Muhammad Adil Iqbal ( ur, ; born 9 July 1992) is a Pakistani

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who plays as a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

for Lyallpur FC of

Pakistan Premier League The Pakistan Premier League (PPL; ur, پاکستان پریمیئر لیگ) is a Pakistani professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the Pakistan football league system, it is the country's primary football compe ...

and the Pakistan national team. A right-footed player, he usually plays as

central midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

. Earlier in his career he primarily played as a wide midfielder. Adil is known for his

dribbling In sports, dribbling is maneuvering a ball by one player while moving in a given direction, avoiding defenders' attempts to intercept the ball. A successful dribble will bring the ball past defenders legally and create opportunities to score. A ...

skills, speed, crossing ability and his accurate right foot long-range shots from the centre of midfield. Adil first came to prominence with Pak Elektron, signing a professional contract for the club at the age of 18 - scoring six goals in 25 appearances in his first

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and ...

. The following season he signed for

Khan Research Laboratories The Dr. A. Q. Khan Research Laboratories, ( ur, ) or KRL for short, is a federally funded, multi-program national research institute and national laboratory site primarily dedicated to uranium enrichment, supercomputing and fluid mechanics. It ...

, where he went on to win three

titles, two Challenge Cup titles and finishing runners-up in

2013 AFC President's Cup The 2013 AFC President's Cup was the ninth edition of the AFC President's Cup, a football competition organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for clubs from "emerging countries" in Asia. Istiqlol were the defending champions, but did ...

.Schedule and Results, 2013 AFC President's Cup
''The-AFC.com''. Retrieved July 12th 2013. Three years later Adil's signature was pursued by a leading Kyrgyzstani club, and after protracted transfer negotiations he joined Dordoi Bishkek in 2014. Adil played a major role in helping the team win a treble; the league title,

league cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

and super cup, scoring four goals and making six assists in the league. Adil received his first international cap in a 2–1 defeat against Palestine.

Career

Pak Elektron & KRL

Early years

Pak Elektron placed Adil in their first team for the 2010 season, signing his first professional contract at the age of 18. Adil went on to score six goals in 25 appearances, making a lot of assists, in all competitions. His performances and record made

, the runners-up of the league, caught their attention to sign him permanently. The following season, Adil won the

with Khan Research Laboratories in 2011 as KRL set a Pakistan Premier League record scoring the most points in a season in the Pakistan Premier League with 77 points. Adil also won the Challenge Cup with KRL (1–0) against rivals

K-Electric Electric (KE) ( ur, ) (formerly known as Karachi Electric Supply Company / Karachi Electric Supply Corporation Limited) is a Pakistani investor-owned utility company based in Karachi. K-Electric is a privately owned and vertically-integrated e ...

in 2011. Later, Adil went on to make his debut

AFC President's Cup The AFC President's Cup was an annual international association football competition between domestic clubs sides run by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) held between 2005 and 2014. The competition targeted emerging football nations, and wa ...

on 8 May 2012 in a 0–0 draw against

Erchim Khaan Khuns - Erchim FC ( mn, "Хаан Хүнс-Эрчим" Хөлбөмбөгийн Клуб) is a professional football club from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia who have been playing in the Mongolian Premier League, which they have won ten times,

from

Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...

2012–2013 season

During the 2012 season, Adil played an important in the first-team under then manager

Tariq Lutfi Umar Farooq Tariq Lutfi (born 20 September 1951) is a Pakistani coach and former player. He is the manager of Sui Southern Gas. He played his entire career at Pakistan Airlines. He was also the caretaker manager of the Pakistan national footb ...

, who replaced Sajjad Mahmood the previous season; Adil established himself as a key player in the midfield and guided the team to clinch a historic

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

; winning the league title, the domestic cup and qualified for the

for the following season – finishing runners-up in the competition losing (1–0) to

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...

's Balkan. Adil scored his first goal in the continental competition in the 77th minute in a 2–0

group stage A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concen ...

victory over

Philippine The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

Global Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989 * ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015 * Bruno ...

and later scoring the second goal in a 2–0 win over

Hilal Al-Quds Hilal Al-Quds Club ( ar, نادي هلال القدس) is a Palestinian sports, cultural, social, scouting, artistic and youth club. It is a club that has many sports activities, one of which is football . It is considered one of the oldest clu ...

from Palestine in the final group stage. He helped KRL to reach the final, which they eventually lost. In 2013 season, Adil won his third and last league title with the Rawalpindi side. During his three years stint at Khan Research Laboratories, Adil scored a total of 24 goals in 65 matches in all competitions before signing for

Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan,, pronounced or the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and the People's Republic of China to the ea ...

i club

FC Dordoi Bishkek Football Club Dordoi Bishkek ('' ky, Дордой Бишкек Футбол Клубу, Dordoj Bişkek Futbol Klubu'') is a Kyrgyz professional football club based in Bishkek, that competes in the Kyrgyz Premier League. Founded in 1997, the club ...

, managed by former Pakistan national team coach Zaviša Milosavljević, in 2014.

Dordoi Bishkek

Adil completed his move to

in 2014, joining his former club and Pakistan national team player Kaleemullah Khan, after successful performances in

, on an initial one-year contract. Since his arrival in Dordoi, he has helped the club win their pre-season tour friendly matches in

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

. He played a major role in helping the team win a treble; the league title,

and super cup, scoring four goals and six assists in 13 appearances in the league. Adil made his AFC Cup debut on 9 February 2015 in a 1–0 defeat against

side

Ahal Ahal may refer to: * Ahal Province, in Turkmenistan * Ahel, a city in Fars Province, Iran * FC Ahal Ahal Änew Football Club ( tk, Ahal Änew Futbol Kluby), or simply Ahal FC, is a Turkmen professional association football club based in the ...

in the

preliminary round A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

. In an interview with

Dawn News Dawn News is one of Pakistan's 24-hour Urdu news channel. Based in Karachi, the station is a subsidiary of Pakistan Herald Publications Limited (PHPL), Pakistan's largest English-language media group. The test transmission of the station occ ...

, it was reported that Adil has got an offer from football club of

Eerste Divisie The Eerste Divisie (, en, First Division) is the second-highest tier of football in the Netherlands. It is linked with the top-level Eredivisie and with the third-level Tweede Divisie via promotion/relegation systems. It is also known as t ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and that "he will travel to Netherlands in May 2015 to attend the trial to show them his skills". He was later offered a two-year contract by

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

side

Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group. Founded in 188 ...

after he impressed the manager

Paul Clement Paul Drew Clement (born June 24, 1966) is an American lawyer who served as U.S. Solicitor General from 2004 to 2008 and is known for his advocacy before the U.S. Supreme Court. He established his own law firm, Clement & Murphy, in 2022 after le ...

with his performances for Dordoi Bishkek, but by then he had already signed a contract extension with the Kyrgyz side, effectively ending his chances of playing in the English second-tier till January at least. In 2016, he was reported to have undergone a three-week trial for the

Maltese Premier League The Maltese Premier League, known as BOV Premier League for sponsorship reasons with Bank of Valletta ( colloquially known as ''Il-Kampjonat Premjer''), is the highest level of professional football in Malta. Managed by the Malta Football Associa ...

side Pembroke Athleta, after refusing to further extend his contract with Dordoi Bishkek.

KRL

After successfully completing the trial for Pembroke Athleta, the move to the club was put on hold due to visa hurdles. In the meantime, Adil reported to train with former side KRL. After the move failed to materialise, he stayed with KRL, winning the

2016 Pakistan Football Federation Cup The 2016 National Football Challenge Cup or 2016 Pakistan Football Federation Cup was the 26th season of domestic cup tournament in Pakistani football. 24 teams took part in this competition from 28 January 2016 to 22 February 2016, which took ...

Hawkesbury City

In wake of the crisis of the

Pakistan Football Federation Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) is the governing body of association football in Pakistan. Founded in 1947, its headquarters are at the FIFA Football House in Lahore, Punjab near Punjab Stadium. The federation manages the men's and women's ...

in 2017, Adil signed for Australian club Hawkesbury City FC in the

NSW League Two The NSW League Two Men is an Australian semi-professional association football league comprising teams from New South Wales. The league sits at Level 3 on the New South Wales league system (Level 4 of the overall Australian league system). The c ...

in a short-term deal, which would allow him play ten matches till the end of next month. He returned to KRL by the end of the deal.

Defenders FC

In 2021, Adil joined Defenders FC in the Sri Lanka Super League. He finished the season finishing seventh in the table.

International career

Adil started his international youth career in 2006 being part of the under-14 Pakistan team in the AFC U-14 Football Festival held in

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. Apart from the under-14 team, Adil also represented the under-17, under-19, under-21, and the Pakistan under-23 national sides. Whilst with the under-23 team, Adil also represented Pakistan in the Asian Games and

South Asian Games The South Asian Games (SAG or SA Games), formerly known as the South Asian Federation Games (SAFG or SAF Games), is a quadrennial multi-sport event held among the athletes from South Asia. The governing body of these games is South Asia Olympic ...

, scoring his first goal in the 54th minute in a 2-2 draw against Palestine in Al-Nakba International Football Cup 2012. Adil earned his first senior cap for

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

in a 2–1 defeat against Palestine on 1 March 2011. He has earned over 20 caps for the national team since his debut in 2011, playing in the 2012 and 2014

AFC Challenge Cup The AFC Challenge Cup was an international football competition for Asian Football Confederation (AFC) member countries that was categorized as "emerging countries" in the "Vision Asia" programme. "Vision Asia", created by former AFC president, ...

qualification tournaments, and the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

Personal life

Adil was born in

Bahawalpur Bahawalpur () is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. With inhabitants as of 2017, it is Pakistan's 11th most populous city. Founded in 1748, Bahawalpur was the capital of the former princely state of Bahawalpur, ruled by the Abbasi fa ...

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...

and was a

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

and sugarcane seller, going around the streets of Bahwalpur with his cart, to financially support his family. However, he used to play football whenever he found the time and thus was scouted when he got selected for the regional team in the National U-14 Championship held in 2006. He eventually impressed the coaches to secure a call-up for the Pakistan U-14 side that took part in AFC Festival of Football in

. Adil has described the Argentina national team player

Carlos Tevez Carlos Alberto Tevez (; born 5 February 1984) is an Argentine professional football manager and former player. A quick, tenacious, powerful, hard-working and dynamic forward in his prime, Tevez was capable of playing as a striker, as a wing ...

as his ideal football star and has been compared with

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

ian footballer

Roberto Carlos Roberto Carlos da Silva Rocha (born 10 April 1973), commonly known as Roberto Carlos, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who now works as a football ambassador. He started his career in Brazil as a forward but spent most of his car ...

for his quick pace and composure by the local media in

. In an interview with Football Pakistan, Adil said that he enjoys eating the national dish of

, Pilaf, which is a particular favourite of his, and he also enjoys grabbing a slice of pizza or two when possible.Muhammad Adil: I want to continue winning at FC Dordoi
/ref>

Career statistics

Club

:' *1.Includes statistics from AFC Cup and

. *2.Includes statistics from Challenge Cup,

Kyrgyzstan Super Cup The Kyrgyzstan Super Cup is a football competition, held at the beginning of each domestic season and disputed between the winners of Kyrgyzstan League and the winners of Kyrgyzstan Cup. The first Kyrgyzstan Super Cup was held on 9 April 2011 at ...

, Ala-Too Cup, and Legend Cup.

International

International goals

:''Scores and results table list Pakistan's goal tally first.''

Honours

Club

;Khan Research Laboratories *

: 2011,

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

; Runner-up: 2010 * Challenge Cup: 2010, 2011, 2012 *

: Runner Up:

;Dordoi Bishkek * Shoro Top League:

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Kyrgyzstan Cup The Kyrgyzstan Cup ('' ky, Кыргызстан Кубогу, Keurgeuzstan Kubogu'') is Kyrgyzstan's premier knockout tournament in men's football (soccer). Previous winners Previous winners of the cup are: Soviet time *1939 Dinamo Frunze *19 ...

: 2014 *Ala-Too Cup: 2015

Country

;Pakistan *M.R Cup Sri Lanka: Runners-up: 2012 * Philippine Peace Cup: Third Place:

References

External links

Pakistan national team profile
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Adil, Muhammad 1992 births Living people Footballers from Bahawalpur Pakistani men's footballers Pakistani expatriate men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Pakistan men's international footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Kyrgyzstan Pakistani expatriate sportspeople in Kyrgyzstan FC Dordoi Bishkek players Footballers at the 2010 Asian Games Khan Research Laboratories F.C. players Asian Games competitors for Pakistan Expatriate men's soccer players in Australia Pakistani expatriates in Australia