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Ali Ahmed (soccer)

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Ali Ahmed
Personal information
Date of birth (2000-10-10) October 10, 2000 (age 24)
Place of birth Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s) Midfielder, left-back
Team information
Current team
 Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Number 22
Youth career
2020–2022 Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2022 Whitecaps FC 2 15 (0)
2022 → Vancouver Whitecaps FC (loan) 2 (0)
2023– Vancouver Whitecaps FC 44 (3)
International career‡
2023– Canada 12 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of October 19, 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of November 19, 2024

Ali Ahmed (born October 10, 2000) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder or left-back for Major League Soccer club Vancouver Whitecaps FC and the Canada national team.

Early life

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Ahmed was born in Toronto to parents from the Oromo Region of Ethiopia.[1] In 2018, he went on trial with the Toronto FC Academy, who were ready to sign him to join the academy, but he opted to head to Portugal to trial with the U19 side of C.F. Os Belenenses, but was unable to sign as he was under 18.[1] He then went to Spain, before returning to Toronto, before returning to Europe to trial in Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands.[1] In November 2019, he trialed with the Vancouver Whitecaps Academy and then trialed again the following year,[1] and in August 2020, he joined the Vancouver Whitecaps Academy.[2] In 2021, he played with the Vancouver Whitecaps FC U-23.[2] He attended pre-season camp with the first team in 2021 and 2022.[2]

Club career

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In March 2022, he signed a professional contract with Whitecaps FC 2 in MLS Next Pro.[3] He made his professional debut on March 26 against Houston Dynamo 2.[4] He led the team in assists with five in 2022.[5] He was named the 2022 WFC2 Player of the Year.[6]

On April 22, 2022, he joined the first team on a short-term four-day loan ahead of their MLS league match against Austin FC.[7] In the match the next day, he made his official first-team debut.[8] On August 4, he signed another short-term loan with Vancouver.[9] In November 2022, he signed a permanent contract with the first team for the 2023 season, becoming the first Whitecaps FC 2 player to sign a first-team contract.[10] On May 24, he suffered what appeared to be a serious injury in a match, where he lost consciousness and was treated on-field for seventeen minutes,[11][12] but fortunately was released from hospital the next day with only a concussion.[13][14] On June 7, 2023, he won the 2023 Canadian Championship with the Whitecaps, defeating CF Montreal and won the tournament's Best Young Canadian Player Award.[15]

Personal life

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Ahmed is a Muslim and fasts during the month of Ramadan.[16][17]

International career

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In May 2023, Ahmed was listed on the Canada preliminary roster for the 2023 CONCACAF Nations League Finals.[18][19] In June 2023, he was named to the final 23-man squad for the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup.[20] Ahmed made his debut for Canada on June 27 in their tournament opener against Guadeloupe.[21][22]

In June 2024, Ahmed was named to Canada's squad for the 2024 Copa América.[23]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of match played November 8, 2024[24]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Playoffs National cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Whitecaps FC 2 2022 MLS Next Pro 15 0 – – – – 15 0
Vancouver Whitecaps FC (loan) 2022 MLS 2 0 – 0 0 – – 2 0
Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2023 MLS 22 2 2 0 2 1 3 0 1 0 30 3
2024 22 1 3 0 4 0 0 0 2 0 31 1
Total 44 3 5 0 6 1 3 0 3 0 61 4
Career total 61 3 5 0 6 1 3 0 3 0 78 4

International

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As of match played November 19, 2024[25]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Canada 2023 4 0
2024 8 0
Total 12 0

Honours

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Vancouver Whitecaps

Individual

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Adams, J.J. (April 27, 2022). "The road less travelled for Whitecaps prospect Ali Ahmed". The Province.
  2. ^ a b c McColl, Michael (March 19, 2022). "Whitecaps FC 2 are back – Get to know the new squad (Part Two)". Away from the Numbers.
  3. ^ "WFC2 sign two Canadians and four 2022 MLS SuperDraft picks". Vancouver Whitecaps FC. March 18, 2022.
  4. ^ Fossey, Maxim (March 26, 2022). "WFC2 open inaugural MLS NEXT Pro season with narrow 1-0 loss against Houston Dynamo 2". Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
  5. ^ Durec, Nathan (October 19, 2022). "Terminal City Thoughts: A look at a few Whitecaps 2 players". Area 51 Sports Network.
  6. ^ "Whitecaps FC announce winners for 2022 Player Awards". Vancouver Whitecaps FC. October 28, 2022.
  7. ^ "Whitecaps FC sign WFC2 wingback Ali Ahmed and midfielder Vasco Fry to MLS short-term agreements". Vancouver Whitecaps FC. April 22, 2022.
  8. ^ Vancouver Whitecaps FC [@WhitecapsFC] (April 24, 2022). "Ali Ahmed's MLS Debut @aliahmed51_ #VWFC #ATXvVAN" (Tweet). Retrieved November 1, 2022 – via Twitter.
  9. ^ "Whitecaps FC sign wingback Ali Ahmed and striker Simon Becher to MLS short-term agreements". Vancouver Whitecaps FC. August 4, 2022.
  10. ^ "Whitecaps FC sign MLS NEXT Pro wingback Ali Ahmed to an MLS contract through 2025". Vancouver Whitecaps FC. November 16, 2022.
  11. ^ "Ali Ahmed posts thank you message, insists he'll be back on the pitch with Vancouver Whitecaps soon". Canadian Soccer Daily. May 26, 2023.
  12. ^ Bahl, Andrew (May 25, 2023). "Scary Ali Ahmed injury overshadows Whitecaps' Canadian Championship win". The Third Sub.
  13. ^ Jacques, John (May 25, 2023). "Ali Ahmed Cleared By Hospital, Returns To Team". Northern Tribune.
  14. ^ "Whitecaps' Ali Ahmed cleared to travel with team after leaving hospital". Sportsnet. May 24, 2023.
  15. ^ a b c "Gressel and Ahmed win awards at 2023 Canadian Championship". Canadian Soccer Association. June 8, 2023.
  16. ^ "Ramadan a 'shower for the soul' but a mental test for pro athletes". theprovince.com. March 22, 2024.
  17. ^ "Ramadan Mubarak to all my brothers and sisters!". Instagram.
  18. ^ "CONCACAF drops stacked Canada preliminary Nations League roster with some surprise names". Canada Soccer Daily. May 19, 2023. Retrieved May 19, 2023.
  19. ^ Adams, J.J. (May 24, 2023). "Scary injury to Ali Ahmed casts pall over Vancouver Whitecaps victory". The Province.
  20. ^ "Ali Ahmed called up to Canada MNT for Concacaf Gold Cup". Vancouver Whitecaps FC. June 19, 2023.
  21. ^ Steiner, Ben (June 28, 2023). "MLS rookies Amhed, Bombito inspire in Canada's Gold Cup opener". Major League Soccer.
  22. ^ Nightingale, Tom (June 28, 2023). "'Fearless' Ali Ahmed's Canada debut marks latest high point for breakout Vancouver Whitecaps star". Canadian Soccer Daily.
  23. ^ "CANMNT ANNOUNCE 2024 COPA AMÉRICA ROSTER". Canadian Soccer Association. June 15, 2024.
  24. ^ Ali Ahmed at Soccerway
  25. ^ Ali Ahmed at National-Football-Teams.com Edit this at Wikidata
  26. ^ "Three-peat! Vancouver Whitecaps top Toronto FC to win Canadian Championship". Major League Soccer. September 26, 2024. Retrieved September 26, 2024.
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