Al-Najaf SC

Iraqi football club
Football club
Al-Najaf
Full nameAl-Najaf Sports Club
Nickname(s)Ghizlan Al-Badiah (Desert Gazelles)
Founded1961; 63 years ago (1961)
GroundAl-Najaf International Stadium
Capacity30,000
ChairmanRadwan Al Kindi
ManagerAhmed Khalaf
LeagueIraq Stars League
2022–23Iraqi Premier League, 7th of 20
Home colours
Away colours
Current season

Al-Najaf Sports Club (Arabic: نادي النجف الرياضي) is an Iraqi professional football club based in Najaf. They are members of the Iraq Stars League. Al-Najaf has competed in the 2007 AFC Champions League.

History

In 1960, the city of Najaf began an active movement to establish a sports club after the athletes then felt the need of the city to a sports club that absorbed the energies of young people and their creations which are almost lost in the amateur leagues. Some of the dignitaries of the city were contacted for this purpose.[1] The request was submitted to the Ministry of the Interior, which was responsible for the authorisation of sports clubs in Iraq at that time. The name of Al Ghiri Sports Club was proposed for this institution. In 1961, the Ministry of the Interior approved their request to establish the club and thus wrote the birth certificate of the first sports club in the city of Najaf and consisted of the first administrative body of Messrs. Naji Hassan Hasswa as president and Maki Hadi Maala Vice-President and Alwan Elsafer as secretary.[2] At the beginning of the establishment of the club, the Ministry of the Interior allocated an annual grant of 60 dinars divided into two instalments, and the club relied on this grant and monthly subscriptions from its members.

Stadiums

New Najaf Stadium is a purpose built football stadium that is the current home stadium of Al-Najaf. It opened in 2018, with a capacity of 30,000 people. Until 2018, the club played its home matches at An-Najaf Stadium (Arabic: ستاد النجف).

Current squad

First-team squad

As of 30 May 2024

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Iraq IRQ Ridha Abdulaziz
3 DF Iraq IRQ Hamza Adnan
4 DF Iraq IRQ Muntadher Sattar
5 DF Togo TOG Magnime Agbotcho
6 MF Mali MLI Makan Samabaly
8 MF Iraq IRQ Taher Hameed
10 MF Iraq IRQ Mohammed Saleh
11 MF Iraq IRQ Shubbar Ali
14 DF Iraq IRQ Mohammed Jassim
17 FW Iraq IRQ Mueen Ahmed
19 MF Iraq IRQ Younis Humood
20 MF Iraq IRQ Amir Hassan
21 GK Iraq IRQ Sarhang Muhsin
27 MF Iraq IRQ Omar Abdul-Rahman
30 FW Tunisia TUN Hazim Mestouri
55 DF Iraq IRQ Ahmed Noor
60 MF Senegal SEN Dominique Mendy
66 DF Iraq IRQ Mohammed Al-Baqir Abdulrahman
No. Pos. Nation Player
70 DF Iraq IRQ Alaa Mhawi
77 MF Iraq IRQ Mohammed Zamel
80 FW Tunisia TUN Bechir Ghariani
88 MF Iraq IRQ Mohammed Qasim
90 MF Iraq IRQ Mohammed Dawood (on loan from Al-Shorta)
DF Iraq IRQ Hussein Falah
MF Iraq IRQ Hussein Younis
33 DF Iraq IRQ Mustafa Abduljalil
22 DF Iraq IRQ Murtadha Razzaq
DF Iraq IRQ Ali Kadhim Mohammed
DF Iraq IRQ Adnan Mohammed
31 DF Iraq IRQ Naji Natiq
MF Iraq IRQ Ahmed Mohsen Jaber
29 MF Iraq IRQ Ahmed Ali
13 MF Iraq IRQ Ali Ayad
25 MF Iraq IRQ Ali Riyadh
26 MF Iraq IRQ Ahmed Adnan
34 MF Iraq IRQ Hassan Abdulrazzaq
18 FW Iraq IRQ Ali Qasim
FW Iraq IRQ Ahmed Saeed

Current technical staff

Position Name Nationality
Coach: Haidar Aboodi Iraq
Assistant coach: Dhiyya Falih Iraq
Goalkeeping coach: Mohammed Abdul-Zahra Iraq
Fitness coach: Salah Hashim Iraq
Team supervisor: Fadhel Mohammed Iraq
Team manager: Mohammed Abdul Hussein Iraq
Team Doctor: Haitham Abdul Amir Iraq
U-19 Coach: Haider Lafta Iraq

Updated to match played 25 September 2020
Source: Alsabaah.iq

Managerial history

Since the club's promotion to the Iraqi Premier League in the 1987–88 season so far, twenty-six coaches have led the team:[3][4]

Honours

Domestic

Friendly

  • Victory and Peace Championship
    • Winners (1): 1992
  • Love Championship
    • Winners (1): 2003

Performance in AFC Competitions

2007: Group stage

Statistics

In domestic competitions

Year Stars League Iraq Cup Super Cup Umm al-Ma'arik
1987–88 16 - not held Started in
1991
1988–89 6 Round of 32 not held
1989–90 8 Quarter-final not held
1990–91 7 Quarter-final not held
1991–92 6 Round of 16 not held Group stage
1992–93 15 Second round not held Group stage
1993–94 4 - not held did not qualify
1994–95 3 - not held 4
1995–96 Runner-up - not held Group stage
1996–97 4 Quarter-final did not qualify 3
1997–98 4 Round of 16 did not qualify Winner
1998–99 8 Round of 32 not held Group stage
1999–2000 9 Round of 16 did not qualify Group stage
2000–01 6 not held did not qualify did not qualify
2001–02 5 Semi-final did not qualify Group stage
2002–03 not finished Quarter-final did not qualify Group stage
2003–04 not finished not held not held Group stage
2004–05 6 not held not held Abolished in
2004
2005–06 Runner-up not held not held
2006–07 3 not held not held
2007–08 5 not held not held
2008–09 Runner-up not held not held
2009–10 11 not held not held
2010–11 11 not held not held
2011–12 9 not held not held
2012–13 11 not finished not held
2013–14 15 not held not held
2014–15 17 not held not held
2015–16 13 did not enter not held
2016–17 9 Round of 16 not held
2017–18 6 not held did not qualify
2018–19 12 Round of 16 not held
2019–20 not finished not finished did not qualify
2020–21 3 Round of 16 not held
2021–22 7 Round of 16 did not qualify
2022–23 7 Round of 32

See also

References

  1. ^ تاريخ الاندية الرياضـية العراقية (in Arabic). Dorar-aliraq.net. 27 September 2010.
  2. ^ عميد الرياضة النجفية .. محمد الفضلي : رحلة خمسين عاماً من العطاء الثر (in Arabic). Mondialar.com. 24 August 2016. Archived from the original on 13 August 2017. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  3. ^ نادي النجف … ثمانية عشر مدربا خلال 29 موسما .. وحمود قاد الفريق في 449 مباراة (in Arabic). Football-iq.net. 4 June 2016.
  4. ^ نادي النجف … شهد قاد الفريق في 245 مباراة وحقق انجازات يشار لها بالبنان (in Arabic). Football-iq.net. 16 June 2016.

External links

  • Official website (in Arabic) (archived 30 July 2008)
  • Club page on Kooora
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