Salem Al-Dawsari

Salem Al-Dawsari
Salem Mohammed Shafi Al-Dawsari (born 19 August 1991), known as Salem, is a Saudi Arabian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal and the Saudi Arabia national team.
Club career
Al-Dawsari joined Al Hilal as a youth player. In 2018, as part of a deal between the Saudi Arabian Football Federation and La Liga, he joined Spanish club Villarreal on loan. He made one appearance in Spain, coming on as a substitute against Real Madrid as Villarreal came from behind to draw 2–2.
In the second leg of the 2019 AFC Champions League final on 24 November, Al-Dawsari scored the opening goal in an eventual 2–0 away win over Urawa Red Diamonds, which saw Al-Hilal win the title following a 3–0 aggregate victory; the title allowed them to qualify for the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup.
On 7 February 2023, Al-Dawsari scored two penalties in a 3–2 win over Flamengo in the 2022 FIFA Club World Cup semi-final, in which his club reached the final for the first time in their history.
International career
Al-Dawsari was called up to the Saudi Arabia national team for the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, and scored his first international goal in an away match against Australia in 2012. In May 2018, he was named in Saudi Arabia's preliminary squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. On 25 June, Al-Dawsari scored a late winning goal as his side won 2–1 over Egypt in their last group stage match of the World Cup.
On 22 November 2022, Al-Dawsari scored his second goal at a FIFA World Cup, his first at the 2022 edition in Qatar, in a match against Argentina. He made a run around the box before finishing past Emiliano Martínez to put Saudi Arabia ahead by a score of 2–1, which ended in a historic shock victory for the Saudi Arabia national team. On 30 November, he scored a goal against Mexico, in which he equaled the record of most goals scored by a Saudi player in World Cups, three goals by Sami Al-Jaber, as Saudi Arabia exited the World Cup with a 2–1 loss to Mexico.
Career statistics
Club
International
Statistics accurate as of match played 17 October 2023.
Scores and results list Saudi Arabia's goal tally first (one unofficial goal included).
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Honours
Al-Hilal
Saudi Professional League: 2016–17, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22
King's Cup: 2015, 2017, 2019–20
Crown Prince Cup: 2011–12, 2012–13, 2015–16
Saudi Super Cup: 2015, 2018, 2021
AFC Champions League: 2019, 2021
Individual
IFFHS AFC Man Team of the Year: 2020
IFFHS AFC Men's Team of the Decade 2011–2020
AFC Champions League MVP: 2021
Saudi Professional League Player of the Month: January 2023
AFC Player of the Year: 2022
References
External links
Profile on Goal
Profile on Eurosport (archived 17 May 2014)
1991 births
Living people
Footballers from Riyadh
Saudi Arabian men's footballers
Men's association football wingers
Saudi Pro League players
La Liga players
Al Hilal SFC players
Villarreal CF players
2015 AFC Asian Cup players
2019 AFC Asian Cup players
Saudi Arabia men's youth international footballers
Saudi Arabia men's international footballers
Saudi Arabian expatriate men's footballers
Saudi Arabian expatriate sportspeople in Spain
Expatriate men's footballers in Spain
2018 FIFA World Cup players
Olympic footballers for Saudi Arabia
Footballers at the 2020 Summer Olympics
2022 FIFA World Cup players