Khalid Boulahrouz

Khalid Boulahrouz (Arabic language: خالد بُلحروز) (born December 28, 1981, in Maassluis, Netherlands) is a Netherlands Football (soccer) of Morocco descent, who plays for the Netherlands national football team and Sevilla FC of the La Liga, on loan from Premier League side Chelsea F.C.. His nickname is "Khalid the Cannibal" for his ability to "eat up" his opposition.He joined Chelsea in August 2006 from Hamburger SV. However, due to his lack of form at Chelsea F.C. he was linked with moves to Atlético Madrid, Sevilla Fútbol Club, Bayern Munich and Newcastle United F.C., before moving to Sevilla on loan.

Personal life

Boulahrouz, a Dutch-Muslim, was born into a Morocco family living in the Netherlands. He has eight siblings. When he was younger, he had a lot of problems, such as being sent away from the youth teams of Ajax and Haarlem. When he was sixteen his father died and he had to take responsibility for his family.

Club career

In his youth Boulahrouz played consecutively for Excelsior Maassluis, DSOV, AFC Ajax, HFC Haarlem and AZ Alkmaar.

RKC

After a difficult period playing for different clubs, he finally found some stability at RKC Waalwijk, where coach Martin Jol gave him the confidence he had been looking for. After Chelsea's opening game of the 2006-07 in English football season, manager José Mourinho confirmed that the club had signed Boulahrouz and the club is only waiting for his international clearance to be finalised, before speaking of the potential roles Boulahrouz will have in the side. Mourinho stated "In a short squad and in a country where you can have only 16 players for a match, it’s important to have cover for many positions. So, for example, now I can have Boulahrouz, Ricardo and John — three options for the centre; I can have Paulo and Boulahrouz — two options for the right side; I can have Boulahrouz and Wayne Bridge — two options for the left side.."

International career

After moving to Hamburger SV his impressive displays made Marco van Basten pick him for the Netherlands national football team. He made his international debut on 3 September 2004 in a 3:0 win for the Netherlands national football team against Liechtenstein national football team, and was named to the squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He has managed 19 caps for the national side, as of August 2006.

Boulahrouz was sent off from the Netherlands match against Portugal in the 2006 FIFA World Cup Round of Sixteen after a second bookable offence. He was adjudged to have used an elbow on Portugal's Luís Figo.

Quotes about Boulahrouz

- "He is an important defender, but he is also the man to lift spirits within the squad. He is the sort of guy you need around during long evenings at training camp." — Edwin van der Sar

















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