable backhands in the industry, he will be surfing with the sport’s most accomplished athletes this year. Be on the lookout for Boukhiam as he pursues the realisation of a goal he’s had since he was a youngster.
Youssef Ramadan, an Egyptian swimmer, won the swimming event.
The Egyptian swimmer, who is just 20 years old, has begun to build a name for himself on the international swimming arena. He has a great deal of skill in addition to a great deal of drive.
Ramadan qualified for the final of the 100-meter butterfly at the World Championships (25m) that were held in Australia this month. He finished eighth in the race, which was won by the South African swimming superstar Chad Le Clos. Ramadan also qualified for the semi-finals of the 100-meter freestyle and the 50-meter butterfly.
After successfully defending his ACC championship in the men’s 100 fly with a new conference record of 44.08 seconds, he received the honour of being selected the Most Valuable Swimmer for the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) this year while competing for Virginia Tech as a sophomore.
At the World Aquatic Championships, which will be held in Fukuoka, Japan, next July, you may anticipate a great showing from the young Cairons.
Harib Abdullah (UAE) – Football
Harib Abdullah, who is just 20 years old, is regarded as one of the most promising young prospects in Asian football.
The Shabab Al Ahli winger made a name for himself on the international scene by scoring the game-winning goal for the UAE national team in their match against South Korea, which secured them a spot in the World Cup play-offs against Australia. This victory guaranteed the UAE a spot in the tournament.
Although the United Arab Emirates (UAE) failed to advance beyond Australia and did not make it to Qatar, Abdullah’s efforts were not in vain.
It is anticipated that the talented Emirati will play an important part for the Whites during the first half of 2023, which will be filled with three major competitions: the Arabian Gulf Cup, which will be held in Iraq in January; the West Asian Football Federation Championship, which will be held on home soil in March and April; and the Asian Cup, which will be held in Qatar.
Amir Albazi (Iraq) – MMA
Amir “The Prince” Albazi, an Iraqi mixed martial artist, currently has a record of 16-1, with five of his victories coming through knockout. His most recent victory came earlier this month against Alessandro Costa at UFC Fight Night 2016.
Albazi is the first fighter ever to represent his country in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He fights in the flyweight class and has a perfect record since making his UFC debut in July of 2020.
“I wanted to put on a really good performance to show that I’m a different level than these guys and that I’m ready for the top five, I’m ready for that belt and I hope you guys saw that I have knockout power too,” the 29-year-old Iraqi based in London told MMA Junkie after his third-round knockout in Vegas two weeks ago. “I wanted to show that I’m ready for the top five, I’m ready for that belt and I hope you guys
“I am able to put individuals to sleep in a variety of positions, including standing up, sitting down, and lying down. Just keep sending them my way, and I’ll keep finding ways to get rid of them.”
Henry Cejudo, who previously held the titles of UFC flyweight and bantamweight champion, said recently on his YouTube channel that he believes Albazi “is going to be a nightmare for everyone at 125 pounds” and that he believes Albazi will one day have the title of UFC champion.
After fleeing Iraq for Syria when he was just seven years old, relocating to Sweden when he was eight, living on his own when he was 15, and moving to London when he was 18 years old, Albazi is confident in his ability to adapt to any circumstance and is convinced that he will one day be crowned the UFC champion. His perfect record in the Octagon so far is certainly cause for optimism.
Yehia El Deraa (Egypt) – Handball
A renaissance is taking place in Egyptian handball, as evidenced by the Pharaohs’ fourth-place finish at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and their dominance at the African Championships in 2020 and 2022. This is in addition to their impressive performance en route to seventh place at the world championships, which took place in Cairo two years ago.
At the 2023 World Handball Championship, which will be held in Sweden and Poland in January, Egypt will be receiving a lot of attention, and Yehia El Deraa, who is 27 years old, is one of the players who hopes to shine for Egypt.
The left/center defender moved to Hungarian powerhouse Telekom Veszprem from Cairo’s Zamalek before the start of this season. He was honoured as the tournament’s Most Valuable Player in the 2020 African Championship.
In his first season with the club, he has already racked up 40 goals and 13 starts in the local league, in addition to 20 goals and 10 starts in the EHF Champions League (Veszprem are top of the Hungarian league with a perfect 13-0 record so far).
El Deraa will be an important member of the Pharaohs team that competes in the World Championship since he brings a plethora of expertise to the Egyptian lineup and now has international credentials to go along with it.