Osama Rashid

Osama Jabbar Shafeeq Rashid (Arabic: أسامة رشيد; born 17 January 1992) is an Iraqi professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Primeira Liga clzb Vizela and the Iraq national team.

Club Career

Youth career

Born in Kirkuk, Iraq, Rashid joined Feyenoord in 1999 from ZOB, an amateur club from Zuidoostbeemster. He spent more than a decade with the youth setup of the club and was part of one of the most promising crops of players to ever graduate from the academy in recent years. Other graduates included Stefan de Vrij, Jordy Clasie, Bruno Martins Indi, and Luc Castaignos amongst others. Rashid suffered an Injury in the 2009 UEFA European Under-17 Championship which prevented him from training with the first which he believes affected his chances with the first team. Rashid was not offered a professional contract once he turned 18 years old and therefore did not continue his career with Feyenoord.

Den Bosch and failed transfer to Werder Bremen

Rashid signed for FC Den Bosch following his release from Feyenoord. He played the 2011–12 season in the Eerste Divisie, the second division of professional football in the Netherlands. He played 12 times scoring twice while Den Bosch finished sixth in the league and failed to qualify to the Eredivisie. Rashid left Den Bosch at the end of the season.

In 2012, Wolfgang Sidka, a former Werder Bremen player who was coach of Iraq at the time, arranged a trial for Rashid at the Bundesliga club. He was invited for another trial and was ultimately offered a contract by Werder Bremen, which he turned down citing his desire to finish his studies. Rashid has since stated that negotiations between Feyenoord and Werder Bremen had failed even though Feyenoord were not entitled to financial compensation.

This page also has a version in other languages :  Осама Рашид (russian)