Thaer Al-Bawab.. The Only Arab Player Who Played for Real Madrid and Barcelona

Sada News - Jordanian star Thaer Al-Bawab takes pride in being the only Arab player who has had a unique experience representing the two giants of Spanish football, Real Madrid and Barcelona, during his professional career.

Al-Bawab was born in the Jordanian capital of Amman on March 1, 1985, and moved to Spain at the age of four, where he took his first steps in the world of football with the "Cornella" team.

In 2003, Al-Bawab began his journey with Real Madrid, joining their Under-19 team, and eventually progressing to the "Castilla" team.

Al-Bawab spent four years within the white castle, during which he scored 39 goals and had the opportunity to participate in training sessions with the first team.

Reflecting on that golden era, Al-Bawab stated to the Spanish network "Relivo": "I lived the best four years of my life with Real Madrid; I trained alongside legends like David Beckham, Luis Figo, Roberto Carlos, Fabio Cannavaro, and Zinedine Zidane.. It was another world.".

With the end of the first era of President Florentino Perez and the arrival of his successor Ramon Calderon, Real Madrid witnessed many changes. Coach Jose Miguel Del Campo, known as Míchel, took charge of the team and excluded Al-Bawab from his plans, leading him to move to Barcelona's reserve team in January 2007.

Thaer Al-Bawab at Barcelona

Al-Bawab's experience with Barcelona lasted only 6 months, during which he played 13 matches with the reserves, scoring 3 goals. He also enjoyed playing in two unofficial matches with the first team, both of which were in the semifinals and final of the Catalonia Cup, according to the Spanish newspaper Sport.

In an interview he conducted in July 2014, Al-Bawab confirmed his pride in playing alongside Argentine star Lionel Messi, Xavi Hernandez, and Cameroonian Samuel Eto'o.

Stages After Barcelona:

After his time in Catalonia, Al-Bawab moved on to play for several Spanish clubs, including:

Hospitalet

Deportivo Alvaro

Mur�talaa

He then transitioned to the Romanian league, where he found his true "rediscovery" of himself, representing clubs such as:

Gloria Bistrita and Gaz Metan Medias.

Al-Bawab also had an Arab professional experience with the Emirati team Ittihad Kalba and Qatari Umm Salal, before continuing his journey in Romania with major clubs like Universitatea Craiova, Steaua Bucharest, and Dinamo Bucharest, in addition to Dunarea Calarasi.

Al-Bawab won the Romanian League Cup title twice with Steaua Bucharest in the 2015-2016 season and with Dinamo Bucharest in the 2016-2017 season, according to data from the famous website "Transfermarkt".

In 2023, Al-Bawab put an end to his football career while playing for the Spanish club AD Villaviciosa de Odon.

Al-Bawab's International Career

On the international stage, Al-Bawab wore the Jordan national team jersey in 24 matches, during which he scored 6 goals and provided one assist to his teammates.

Al-Bawab reached the final playoff for qualification to the 2014 World Cup with the "Nashama", during which the team had to overcome Uruguay to travel to Brazil.

Al-Bawab described that period as the "best" for him with the national team, during which he appeared on the cover of the official "The Weekly" magazine published weekly by FIFA, alongside Luis Suarez and retired Mexican star Rafael Marquez.

However, the dream of qualifying for the World Cup ended at that time after losing the first leg 5-0 in Amman against Luis Suarez's teammates, before drawing 0-0 in the return leg in Montevideo.

In 2022, Al-Bawab began participating in coaching courses, according to the "Relivo" network, while also working as a taxi driver in Spain during that period.

Source: Agencies