Name Mubarak Mustafa Playing position Role Football player | Number 20 Height 1.75 m 1985–1990 Al-Arabi Position Forward | |
Full name Mubarak Mustafa Fazli Noorallah Date of birth (1973-03-30) 30 March 1973 (age 42) | ||
Place of birth Umm Ghuwailina, Qatar | ||
Qatar 4-1 Singapore - 1994 World Cup Qualifiers
Mubarak Mustafa (Arabic: مبارك مصطفى; born 30 March 1973 in Qatar) is a former Qatari football player who currently works as a sports analyst for Al Kass. He is known for his numerous achievements with Qatari club Al-Arabi and extraordinary playing ability, as well as being the former captain of the Qatar national team. According to RSSSF, he is the second top scorer for Qatar, one goal ahead of Mohammed Salem Al-Enazi and trailing behind Sebastián Soria.
Contents
- Qatar 4 1 Singapore 1994 World Cup Qualifiers
- Personal life
- Al Arabi
- Al Khor
- Al Gharafa
- Qatar Senior squad
- Post retirement
- Club
- Personal
- References
He is one of the most prominent figures in the history of Qatari football and a major factor in determining Qatar's rise to success in the early 1990s, along with legends such as Khalid Salman, Mahmoud Soufi and Adel Khamis.
Personal life
Mustafa was born in Umm Ghuwailina, a suburb of Doha located near Al Arabi's club headquarters.
Al-Arabi
Mustafa was spotted by a talent scout while playing in a domestic school league at an early age. He accepted an offer to play in Al-Arabi's junior teams where he instantly stood out as a young player with incredible potential.
Capitalizing on this shortly after, Al-Arabi placed Mubarak Mustafa in the successful senior squad, although it was initially difficult to get a starting position in the squad. He eventually earned a permanent place in the squad after showcasing his goal-scoring ability, securing Al-Arabi's place as Qatar's best club side at the time. He reached the peak of his career in 1994, when he led the dream team into the finals of the 1994 AFC Champions League, eventually losing to Thai Farmers Bank with a score of 1–0. In the process of Al-Arabi's Champions League campaign, they became the second Qatari team to make it to the finals of the AFC Champions League, the other club being Al Sadd.
Mustafa is also the only player in history to win the Arab Golden Boot and Arab Player of the Year award in a single season. He was also the top scorer in the Qatar Stars League three times: the first being in the 1991–1992 season, the second in the 1992–1993 season, and the final time being in the 1996–1997 season.
His exploits earning him recognition internationally; he represented the Asian XI in a match in 1999 against the Thailand national team. Asian XI lost 4–1, with Mustafa netting the team's only goal from a spot kick in the 75th minute.
During his playing period, he had many offers to play abroad, notably offers in Turkey, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and a number of clubs in Bahrain. He could not pursue any of them as his club, Al Arabi, refused to let him play professionally.
Al-Khor
In a move which shocked many fans, Mustafa left Al-Arabi in 2003 to join Al Khor after a string of disappointing seasons for Al-Arabi, due to personal disputes with certain officials and players in the club. Mustafa led Al-Khor to their first major trophy in 46 years in just two seasons after Al-Khor beat Al Gharafa in 2005 to claim the Qatar Crown Prince Cup for the first time in the club's history.
Al-Gharafa
In 2006, Mustafa moved to Al-Gharafa, one of the most successful teams in the Qatar Stars League. He helped them finish second in the league, as well as making it to the finals of the Qatar Crown Prince Cup. He retired from professional football in 2007, at the age of 34.
Qatar Senior squad
Mustafa started his senior international career at the age of 19. He helped establish the Qatar football team on the international stage, claiming many achievements in his time of playing for the Qatar national team, such as winning the 1992 Gulf Cup of Nations, reaching the quarter-finals of the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, and winning the 1998 Arab Nations Cup. He played for Qatar in the 1998 World Cup Qualifiers, scoring two goals in the group stage and securing the top position in their group before getting eliminated in the final round.
In a match at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, Mustafa scored the only goal in a 1–0 win against Egypt, registering the first competitive win in Qatar's history against an African nation.
Mustafa had a reputation of being a fair player, having been shown no red cards in his international career. He later received the World Fair Play Trophy in 2005. Mustafa officially retired from international football in 2004.
Post retirement
After retiring from professional football, Mustafa was appointed the Director of football of Al-Arabi. He still occasionally manages the first team.
In 2009, Mubarak Mustafa received the International Olympic Committee's annual ideal player award. In doing so, he is the first Qatari to ever win the award. He expressed his deep happiness for receiving IOC Award, which represents a great honor for Qatar sport in general and Qatar Olympic committee (QOC) in particular.
On 17 October 2011, Mustafa played a tribute game in honour of deceased Emirati player Theyab Awana. The game was between Al-Salmiya Stars and Arab Stars, with Mustafa playing for the former. Adel Khamis also took part in the match. The match took place in Thamir Stadium. Mustafa scored 2 early goals to give him a brace, however the visitors equalized in the second half and eventually narrowly won 7–6.
On 28 April 2012, after a very unsuccessful season for Al Arabi which saw them finish on par with their joint lowest standing in the league, he announced that he would be leaving the club as director of football at the end of the 2011/12 season. Shortly after, he joined Al Kass as a sports analyst.