Mohamed Timoumi

Mohamed Timoumi (Arabic: محمد التيمومي; born 15 January 1960) is a Moroccan former footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He was named African Footballer of the Year in 1985, and was the last player to win this award while playing club football in an African country. In 2006, he was selected by CAF as one of the best 200 African football players of the last 50 years.^[2]

Mohamed Timoumi

Personal information
Date of birth	(1960-08-25) 25 August 1960 (age 64)
Place of birth	Rabat, Morocco
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s)	Attacking midfielder
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1978–1982	US Touarga
1982–1986	FAR de Rabat
1986–1987	Murcia	29	(2)
1987–1989	KSC Lokeren	31	(5)
1989–1990	OC Khouribga
1990–1993	Al-Suwaiq
1993–1994	CO Casablanca
1994–1995	FAR de Rabat
International career
1979–1990	Morocco[1]	63	(10)
Medal record Representing  Morocco Africa Cup of Nations 1980 Nigeria
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Career

Timoumi took part in the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico.^[3] At club level, he won the CAF Champions League with FAR Rabat, the biggest Moroccan football club of his era. He also competed for Morocco at the 1984 Summer Olympics.^[4]

Timoumi played at a young age for the team of the Union of Touarga, where he was the youngest player. It was there where he was first noticed by the observers and experts of Moroccan football.

His burgeoning talent led him to join one of the biggest Moroccan clubs: FAR Rabat, with whom he won the CAF Champions League in 1985.

In 1985, his talent exploded despite a fracture during the FAR Rabat match against the Egyptian team Zamalek in the semifinals. During this year, Timoumi was, in the unanimous opinion of the international sports press, the star of Africa. He also received the Ballon d'Or Africain.

A year later, he participated in the final phase of the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. In Mexico City, he was considered one of the most important elements of the Moroccan selection. Morocco ranked first in its group with 0 defeats and a resounding victory against Portugal 3–1. This result allowed Morocco to be the first Arab and African country to reach the second round of the World Cup.

Career statistics

International

Scores and results list Morocco's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Morocco goal.

List of international goals scored by Mohamed Timoumi^[5]

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	25 February 1980	Stade Mohammed V, Casablanca, Morocco	Senegal	1–0	2–3	Friendlies
2	22 June 1980	Dakar, Senegal	Senegal	1–0	1-0	1982 FIFA World Cup qualification
3	22 January 1985	Cochin, India	Algeria	1–0	4-0	Nehru Cup
4	26 January 1985		South Korea	1–2	2-2	Nehru Cup
5	28 July 1985	Casablanca, Morocco	Egypt	1–0	2-0	1986 FIFA World Cup qualification
6	22 January 1985	Mohammédia, Morocco	Somalia	1–0	3-0	1985 Pan Arab Games
7	10 August 1985	Casablanca, Morocco	Mauritania	1–0	3-0
8	6 October 1985	Rabat, Morocco	Libya	2–0	3-0	1986 FIFA World Cup qualification
9	23 April 1986	Belfast, Northern Ireland	Northern Ireland	1–0	1-2	Friendlies
10	25 June 1989	Lusaka, Zambia	Zambia	1–0	1-2	1990 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

As Far

• Botola Pro: 1984^[6]
• CAF Champions League: 1985^[7]
• Coupe du Trône: 1984, 1985^[8][9]

Morocco

• 1983 Mediterranean Games Champion: 1983^[10]
• 1980 African Cup of Nations: 3rd place^[11]
• Pan Arab Games runner-up: 1985
• Nehru Cup: 3rd place

individual

• African Footballer of the Year: 1985^[12][13]
• Best Moroccan player in 1985^[14]
• Best player of the CAF Champions League: 1985
• African Footballer of the 20th century: 30th place^[15]
• IFFHS All-time Morocco Men's Dream Team^[16]