# Aboubakar Kamara

Aboubakar Kamara (born 7 March 1995) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for Persian Gulf Pro League club Sepahan. Born in France, he represents the Mauritania national team.

## Club career

Kamara made his Ligue 1 debut for Monaco on 12 September 2014 against Olympique Lyonnais in a 2–1 away defeat. He replaced Yannick Carrasco after 84 minutes. In July 2015, Kamara signed a three-year contract with Belgian Pro League side Kortrijk, but returned to France only six months later, joining Championnat National side Amiens and helping the club to achieve back-to-back promotions up to Ligue 1. He scored the first goal of a dramatic 2–1 win against Stade de Reims in the last matchday, with Amiens clinching promotion after retaking the lead in the 6th minute of stoppage time. Kamara ended the season as the club's top goalscorer at the 2016–17 Ligue 2 with 10 goals.

### Fulham

On 31 July 2017, Kamara signed for Fulham for an undisclosed fee on a four-year contract with an option for another 12 months. He chose to wear the number 47 so that his initials and number would match AK-47. On 23 September, Kamara scored his first goal for the club in a 1–1 draw against Middlesbrough, and three days later, he scored the opening goal in a 3–1 win over Nottingham Forest. On 31 October, Kamara was sent off for shoving Bailey Wright off the ball, as Fulham lost 2–0 to Bristol City. He later scored consecutive braces for Fulham in a 2–2 draw with Hull City and in a 4–1 win over Ipswich Town. On 20 January 2018, Kamara scored the final goal in a 6–0 win over Burton Albion. This turned out to be the last goal he scored for Fulham during the 2017–18 season, as he was used sparingly afterwards, with the rest of his appearances coming off the bench.
On 5 December, Kamara scored his first goal of the 2018–19 season in a 1–1 draw against Leicester City, and three days later, he scored a consolation penalty in a 4–1 loss to Manchester United, after coming on at half-time for Aleksandar Mitrović. On 29 December, against Huddersfield Town, Kamara argued with Mitrović over taking a penalty; his effort was saved by Jonas Lössl. Although Fulham won the match, manager Claudio Ranieri was angered by Kamara's decision to take the penalty, stating: "He did not respect me, the club, team-mates and crowd. I spoke with him, it is not right". Mitrović however was more forgiving of Kamara, referring to the incident as "normal". On New Year's Day, Kamara scored against Arsenal, in an eventual 4–1 loss. During January, Kamara had another altercation with Mitrović in a yoga session at the club's training ground, and as a result, was left out of the team squad for Fulham's match against Burnley. Later that month, Kamara was arrested at the club's training ground on suspicion of actual bodily harm and criminal damage and was "banned indefinitely from all club activities".

#### Loan to Yeni Malatyaspor

Kamara had been training with the under-23 squad, and, on 31 January 2019, joined Yeni Malatyaspor on loan until the end of the season.

#### Fulham

Kamara returned to Fulham for the 2019–20 season from his loan spell with Yeni Malatyaspor.

#### Loan to Dijon

On 1 February 2021, Kamara joined French side Dijon on a 5-month loan deal.

### Aris

On 16 August 2021, Super League Greece team Aris confirmed they had signed Kamara from Fulham, for a €3.5 million transfer fee. The 26-year-old scored 17 goals in 94 appearances for the Cottagers after arriving from French side Amiens in 2017. Kamara was part of two successful promotion campaigns, starting both of Fulham's play-off final victories against Aston Villa and Brentford. On 22 September, Kamara after an assist from Facundo Bertoglio, he scored the only goal in a derby game against Panathinaikos. On 24 October 2021, Kamara scored with a penalty and provided two assists in an emphatic 5–1 home win against Panetolikos. On 6 March 2022, he scored in a 2–1 home win game against Olympiacos, breaking their 25-match unbeaten run.

### Olympiacos

On 28 June 2022, Kamara joined Greek champions Olympiacos on a three-year deal.

### Al Jazira

On 29 September 2023 he signed with Emirati club Al-Jazira.

## International career

He made his debut for Mauritania on 26 March 2021 in a 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match against Morocco.
After a 0-0 draw against Morocco in his first selection, he scored his first goal in his second selection against the Central African Republic, qualifying at the same time for the next Africa Cup of Nations. He competed in his first international competition at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations.
In December 2023, he was selected from the list of 25 Mauritanian players selected by Amir Abdou to compete in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

## Personal life

Born in France, Kamara represents Mauritania at international level. He is also of Senegalese descent.
He is a Muslim and fasted for Ramadan even before starting the 2018 Championship play-off final for Fulham.
On 16 January 2024, an error by uploading CAF team on X (formerly Twitter) accidentally revealed his nickname "AK.47", a reference to the initial number he wore at Fulham, which caused a lot of confusion and humorous responses from fans.

## Career statistics
### Club

    As of 5 June 2023
| Club | Season | League | League | League | National Cup | National Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Continental | Continental | Other | Other | Total | Total |
| Club | Season | Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Monaco | 2014–15 | Ligue 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 |
| Kortrijk | 2015–16 | Belgian Pro League | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 12 | 0 |
| Amiens | 2015–16 | Championnat National | 16 | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 16 | 5 |
| Amiens | 2016–17 | Ligue 2 | 29 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 29 | 11 |
| Amiens | Total | Total | 45 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 45 | 16 |
| Fulham | 2017–18 | Championship | 32 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 35 | 7 |
| Fulham | 2018–19 | Premier League | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 15 | 5 |
| Fulham | 2019–20 | Championship | 28 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 29 | 4 |
| Fulham | 2020–21 | Premier League | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 14 | 1 |
| Fulham | 2021–22 | Championship | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 |
| Fulham | Total | Total | 85 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 3 | — | — | — | — | 94 | 17 |
| Yeni Malatyaspor (loan) | 2018–19 | Süper Lig | 10 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 13 | 1 |
| Dijon (loan) | 2020–21 | Ligue 1 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 11 | 1 |
| Aris | 2021–22 | Super League Greece | 32 | 8 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 35 | 10 |
| Olympiacos | 2022–23 | Super League Greece | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 5 | 0 | — | — | 6 | 0 |
| Aris (loan) | 2022–23 | Super League Greece | 14 | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 16 | 4 |
| Career total | Career total | Career total | 211 | 57 | 11 | 2 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 234 | 62 |

### International goals

    Scores and results list Mauritania's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
| 1. | 30 March 2021 | Barthélemy Boganda Stadium, Bangui, Central African Republic | Central African Republic | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 2. | 16 November 2021 | Stade Olympique, Nouakchott, Mauritania | Equatorial Guinea | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3. | 29 March 2022 | Stade Cheikha Ould Boïdiya, Nouakchott, Mauritania | Libya | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 4. | 4 June 2022 | Stade Olympique, Nouakchott, Mauritania | Sudan | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 5. | 4 June 2022 | Stade Olympique, Nouakchott, Mauritania | Sudan | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 6. | 24 September 2022 | Stade El Bachir, Mohammedia, Morocco | Benin | 1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 7. | 27 September 2022 | Stade El Bachir, Mohammedia, Morocco | Congo | 2–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |

## Honours

Fulham
* EFL Championship play-offs: 2018, 2020