Tha'er Bawab

Tha'er Bawab
Personal information
Full name Tha'er Fayed Al Bawab
Date of birth (1985-03-01) 1 March 1985
Place of birth Amman, Jordan
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position Forward
Youth career
1995–2003 Cornellà
2003–2004 Real Madrid
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2004–2006 Real Madrid C 31 (10)
2006 Real Madrid B 0 (0)
2007 Barcelona B 13 (3)
2007–2008 Hospitalet 27 (2)
2009 Alfaro 14 (3)
2009–2010 Moratalla 28 (3)
2010 Gloria Bistrița 7 (0)
2011–2014 Gaz Metan Mediaș 83 (24)
2014 Ittihad Kalba 0 (0)
2014–2015 Universitatea Craiova 44 (12)
2016 Steaua București 8 (1)
2016–2017 Umm Salal 7 (2)
2017–2018 Dinamo București 13 (0)
2017–2018Concordia Chiajna (loan) 27 (1)
2018–2019 Concordia Chiajna 25 (4)
2019–2020 Dunărea Călărași 13 (0)
2021–2023 Villaviciosa Odón 48 (12)
Total 388 (77)
International career
2005–2017 Jordan 29 (6)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Tha'er Fayed Al Bawab (Arabic: ثائر فايد بواب; born 1 March 1985) is a Jordanian former professional footballer who played as a forward.

He spent most of his career in Spain and Romania.

Club career

Early years and Real Madrid

Born in Amman to a Palestinian father and a Lebanese mother,[1][2] Bawab's family moved to Catalonia, Spain when he was a child. He started playing for the youth teams of local UE Cornellà, leaving at the age of 18 to Real Madrid where he completed his development,[3] and scoring 30 goals in his sole season with the Juvenil side.[4]

In 2004, Bawab signed a professional contract with Real Madrid, and the club also agreed to pay a college scholarship for him, as he went on to make his senior debut with the third team in the Tercera División. At that time, talks had started where people compared his style of play to Zinedine Zidane (even though they did not play in the same position).[3]

Barcelona, journeyman in Spain

Bawab split the 2006–07 season with Real Madrid Castilla – for whom he did not appear officially – and another reserve team, FC Barcelona B, scoring three goals for the latter as both sides suffered relegation (the former in the Segunda División, the latter in the Segunda División B).[5][6]

In the following three seasons, he competed in the country's third tier, being relegated with all the clubs – CE L'Hospitalet, CD Alfaro (which he joined in January 2009) and Moratalla CF.[7][4]

Romania

Bawab signed a two-year contract with ACF Gloria 1922 Bistriţa in late June 2010.[8] Midway through the season, as his team would eventually suffer relegation, he joined fellow Romanian Liga I side CS Gaz Metan Mediaş.[9]

On 4 August 2011, Bawab scored two goals against 1. FSV Mainz 05 in the last qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League, one in each leg as Gaz Metan eventually won on penalties.[10][11] On 26 September, he added two more in a 2–1 league home win over FCM Târgu Mureș.[12]

In September 2014, free agent Bawab moved to CS Universitatea Craiova also in Romania's top flight. He remained in the country the following years safe for a very brief spell in the Qatar Stars League with Umm Salal SC, representing FC Steaua București, FC Dinamo București, CS Concordia Chiajna and FC Dunărea Călărași.[13]

Bawab retired in 2023 aged 38, his last club being Spanish amateurs AD Villaviciosa de Odón. Still as an active player, he worked as a taxi driver.[14][15]

International career

Bawab made his debut for Jordan in a friendly with Norway on 28 January 2005, which ended 0–0. He made six appearances for the national team in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, scoring once.[16]

Career statistics

Club

[17][18][19]

Club Season League National Cup[a] League Cup[b] Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Real Madrid C 2004–05 Tercera División 8 1 8 1
2005–06 23 9 23 9
Total 31 10 31 10
Real Madrid B 2006–07 Segunda División 0 0 0 0
Barcelona B 2006–07 Segunda División B 13 3 13 3
Hospitalet 2007–08 Segunda División B 26 2 1 0 27 2
2008–09 Tercera División 1 0 1 0
Total 27 2 1 0 28 2
Alfaro 2008–09 Segunda División B 14 3 0 0 14 3
Moratalla 2009–10 Segunda División B 28 3 0 0 28 3
Gloria Bistriţa 2010–11 Liga I 7 0 0 0 7 0
Gaz Metan Mediaș 2010–11 Liga I 14 2 14 2
2011–12 28 8 3 0 6[c] 2 37 10
2012–13 25 10 1 1 26 11
2013–14 16 4 0 0 16 4
Total 83 24 4 1 6 2 93 27
Universitatea Craiova 2014–15 Liga I 25 9 2 0 27 9
2015–16 19 3 0 0 0 0 19 3
Total 44 12 2 0 0 0 46 12
Steaua București 2015–16 Liga I 8 1 0 0 1 2 9 3
Umm Salal 2016–17 Qatar Stars League 7 2 7 2
Dinamo București 2016–17 Liga I 12 0 0 0 1 0 13 0
2017–18 1 0 1 0
Total 13 0 0 0 1 0 14 0
Concordia Chiajna (loan) 2017–18 Liga I 27 1 0 0 27 1
Concordia Chiajna 2018–19 25 4 0 0 25 4
Total 52 5 0 0 52 5
Dunărea Călărași 2019–20 Liga I 13 0 0 0 13 0
Villaviciosa Odón 2021–22 Tercera División RFEF 30 6 30 6
2022–23 Preferente de Madrid 18 6 18 6
Total 48 12 48 12
Career total 388 77 7 1 2 2 6 2 403 82
  1. ^ Includes Copa del Rey, Cupa României
  2. ^ Includes Cupa Ligii
  3. ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa League

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year[20]
National team Year Apps Goals
Jordan 2005 1 0
2006 0 0
2007 2 0
2008 6 1
2009 0 0
2010 0 0
2011 2 0
2012 5 1
2013 4 0
2014 4 3
2015 1 0
2016 1 0
2017 3 1
Total 29 6
Scores and results list Jordan's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Bawab goal.[20]
List of international goals scored by Tha'er Bawab
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 26 March 2008 Olympic Stadium, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan  Turkmenistan 2–0 2–0 2010 World Cup qualification
2 16 October 2012 Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat, Oman  Oman 1–2 1–2 2014 World Cup qualification
3 4 February 2014 Jalan Besar, Kallang, Singapore  Singapore 1–0 3–1 2015 Asian Cup qualification
4 5 March 2014 International Stadium, Amman, Jordan  Syria 1–0 2–1 2015 Asian Cup qualification
5 2–0
6 23 March 2017 King Abdullah II, Amman, Jordan  Hong Kong 4–0 4–0 Friendly

Honours

Real Madrid C

Steaua București

Dinamo București

References

  1. ^ الأردني الأول في أوروبا... ثائر البواب (The first Jordanian in Europe... Tha'er Bawab); The New Arab, 1 March 2016 (in Arabic)
  2. ^ Thaer Bawab; at All4Palestine
  3. ^ a b Thaer: "El Barça sigue apostando más por la cantera que el Madrid" (Thaer: "Barça still bet more on their youth system than Madrid"); Sport, 12 November 2013 (in Spanish)
  4. ^ a b El curioso caso de Tha’er Al Bawab (The curious case of Tha'er Al Bawab); Panenka, 13 December 2013 (in Spanish)
  5. ^ El exazulgrana Thaer, a las puertas de su "mayor sueño" (Former azulgrana Thaer, at the gates of his "biggest dream"); Sport, 12 November 2013 (in Spanish)
  6. ^ La última plantilla que descendió con el Castilla. ¿Qué fue de ellos? (The last squad to be relegated with Castilla. What happened to them?); Vavel, 26 November 2013 (in Spanish)
  7. ^ La maravilla de un canterano del Real Madrid en la liga rumana (The wonder of a Real Madrid youth player in the Romanian league); Marca, 25 November 2014 (in Spanish)
  8. ^ Thaer Fayez Bawab a semnat cu Gloria (Thaer Fayez Bawab signed with Gloria) Archived 3 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine; Gloria Bistrita, 29 June 2010 (in Romanian)
  9. ^ De la Madrid la Mediaş » Iordanianul Bawab, la al 2-lea gol in Liga 1 (From Madrid to Mediaş » Jordan's Bawab, gets his second goal in Liga 1); Gazeta Sporturilor, 2 May 2011 (in Romanian)
  10. ^ Gaz Metan-Mainz 1–1, 5–4 la penalty-uri (in tur: 1–1) / Revelatia Bundesligii, invinsa de un iordanian: Bawab! (Gaz Metan-Mainz 1–1, 5–4 on penalties (first leg: 1–1) / Bundesliga revelation, prey of a Jordanian: Bawab!); Ofsaid, 4 August 2011 (in Romanian)
  11. ^ Bawab nu se teme de Austria Viena: ”Mergem în grupe” (Bawab does not fear Austria Vienna: "We are a group") Archived 13 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine; Gazeta Sporturilor, 6 August 2011 (in Romanian)
  12. ^ Scîrţîie scaunul lui Sabău » Gaz Metan – Tg Mureş 2–1 (Sabău's squeaky chair » Gaz Metan – Tg Mureş 2–1); Gazeta Sporturilor, 26 September 2011 (in Romanian)
  13. ^ Dunărea Călăraşi dă o nouă lovitură. Tha'er Bawab a semnat cu echipa preluată de Cristi Pustai (Dunărea Călăraşi strikes a new blow. Tha'er Bawab has signed with team led by Cristi Pustai); ProSport, 2 July 2019 (in Romanian)
  14. ^ Thaer, el jordano que jugó en el Madrid y Barça y ahora es taxista: "Me está matando no estar allí" (Thaer, the Jordanian who played for Real Madrid and Barça and is now a taxi driver: "It's killing me not being there"); Relevo, 17 November 2022 (in Spanish)
  15. ^ Las mejores anécdotas de futbolistas del Barça en los taxis: del conductor del Espanyol al robo de una cartera (The best anecdotes from Barça footballers in taxis: from the Espanyol driver to the theft of a wallet); Crónica Global, 30 March 2024 (in Spanish)
  16. ^ Tha'er BawabFIFA competition record (archived)
  17. ^ Tha'er Bawab at Soccerway
  18. ^ Tha'er Bawab at BDFutbol
  19. ^ Tha'er Bawab at WorldFootball.net
  20. ^ a b Tha'er Bawab at National-Football-Teams.com
  21. ^ VIDEO+FOTO Super-Bawab! Steaua e prima finalistă a Cupei Ligii, după ce a învins Astra, scor 2–0 (VIDEO+PHOTO Super-Bawab! Steaua are first League Cup finalists, after defeating Astra, 2–0 the score); Gazeta Sporturilor, 13 April 2016 (in Romanian)
  22. ^ VIDEO+FOTO » Dinamo a câștigat Cupa Ligii fără emoții! Al 34-lea trofeu din vitrina "câinilor" (VIDEO+PHOTO » Dinamo won unexciting League Cup! 34th trophy in the "dogs" cabinet); Gazeta Sporturilor, 20 May 2017 (in Romanian)