- Youssef Safri
Football player infobox
playername = Youssef Safri
fullname = Youssef Safri
height = height|ft=6|in=2 [http://soccernet.espn.go.com/players/stats?id=8978&cc=5739]
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1977|1|3
cityofbirth =Casablanca
countryofbirth =Morocco
currentclub = Qatar SC
clubnumber = TBA
position = Midfielder
youthyears =
youthclubs =
years = 2000-2001
2001-2004
2004-2007
2007-2008
2008-
clubs =Raja Casablanca
Coventry City
Norwich City
Southampton
Qatar SC
caps(goals) = 0? (?)
91 (1)
83 (3)
37 (0)
nationalyears = 2000-
nationalteam = flagicon|Morocco Morocco
nationalcaps(goals) = 71 (8)
pcupdate = 16:06, 25 september 2008 (UTC)
ntupdate = 22:06, 11 October 2008 (UTC)Youssef Safri ( _ar. يوسف سفري) (born
January 3 ,1977 ) is a Moroccan international football player who currently plays forQatar Sports Club Safri had played for Coventry City from
2001 to2004 where he made his name in the English game after a transfer fromRaja Casablanca ofMorocco . This time was not without controversy however. Just days after Sunderland finalised a settlement of a transfer dispute withGlasgow Celtic , Irish international and current Cork City playerColin Healy 's leg was broken in a match against his former loan club, Coventry City. A brutal (but apparently accidental) challenge by Safri in December 2003 began an unfortunate number of years for the player, spending more time in the stands than on the field. His bad luck continued when he broke his leg again whilst working towards a comeback. Some sections of the media berated Safri for a reckless dangerous challenge that threatened to end a young player's career; Healy is now however making a comeback to football with his hometown club.Safri joined Norwich for an initial fee of £500,000 in the summer of
2004 , after the Canaries had been promoted to the Premiership.He is a midfielder and best known for his passing and tackling ability. He was a key player with the Moroccan national team during the 2004 African Nations Cup, and was a member of the national squad competing at 1997
FIFA World Youth Championship , the2000 Summer Olympics inSydney .Safri became popular among the Norwich fans towards the end of the 2004-05 campaign and during the 2005-06 season following a series of impressive performances. He scored a 35-yard strike against Newcastle United in April 2005 during the team's fight against relegation from the Premiership. Safri was linked with a move to Feyenoord in the summer of 2005, but stayed at
Carrow Road .As a tribute to the player, Norwich City supporters devised a song which was sung regularly at home games, to the tune of
Status Quo 's 'Rocking all over the world' -"Here we go, here we go and here we go, Youssef's better than Juninho, Here we go - Moroccan all over the world!"
Following the 3-1 defeat at Plymouth Argyle in September 2006, Safri and team-mate
Dickson Etuhu were reported to have traded punches on the team bus during their return journey toEast Anglia , although these reports are now thought to have been discredited. [cite news | url=http://www.footballersareidiots.co.uk/2006/09/27/norwich-players-trade-blows-after-defeat/ | title=Norwich Players Trade Blows After Defeat | accessdate=2006-09-27] Since Peter Grant was appointed Norwich manager in October2006 , Safri has not been a regular selection. There was speculation that he would leave the club in January 2007, fuelled by his comments in the Eastern Daily Press on29 December 2006 in which Safri indicated that he would seek a transfer if Grant continued to use him as a substitute. Safri remained at Carrow Road unil the end of the 2006-07 season, but after falling out with manager Peter Grant, Grant stated in the press on1 August that Safri would not play for the club again. [cite news | url=http://new.edp24.co.uk/content/sport/story.aspx?brand=EDPOnline&category=Sport&tBrand=EDPOnline&tCategory=Sport&itemid=NOED01%20Aug%202007%2009%3A05%3A05%3A450 | title=No way back for Safri | accessdate=2007-08-01]On
2 August 2007 he signed for Norwich's championship rivals Southampton on a two year contract for a fee rumoured to be of the order of £250,000.On
24 October 2007 he was sent off in the 90th minute of Southampton's away defeat to Bristol City, for a heavy tackle onLee Johnson , whose subsequent reaction to Safri pushing him by all accounts was exaggerated, resulting in a straight Red. [cite news | url=http://saintsfc.co.uk/articles/article.php?page_id=9165| title=Bristol C 2 Saints 1 | accessdate=2007-10-25]On
7th July 2008 he joinedQatar Sports Club , for a fee in the region of £300,000, stating his desire to move to the Gulf as the reason behind the move. [cite news | url=http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11996_3788893,00.html| title=Safri heading to Gulf | accessdate=2008-07-07]References
External links
* [http://saintsfc.co.uk/team/?page_id=6587&player_id=120 Youssef Safri player profile] at saintsfc.co.uk
* [http://www.canaries.co.uk/page/ProfilesDetail/0,,10355~18962,00.html Youssef Safri player profile] at canaries.co.uk
*soccerbase|20887
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/s/southampton/6926112.stm BBC Sport - Safri signs for Southampton]
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