Mahdi Karim Ajeel ( ar, مهدي كريم عجيل, born December 10, 1983 in

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

) is a former

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 ...

.Mahdi Karim Ajeel
/ref> He last played as a winger for Al-Talaba in

and the

Iraq national football team The Iraq national football team ( ar, منتخب العراق لكرة القدم) represents Iraq in international football and is controlled by the Iraq Football Association (IFA), the governing body for football in Iraq. Iraq's usual home v ...

Player info

Mahdi Kareem Ajeel's successful conversion to a right winger came initially came as a result of his failure claim a more central striking role in the face of competition from the likes of

Younis Mahmoud Younis Mahmoud Khalaf ( ar, يونس محمود خلف; born 3 February 1983) is an Iraqi former professional footballer who played as a forward for the Iraq national football team and is currently the second vice-president of the Iraq Footbal ...

. Kareem's club career began with

Al Naft Al Naft Sport Club ( ar, نادي النفط الرياضي, lit=''Oil SC'') is an Iraqi professional sports club based in the Adhamiyah District, East Districts of the Tigris River, Baghdad. Their football team plays in the highest division i ...

, where he displayed his predatory instincts by scoring regularly for the local powerhouses. However, his career as a centre-forward effectively ended when he moved to Al Talaba in 2002. With

Alaa Kadhim Alaa Kadhim (born 1 July 1970) is an Iraqi football striker Striker or The Strikers may refer to: People *A participant in a strike action *A participant in a hunger strike *Blacksmith's striker, a type of blacksmith's assistant *Striker's Inde ...

and Ahmed Salah all in their prime and ahead of Kareem in the pecking order for a starting place, the youngster found himself switched to the right wing. Not that it took long for the versatile player to adapt to his new position; indeed, it was on the wing that Kareem really came into his own. Having thrived in his new role at the club level, he quickly broke into the Iraqi Olympic team under

Adnan Hamad Adnan Hamad Majid Al-Abbassi ( ar, عدنان حمد مجيد العباسي; born 1 February 1961) is an Iraqi football manager and former player. Career Playing career Adnan was born in Samarra, Iraq, the son of a wealthy land-owning famil ...

. There, he formed one half of a dynamic wing duo with

Hawar Mulla Mohammed Hawar Mulla Mohammed Taher Zebari ( ku, هەوار مەلا محەمەد تاهر زێبارى; ar, هوار ملا محمد طاهر زيباري; born 1 June 1981) is an Iraqi former professional footballer. He played as a winger or wingb ...

, whose surging down the left flank were as significant as Kareem's in breaking down opposition defences. Both figured prominently with the Iraq junior side as they came through Asia's hard-fought qualifying round to book an appearance at the

2004 Athens Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

, where they would stun the watching world by storming into the last four. The high point of Kareem's international career arrived later in the year when Iraq won their first continental title at year's AFC Asian Cup. He also figured prominently in Iraq's qualifying campaign for the

2010 FIFA World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

, scoring four times in the 7–0 victory over

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. This display helped earn him a move to

Al Ahly Tripoli Al Ahli Tripoli Sports Club ( en, National Sports Club ; ar, النادي االأهلي طرابلس الرياضي), also known as Al Ahli Tripoli, is a Libyan football club based in Tripoli, Libya. It is the second most successful Libyan cl ...

, where he has scored 11 times in 18 appearances. Then he went to the Qatari Club

Al-Khor Al Khor ( ar, الخور; also spelled ''Al Khawr''), officially Al Khor and Al Thakhira, is a municipality in coastal northeastern Qatar. Al Khor City, the municipal seat, is located in the northeast coast of Qatar, around from the capital, ...

, where he had a great season. In 2009, Iraq played disastrous Gulf Cup. After that he moved to the Iraqi club

Arbil FC Erbil Sports Club ( ar, نادي أربيل الرياضي, ) is a sports club based in the city of Erbil, Kurdistan Region that plays in the Iraqi Premier League, the first-tier of Iraqi football. The club is also known as "Yaney Hewlêr", the ...

. He made great matches in the AFC Cup against

Al-Kuwait Kuwait City ( ar, مدينة الكويت) is the capital and largest city of Kuwait. Located at the heart of the country on the south shore of Kuwait Bay on the Persian Gulf, it is the political, cultural and economical centre of the emirate, ...

, where he also scored a goal.

International goals

:''Scores and results list Iraq's goal tally first.''

Honours

Club

Iraqi Premier League The Iraqi Premier League ( ar, الدوري العراقي الممتاز) is the top level of the Iraqi football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it is operated by the Iraq Football Association (IFA) and operates on a system of promotion an ...

**Winner: 1 ***2011–12 with

Erbil Erbil, also called Hawler (, ar, أربيل, Arbīl; syr, ܐܲܪܒܹܝܠ, Arbel), is the capital and most populated city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. It lies in the Erbil Governorate. It has an estimated population of around 1,600,000. H ...

Iraq FA Cup The Iraq FA Cup, known as the Iraq Cup ( ar, كأس العراق) in Arabic, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic Iraqi football. First held in the 1948–49 season for clubs and institutions before returning in 1975–76 ...

**Winner: 1 ***2002–03 with Al-Talaba *

Iraqi Super Cup The Iraqi Super Cup ( ar, كأس السوبر العراقي), previously called Iraqi Perseverance Cup ( ar, كأس المثابرة العراقي), is Iraqi football's annual match contested between the champions of the previous Iraqi Premier L ...

**Winner: 1 ***2002 with Al-Talaba *

Cypriot First Division The Cypriot First Division ( el, Πρωτάθλημα Α΄ Κατηγορίας) is the top tier football league competition in Cyprus, run by the Cyprus Football Association. Since February 2016, it is sponsored by Cyta and is thus official ...

**Winner: 1 ***2005–06 with

Apollon Limassol Apollon Limassol FC ( el, Απόλλων Λεμεσού, ''Apollon Lemesou'') is a Cypriot sports club, based in Limassol. It has football, basketball and volleyball teams. Founded in 1954, Apollon FC currently plays in the Cypriot First Div ...

Cypriot Super Cup The Cypriot Super Cup is a Cypriot football trophy, contested in an annual match between the previous season's Cypriot First Division champions, and the Cypriot Cup winners. The match is contested at the beginning of the football season, and is u ...

**Winner: 1 ***2006 with

Country

* 4th place in

2007 Asian Cup The 2007 AFC Asian Cup was the 14th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were held from 7 to 29 July 2007. For the first time in its hi ...

winner * 2012 Arab Nations Cup Bronze medallist

Individual

* Champion with Apollon Limassol FC (CYP) in 2005-2006 * Best Foreign Player (Libyan Premier League 2007-08) (voting sponsored by Libyana and Al-Madar) * Goal of the Season (Libyan Premier League 2007-08, against Al-Madina) (voting sponsored by Libyana and Al-Madar)

References

External links

*
Profile on Iraqsport
{{DEFAULTSORT:Karim, Mahdi 1983 births Living people Iraqi expatriate footballers Iraq international footballers Apollon Limassol FC players Association football midfielders 2004 AFC Asian Cup players Footballers at the 2004 Summer Olympics 2007 AFC Asian Cup players 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2011 AFC Asian Cup players AFC Asian Cup-winning players Iraqi footballers Olympic footballers of Iraq Sportspeople from Baghdad Al-Khor SC players Erbil SC players Expatriate footballers in Cyprus Expatriate footballers in Qatar Footballers at the 2014 Asian Games Cypriot First Division players Asian Games medalists in football Al-Talaba SC players FIFA Century Club Al-Shorta SC players Asian Games bronze medalists for Iraq Medalists at the 2014 Asian Games