71 seconds. That’s all it took for Ismael Saibari to score and ultimately secure victory for Morocco against Scotland. Brahim Díaz won the ball and sent a long pass behind the Scottish defence. Ismael Saibari had already made up his mind. He sprinted into space, controlled the ball, and blasted a powerful shot into the top corner past Angus Gunn. That single goal made Saibari a hero: the PSV Eindhoven midfielder, born 24 years ago in Terrassa, Catalonia, had just scored the fastest goal in Morocco’s World Cup history.
Having already found the net against Brazil in the opening match, Saibari now has two goals in two games and is quickly earning the title of Morocco’s revelation of the tournament. The player no one was talking about before the tournament kicked off is now the most decisive man for the Atlas Lions. Yet nothing seemed to predestinate Morocco’s false nine for such a fate.
From orthopaedic braces to football boots
Ismael Saibari was born with a congenital foot deformity. In his early years, this condition made it impossible for him to walk unaided. “My feet were turned inward and I moved around with walking devices,” he told Swedish television Västerbotten. “My doctor told my parents I might never walk in my life.”
His mother never gave up. He underwent a long and demanding treatment protocol, with specially designed orthopedic devices to help him stand. “My mother prayed for me. I just wanted to have a normal life, not necessarily to become a footballer,” he added. At two years old, he took his first steps, later than average, but he walked.
In Terrassa, he started playing football in local youth teams. But in 2007, the economic crisis forced his family to leave Spain. “My father transported goods, but he was afraid of losing his job, and even though my mother had her own shop and made excellent bread, we couldn’t live on that alone,” he explained in a 2024 interview with the Swedish newspaper Algemeen Dagblad. The family moved to Belgium. Saibari was six years old.
A path full of obstacles
His parents settled in the suburbs of Antwerp, where he and his brother Akram kicked their first Belgian footballs at KVC Willebroek, learning Dutch as quickly as they already spoke Spanish and Darija. Both were spotted by Beerschot, the city’s club. Moved from striker to midfielder, Saibari dominated his age group. But he had to change plans again: Beerschot went bankrupt after four years at the club.
Courted by Sevilla FC, PSV Eindhoven, and Genk, he ultimately chose Anderlecht, where he had to learn French in Belgium’s bilingual capital. Two seasons later, he was told to leave: “They told me I was too fat. It was really painful. I was playing well and felt I was in good form. It was an honor to play there, but the day before the new season started, I got the news.”
He continued his journey at other Belgian clubs, at Mechelen, then Genk, where he signed his first professional contract and played in the Youth League. Before being signed by PSV Eindhoven in 2020 for 200,000 euros, initially for their reserve team.
Roger Schmidt gave him his chance in the Eredivisie at 19, but it was with the arrival of Ruud van Nistelrooy, with whom he had already worked in the B team, that his career took off.
“Back then, he played more out wide, even though he liked to cut inside. He’s a player with a lot of power, great acceleration, but also technical quality. From his debut against FC Eindhoven, he showed something different,” recalled Javier Rabanal, Van Nistelrooy’s close collaborator at PSV, in Marca.
Under Peter Bosz last season, Saibari truly broke out: 19 goals and nine assists in 37 matches. “His overall performance doesn’t surprise me because we saw great potential, but his numbers do. They’re surprisingly high,” admitted the Spanish coach. In total, he has 42 goals in 142 matches for PSV, Dutch champions for the past three seasons.
Choosing Morocco
His journey could have led elsewhere. Ismael Saibari could have played for Spain, where he was born. For Belgium, where he grew up from the age of six and spent most of his development. Roberto Martínez, coach of the Red Devils, contacted him directly to offer him a place in the Belgian team. But Saibari declined. “He wanted to fulfill his parents’ dream, because his whole family was from Morocco, so he said no,” a former teammate told Relevo.
Saibari gradually joined the Atlas Lions: he won the U23 AFCON in July 2023, made his senior debut in September of the same year. In 2022, he was still far from Qatar. Two years later, he’s one of the key men in a team aiming for the round of 16.
Two goals, two wins, a revelation
Against Brazil, he scored with a delicate chip to earn Morocco a draw. Against Scotland, he struck even faster, in 71 seconds - a historic record. He was named the man of the match. Saibari became the first Moroccan player ever to score in two consecutive World Cup matches, and only the second African to achieve this in his first two games at the tournament, after Mohamed Salah at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
“This is the best moment of my career. It’s a dream come true to play in the World Cup,” he said in the mixed zone after the win over Scotland. Then, true to his reserved nature, he added, “I’m not the only one; I think the whole team is really giving everything. We have a good team with a lot of talented players. That makes the game easier.”
Yassine Bounou, one of the team’s leaders, is less modest about him: “I’m happy for him and for the whole team. We have exceptionally talented players, with great human values, who play with their hearts. The fans love it.”
A false nine with a real striker’s touch
Tactically, Saibari isn’t a natural centre-forward, having played in midfield since he was 12. Mohamed Ouahbi uses him as a false nine, playmaker, or winger, in a system without a traditional striker, replacing Youssef En-Nesyri, who was left out of the squad. “The idea to use Saibari in this role came when I took charge of the team. I wanted to implement my playing principles and apply them with the best players available,” explained the Moroccan coach.
Javier Rabanal described in Marca a player with rare technical skills for someone with his physical profile: “His acceleration is top-level. He looks like a straight-line power player, but he’s not.
"He can stop and go again, change direction, he’s creative in his dribbling… and, from a young age, he’s always had a clear eye for goal.” He also highlighted his versatility: “He can play inside, out wide, attack space as a ‘9’, like he does with Morocco.”
Several media outlets are already linking him with Bayern Munich this summer. The player himself insists he’s focused on the present. Morocco faces Haiti this Wednesday in Atlanta to close out the group stage.
If he scores, Saibari would become the first African player ever to find the net in all three group matches at a World Cup, and would equal the record for most goals scored by a Moroccan player in the competition, held by the absent En-Nesyri. The man who once just wanted “to have a normal life” is now writing an extraordinary story. And it might not be over yet.
Harry Dunnett is a global editor for Flashscore, specialising in English football. An intrepid traveller who has spent time in South and Central America, Harry enjoys visiting new stadiums and experiencing sport and culture all over the world. Currently residing in the Midlands, you can read his latest articles here.