Mohamed Al-Taay (Arabic: محمد الطائي; born 15 June 2000) is a professional football midfielder who plays for Western Sydney Wanderers. Born in Australia, he represents the Iraq national team.

Early life

Al-Taay was born in Campbelltown, New South Wales with two older brothers and one younger sister.[1][2] His parents, who hailed from Iraq, fled to Australia in 1994 due to the conflicts under Saddam Hussein.[1][2] His father fled Iraq in 1991 to a refugee camp in Saudi Arabia before moving to Australia.[2]

Al-Taay began playing football at the age of six with his father and brothers and attended Campbelltown Performing Arts High School growing up.[3] He joined his first football clubs with Blacktown City and Marconi Stallions in their junior age groups.[4]

Despite being born in Australia, Al-Taay developed interest in representing the Iraq national football team.[5] He is a devoted Muslim and frequently participates in Ramadan.[2] Al-Taay is fluent in Arabic and English, having learnt the former first growing up.[2]

Club career

Newcastle Jets

Having come through the Western Sydney Wanderers academy and NPL program, Al-Taay joined Newcastle Jets ahead of the 2021–22 season, in the hope of breaking through for his A-League debut.[6]

At the conclusion of the 2022–23 A-League season, Al-Taay departed Newcastle after 29 appearances in all competitions across two seasons.[7]

Wellington Phoenix

Al-Taay signed for Wellington Phoenix ahead of the 2023–24 season.[8] On 17 January 2025, Al-Taay was granted an early release from his contract with the Phoenix.[9]

Western Sydney Wanderers

Following his mid-season release from Wellington, Al-Taay returned to the Western Sydney Wanderers, where he had previously been part of their youth academy.[10]

International career

On 21 May 2024, Al-Taay was named in Iraq’s 26 man squad for their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification matches against Indonesia and Vietnam.[11][better source needed] He made his debut in the former on 6 June 2024, substituting Osama Rashid in the 86th minute as Iraq beat Indonesia with the score of 2–0.[12]

Style of play

Al-Taay is primarily positioned as a defensive midfielder but is also able to play as a centre-back and right back.[4] He is characterised more to be a ball-winning midfielder and is noted for his work rate and defensive abilities by Giancarlo Italiano. He is also described as having a similar playing style towards Cameron Devlin.[13]

References

  1. ^ a b "Five things to know about Mohamed Al-Taay". Wellington Phoenix. 7 June 2023. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e Comito, Matt (21 December 2023). "My dad escaped war, chose Australia & worked 20 hours a day so I could make it to the A-Leagues". A-League. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  3. ^ Elmerhebe, Tarik (22 November 2016). "Aspiring soccer teen Mohamed Al-Taay aims high". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
  4. ^ a b "Get to know new recruit Mohamed Al-Taay". Newcastle Jets. 22 July 2021. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
  5. ^ Clarke, George (12 October 2023). "Phoenix new boy Al-Taay targets Iraqi national team". The West Australian. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
  6. ^ "Jets secure defensive utility Mohamed Al-Taay - Newcastle Jets". Newcastlejetsfc.com.au. 4 July 2021. Retrieved 14 December 2021.
  7. ^ "Newcastle Jets Confirm A-League Men departures". Newcastle Jets FC. 7 May 2023.
  8. ^ "Wellington Phoenix begin rebuild with signing of midfielder Mohamed Al-Taay". Stuff. 11 May 2023.
  9. ^ Rollo, Phillip (17 January 2025). "Midfielder Mohamed Al-Taay joins Wellington Phoenix exodus". Stuff. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  10. ^ "Wanderers confirm the return of Al-Taay". Western Sydney Wanderers FC. 23 January 2025.
  11. ^ @IraqNT_EN (21 May 2024). "📋<img src="https://flagcdn.com/iq.svg" alt="<img src=" https:="" flagcdn.com="" iq.svg"="" style="width: 0.9em; padding: 0 0.05em">" style="width: 0.9em; padding: 0 0.05em"> Our 26-man squad for the #AsianQualifiers with Indonesia and Vietnam: GK: Jalal Hassan, Hussein Hassan, Ali Kadhim, Kumel Saadi DF: Rebin Sulaka, Akam Hashim, Frans Putros, Zaid Tahseen, Manaf Younis, Ahmed Yahya, Ahmed Maknzi, Hussein Ali, Mustafa Saadoun MF: Amir Al-Ammari, Osama Rashid, Safaa Hadi, Mohamed Al-Taay, Ali Jasim, Marko Farji, Bashar Resan, Louai Al-Ani, Zidane Iqbal, Ibrahim Bayesh, Youssef Amyn FW: Aymen Hussein, Mohanad Ali" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  12. ^ "Indonesia v Iraq game report". ESPN. 6 June 2024.
  13. ^ D'Urbano, Nick (11 May 2023). "Wellington Phoenix start rebuild with 'no-brainer' signing: 'He reminds me of Cam Devlin'". A-League. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
Allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohamed_Al-Taay
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