5 players who fell off the footballing map after moving to the United Arab Emirates
The Saudi Pro League has dominated headlines since it snapped up footballing superstars like Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar, but it’s not the only league in the region to have lured some notable names.
There are a fair few familiar faces currently turning out for clubs in the UAE Pro League. They’ve been picking their wages away from the limelight since moving away from top clubs in Europe.
Here are five footballers we’ve totally forgotten about since they moved to the United Arab Emirates.
Nabil Fekir
No fewer than 38 Brazilians and 15 Argentinians are contracted to UAE Pro League clubs, but they all sound like Football Manager regens. Biro, Pedro Henrique, Paulinho (not that one), Joao Victor… anyone?
With a distinct lack of South American stardust, the biggest poster boy for the Emirati top flight is probably Fekir.
That move to Liverpool never materialised back in the day, but anyone who’s watched Spanish football over the past half-decade will tell you the French World Cup winner was absolutely dynamite for Real Betis.
He departed the Estadio Benito Villamarin in the summer in a €6million transfer to Sheikh Mansour-owned Al Jazira Club. He’s still only 31; a tad disappointing that he’s not lighting up a top European league.
Mohamed Elneny
To be fair to Elneny, at least he’s playing regular football again.
The 32-year-old Egypt international has already clocked up more minutes this season turning out for Al Jazira than he managed in his last two full seasons combined at Arsenal.
“I don’t need to talk about Elneny, he came to us from Arsenal,” says their coach Hussein Ammouta.
“We needed someone like him with his experience and leadership traits. These qualities will be valuable to us throughout the season.”
Haris Seferovic
Admittedly, if you were an avid watcher of the Portuguese Primeira Liga or mid-ranking Champions League group-stage games, chances are that Seferovic didn’t appear on your radar all that often in the first place.
But we file the striker alongside his Switzerland team-mate Ricardo Rodriguez as one of those names that would crop up and catch the eye every international tournament, like some biannual footballing Santa Claus.
Away from the international limelight, Seferovic spent the latter years of his time at Benfica in forgettable, not-at-all prolific stints on loan to Celta Vigo and Galatasaray. He moved to UAE Pro League side Al Wasl last summer in a move that almost certainly passed you by.
Seferovic has scored 17 goals in 50 appearances for Al Wasl, and won the title in his debut season, but unsurprisingly hasn’t received any more international call-ups since moving out to the Middle East.
He’s just seven caps short of a century for Switzerland.
READ NEXT: 7 players who fell off the footballing map after moving to Saudi Arabia
TRY A QUIZ: Can you name every country to compete at a FIFA World Cup?
Luka Milivojevic
Remember that season when Crystal Palace were awarded a load of penalties and Milivojevic was dead-eyed at converting them? Halcyon Fantasy Premier League days.
Milivojevic spent six and a half seasons at Selhurst Park and made just shy of 200 Premier League appearances for the Eagles.
He quietly left the club after his contract expired in the summer of 2023, and after a few weeks of uncertainty agreed terms with Shabab Al Ahli, who have since appointed Portuguese journeyman Paulo Sousa as their head coach.
The 33-year-old has won silverware in his native Serbia, Belgium and Greece and is now targeting more. Shabab Al Ahli are currently second in the UAE Pro League table, just two points behind leaders Sharjah with a game in hand.
Paco Alcacer
This is actually Alcacer’s third season out in the UAE Pro League, which probably gives you a good indication of when the former Spain international last crossed your mind.
Rarely over the years did Alcacer ever hit double figures for league goals, save for a freak hot streak out on loan at Borussia Dortmund back in 2018-19, but he did notch an outstanding ratio of 12 goals in just 19 appearances for La Roja.
The ex-Barcelona forward has notched 17 goals and 14 assists in just 55 UAE Pro League appearances and is now back at league leaders Sharjah after linking up with his former international team-mate Andres Iniesta out on loan last season.