Ameen Al-Dakhil (Arabic: أمين الدخيل; born 6 March 2002) is a professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Premier League club Burnley. Born in Iraq, he plays for the Belgium national team.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ameen Al-Dakhil | ||
| Date of birth | 6 March 2002 | ||
| Place of birth | Baghdad, Iraq | ||
| Height | 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Centre-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Burnley | ||
| Number | 28 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2009–2011 | Kortenaken | ||
| 2011–2012 | Hoegaarden-Outgaarden | ||
| 2012–2013 | Tienen | ||
| 2013–2017 | Anderlecht | ||
| 2017–2021 | Standard Liège | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2021–2022 | Standard Liège | 13 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | Sint-Truiden | 25 | (0) |
| 2023– | Burnley | 21 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2018–2019 | Belgium U17 | 7 | (1) |
| 2019 | Belgium U18 | 1 | (0) |
| 2022– | Belgium U21 | 4 | (0) |
| 2023– | Belgium | 4 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:38, 31 January 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 09:04, 3 December 2023 (UTC) | |||
Early life
Al-Dakhil was born in Iraq, and moved to Belgium with his family at the age of 5, as a refugee during the Iraq War. He began playing football with the youth academies of Kortenaken, Hoegaarden-Outgaarden, Tienen, Anderlecht and Standard Liège. Originally a striker, Al-Dakhil was then converted to a centre-back.
Club career
Al-Dakhil made his professional debut for Standard Liège on 23 July 2021, in a 1–1 Belgian First Division A tie with Genk.
On 31 January 2022, Al-Dakhil moved to fellow Belgian side Sint-Truiden on a permanent deal.
On 13 January 2023, Al-Dakhil joined English side Burnley for an undisclosed fee, signing a three-and-a-half-year contract with the club. On 31 January 2024, he scored his first goal for Burnley against Manchester City in a 3–1 defeat, becoming the first player born in Iraq to score in the Premier League.
International career
Born in Iraq, Al-Dakhil was raised in Belgium and holds a Belgian citizenship. He has been a youth international for Belgium, having represented the under-17, under-18 and under-21 national teams.[citation needed]
In October 2020, he was called up to represent the Iraqi squad at the AFC U-19 Championship, but the tournament was eventually cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In June 2023 he was called up to the senior Belgium squad for the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying matches against Austria and Estonia on 17 and 20 June 2023 respectively.
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 31 January 2024
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Standard Liège | 2021–22 | Belgian First Division A | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 14 | 0 | |
| Sint-Truidense | 2021–22 | Belgian First Division A | 9 | 0 | — | — | 9 | 0 | ||
| 2022–23 | Belgian Pro League | 16 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 19 | 0 | ||
| Total | 25 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 28 | 0 | |||
| Burnley | 2022–23 | Championship | 8 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 12 | 0 | |
| 2023–24 | Premier League | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 17 | 1 | |
| Total | 21 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 29 | 1 | ||
| Career total | 59 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 71 | 1 | ||
International
- As of match played 19 November 2023
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belgium | |||
| 2023 | 4 | 0 | |
| Total | 4 | 0 | |
References
External links
- Ameen Al-Dakhil at Soccerway
- ACFF Profile
- Ameen Al-Dakhil – UEFA competition record (archive)