Asaad Babiker
Asaad Babiker (Arabic: اسعد بابكر; born 31 August 2003) is a Finnish professional footballer who plays as a winger for FC Lahti.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 31 August 2003 | ||
| Place of birth | Cairo, Egypt | ||
| Height | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Winger | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Lahti | ||
| Number | 24 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2015–2021 | Reipas Lahti | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2021– | Reipas Lahti | 62 | (18) |
| 2021– | Lahti | 11 | (0) |
| International career | |||
| Finland U16 | |||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19 June 2024 | |||
Club career
Born in Cairo, Egypt, Babiker is of Sudanese descent. He immigrated to Finland as a child, and following pressure from a school classmate, joined the academy of Reipas Lahti at the age of eleven.[2] In 2021, he signed his first contract with the club's parent side, Lahti, allowing him to represent both teams in official competitions.[2] In February of the same year, he made his professional debut, coming on as a late second-half substitute for Lassi Forss in a 1–1 Finnish Cup draw with HJK Helsinki on 6 February.
In his first season, he featured predominantly for Reipas in the third-tier Kakkonen, scoring four goals, including a brace against KuFu-98 in August.[3] The following year he failed to feature for Lahti, despite scoring eight goals in twenty-two Kakkonen appearances for Reipas.[4][5]
He returned to Lahti's first team again on 28 January 2023, coming on as a second-half substitute for Daniel Koskipalo in a Finnish League Cup game, as Lahti lost 2–0 to Honka. His prolific goal-scoring form for Reipas continued, as he scored another brace in a 3–1 win against Tikkurilan Palloseura (TiPS) on 26 August.[6][7]
On 25 January 2024, Babiker signed a new professional contract with FC Lahti first team for the 2024 season.[8][9][10] He debuted in Veikkausliiga on 6 April 2024 in the opening game of the 2024 season against Ilves, as a substitute to Luke Ivanovic.[11]
International career
Babiker was called up to a Finnish under-16 regional camp in November 2018.[12]
Career statistics
Club
- As of 19 June 2024[13]
| Club | Season | League | National Cup[lower-alpha 1] | Other | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Reipas | 2021 | Kakkonen | 17 | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 17 | 4 | ||
| 2022 | Kakkonen | 22 | 8 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 22 | 8 | |||
| 2023 | Kakkonen | 23 | 6 | 2 | 2 | — | — | 25 | 8 | |||
| Total | 62 | 18 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 64 | 20 | ||
| Lahti | 2021 | Veikkausliiga | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2022 | Veikkausliiga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2023 | Veikkausliiga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[lower-alpha 2] | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2024 | Veikkausliiga | 11 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6[lower-alpha 2] | 1 | — | 19 | 2 | ||
| Total | 11 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 7 | 1 | — | 22 | 2 | |||
| Career total | 73 | 18 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 1 | – | – | 86 | 22 | ||
- Notes
- Includes Finnish Cup
- Appearances in the Finnish League Cup
References
- Asaad Babiker at WorldFootball.net
- Toivonen, Heidi (12 April 2021). "Asaad Babiker nousi FC Lahden edustusjoukkueeseen" [Asaad Babiker joined FC Lahti's representative team]. kannaksenlukio.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- "Juniorikatsaus: Asaad Babikerilla kahden maalin ottelu" [Junior review: Asaad Babiker has a two-goal match]. fclahti.fi (in Finnish). 16 August 2021. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- Reipas tyylitellen selvään kotivoittoon: "Voittolukemat olisivat voineet olla vaikka 8–0", Etelä-Suomen Sanomat, Eerikki Lyytikäinen, 6 July 2022
- Leirilaakson raportti: kahden maalin takaa rinnalle, lahdenreipas.fi, 17 January 2021
- Lyytikäinen, Eerikki (26 August 2023). "Reippaan Asaad Babiker upotti TiPSin" [The dashing Asaad Babiker sank TiPS]. ess.fi (in Finnish). Etelä-Suomen Sanomat. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- Reippaalle vakuuttava kotivoitto, Eerikki Lyytikäinen, 10 June 2023
- Asaad Babiker FC Lahteen, fclahti.fi, 25 January 2024
- FC Lahti sopimukseen uuden hyökkääjän kanssa, Etelä-Suomen Sanomat, 25 January 2024
- Kahdelle viirupaidalle liigasopimukset, lahdenreipas.fi, 25 January 2024
- Ilves – FC Lahti, veikkausliiga.com
- "FC Lahti B:n kolmikko alueleirillle" [FC Lahti B's trio for the regional camp]. fcreipas.fi (in Finnish). 20 November 2018. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- Asaad Babiker at Soccerway