Abdelilah Saber

Abdelilah Saber

Personal information
Full name	Abdelilah Saber
Date of birth	(1974-04-21) 21 April 1974
Place of birth	Casablanca, Morocco
Height
Position(s)	Right back
Youth career
	WAC
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1993–1996	WAC
1997–2001	Sporting CP	61	(0)
2000–2001	→ Napoli (loan)	18	(0)
2001–2003	Napoli	31	(0)
2003–2004	Torino	11	(0)
Total		121	(0)
International career
1996–2003	Morocco	39	(1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Abdelilah Saber (Arabic: عبد الإله صابر‎‎; born 21 April 1974) is a Moroccan retired footballer who played as a right back.

Club career

Born in Casablanca, Saber played his first professional years with local Wydad Athletic Club. In January 1997, he began an European adventure that would last the following seven 1/2 years, signing with Sporting Clube de Portugal.

With the Lisbon side, Saber struggled initially, but eventually became first-choice. In January 2000, however, he lost his place to newly arrived César Prates, as the Lions eventually won the national championship, the first in 18 years - he still contributed to the feat with 18 matches.

Saber would play the next four years in Italy, initially being loaned to S.S.C. Napoli, moving to that club alongside Sporting teammates Facundo Quiroga and Luís Vidigal. The move was made permanent at the end of the season, as Napoli relegated from the Serie A, and the player played the remainder of his career in the country in the Serie B - two more years at Naples and one with Torino FC - retiring at only 30.

International career

Saber gained 39 caps for Morocco, the first arriving in 1997. In the following year's FIFA World Cup, he started in all three group stage matches as the national team exited with one win, one loss and one draw.

External links

• Abdelilah Saber at footballzz.co.uk
• Abdelilah Saber profile at ForaDeJogo
• Stats at Tutto Calciatori (Italian)
• Abdelilah Saber at National-Football-Teams.com