Riyad Karim Mahrez is a professional footballer who plays as a right winger for Saudi Pro League club Al-Ahli and captains the Algeria national team. Mahrez began his career as a youth player for French club AAS Sarcelles. Mahrez predominantly operates as a winger with him playing on the right wing more often than not.
The Algerian boasts of a bag of tricks and is extremely powerful with his left foot. One of his signature moves represents cutting inside from the right flank and getting shots away from the goal. He turned professional in 2009 with Quimper, where he played for only one season before moving to Le Havre, spending a total of three years with them, initially playing for their reserve team and then becoming a first-team regular.
He has gone on to win three league titles, one FA Cup, two EFL Cups, and a UEFA Champions League in 2022–23 as part of a continental treble whilst at City. This and many other records and honors decorate his so far successful career.
PERSONAL INFORMATION
| Full Name | Riyad Karim Mahrez |
| Date of Birth | FEBRUARY 21 1991 |
| Nationality | ALGERIAN |
| Birth Place | SAECELLES, FRANCE |
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) |
| Current Team(s) | AL-AHLI, ALGERIA |
| Position | MIDFIELDER, WINGER |
| Debut | 2009 |
| Networth | $25 million |
| Agent | Kamel Bengougam |
Also Read: Saudi Pro League: Al-Ahli – Club details, Top Players, History and Future Objectives
EARLY LIFE
Riyad Mahrez was born on 21st February 1991 in Sarcelles, France. However, he decided to turn out for Algeria on the international stage instead of the nation of his birth. Mahrez was born in Sarcelles, France, to an Algerian father and a mother of Algerian and Moroccan descent.
His father Ahmed was from Beni Snous, Tlemcen District. Growing up, Mahrez would regularly spend his holidays in Algeria. Mahrez’s father had played football in Algeria. When Mahrez was fifteen, his father died of a heart attack. It was at this time that Mahrez got serious about his career in football.
CLUB CAREER
AAS SARCELLES:
He joined AAS Sarcelles in 2004. He had a two-month trial at Scottish club St Mirren but left Due to unfavorable weather conditions.
LE HARVE
He joined Le Havre in 2010, turning down offers from leading French teams Paris Saint-Germain and Marseille to join them, being enticed by their youth system. He initially played for their reserve team, Le Hand ended the season with four goals and three assists from 30 appearancesavre II, before going on to play 60 times and score 6 goals for the first team in the French Ligue 2 from 2011 until leaving in January 2014.
LEICESTER CITY
On 11 January 2014, he was signed by Leicester City on a three-and-a-half-year contract for around £45 million. Mahrez made his debut on 25 January 2014, coming on in the 79th minute as a substitute replacing fellow winger Lloyd Dyer, in the 2–0 win against Middlesbrough.
Leicester ended the season as winners of the Championship, returning to the Premier League for the first time in ten years. Mahrez made his Premier League debut on 16 August 2014, and scored his first goal in the division on 4 October 2014 in a 2–2 draw with Burnley, and ended the season with four goals and three assists from 30 appearances.
He signed a new four-year contract with Leicester in August 2015. Mahrez was one of four Leicester players named in the PFA Team of the Year in April 2016, and later that month he won the PFA Players’ Player of the Year award. He was the first African to earn the accolade. When Leicester finished the season as champions, Mahrez became the first Algerian to win a Premier League medal. He signed a new four-year contract with Leicester in August 2016.
He was nominated for the Ballon d’Or in October 2016. On 6 May, Mahrez played his 100th Premier League game for Leicester, against Watford, scoring in the process. At the end of the 2016–17 season, Mahrez announced that he wished to leave the club. Following the announcement, Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger stated his interest in signing Mahrez, and Italian side Roma had a bid for Mahrez which was eventually rejected in July 2017.
MANCHESTER CITY
On 10 July 2018, Manchester City confirmed the signing of Mahrez on a five-year contract. The transfer fee of £60m made Mahrez the most expensive African footballer, and also Manchester City’s most expensive signing and a record transfer fee received by Leicester City. He made his debut as a starter on 5 August, as City defeated Chelsea 2–0 to win the 2018 FA Community Shield at Wembley Stadium.
At the end of his first season with Manchester City, despite having “limited playing time” (including just 14 league starts), Mahrez won the Premier League title for the second time, and his first with Manchester City, becoming the second African player to win the title with two different clubs after Kolo Touré.
On 15 July 2022, Manchester City announced Mahrez had signed a two-year contract extension which will see him stay with the club until 2025. On 10 June, Manchester City won 1–0 against Inter Milan in the Champions League final, in which he became the second Algerian to win the competition after Rabah Madjer in 1987. In addition, he managed to win the continental treble with his club, despite not featuring in both FA Cup and Champions League finals.
AL-AHLI
On 19 July 2023, it was reported that Manchester City agreed a deal for Mahrez to join Saudi Pro League club Al Ahli for a transfer fee of £30 million. The transfer was confirmed on 28 July 2023, with Mahrez signing a contract for 2027. On 11 August 2023, Mahrez provided his first assist for Al-Ahli in his first competitive game for the side, assisting Roberto Firmino in a victory against Al-Hazem.
INTERNATIONAL CAREER
In November 2013, the French-born Mahrez expressed his desire to represent Algeria internationally. He was called up to the provisional Algeria squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. On 31 May 2014, Mahrez made his international debut for the National team as a starter in a pre-World Cup friendly match against Armenia, and he was subsequently called up to the full squad for the tournament on 2 June.
On 15 October 2014, Mahrez scored his first international goal, as well as setting up Islam Slimani in Algeria’s 3–0, Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Malawi. In December 2014 he was announced as a member of Algeria’s squad for the final tournament in Equatorial Guinea for the first time. Mahrez was named in coach Georges Leekens’ Algeria squad for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon. In their opening game, he scored both goals in a 2–2 draw with Zimbabwe and was awarded Man of the Match.
In October 2017, with Algeria’s chances of reaching the 2018 FIFA World Cup already ended, Mahrez and his (at the time) Leicester teammate Islam Slimani were dropped from the national team, with coach Lucas Alcaraz selecting several new players. On 18 November 2018, in the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier Mahrez scored a brace in a 4–1 away victory against Togo, his first goal with the national team since the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations to lead Algeria to qualify for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.
In May 2019, he was named to Algeria’s 23-man squad for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations. Mahrez was chosen to be captain of Algeria at the Africa Cup of Nations. Mahrez scored a 90+5 minute goal in a 2–1 win against Nigeria in the semi-finals of the competition. Later on, Algeria managed to win the tournament which was their first since 1990. Mahrez captained Algeria at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, held in January 2022.
RECORDS
- He helped Algeria win its second Africa Cup of Nations Cup title after 29 years.
- He’s the African player with the highest number of assists in Premier League history.
- He scored the first FA Cup semi-final hat-trick since 1958 and the first-ever at Wembley.
- He’s the first Algerian to play in two UCL finals.
- He led Manchester City to the first European Cup final in the club’s history.
- He was a prolific member of the Leicester team that stunned the world by winning the English Premiere League in 2016.
- The first African player to complete an English domestic treble.
AWARDS ACHIEVEMENTS
LEICESTER CITY
- Premier League: 2015–16
- Football League Championship: 2013–14
MANCHESTER CITY
- UEFA Champions League: 2022–23
- Premier League: 2018–19, 2020–21, 2021–22, 2022–23
- FA Cup: 2018–19, 2022–23
- EFL Cup: 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21
- FA Community Shield: 2018
ALGERIA
- Africa Cup of Nations: 2019
INDIVIDUAL
- CAF African Footballer of the Year: 2016
- BBC African Footballer of the Year: 2016
- Algerian Footballer of the Year: 2015, 2016
- PFA Team of the Year: 2015–16 Premier League
- PFA Players’ Player of the Year: 2015–16
- PFA Fans’ Player of the Year: 2015–16
- Leicester City Player of the Year: 2015–16
- El Heddaf Arab Footballer of the Year: 2016
- Lion d’Or African Footballer of the Year: 2016
- CAF Team of the Year: 2016, 2018, 2019
- CAF Africa Cup of Nations Team of the Tournament: 2019
- African Goal of the Year: 2019
- IFFHS CAF Men Team of The Year: 2020
- IFFHS CAF Men’s Team of the Decade 2011–2020
- Manchester City Player of the Month: October 2018, September 2019, December 2019, February 2021, February 2022, December 2022, January 2023
- PFA Fans’ Player of the Month: March 2021, January 2023
- Alan Hardaker Trophy: 2021
- IFFHS CAF World’s Best Playmaker: 2021
NET WORTH
The famous Football player “Riyad Mahrez” has a net worth of $25 Million. According to various online resources (Wikipedia, Forbes, Bloomberg).
FAMILY
Mahrez’s parents are his late father Ahmed Mahrez, and mother Halima Mahrez, he has one brother and two sisters. He shares 2 daughters Ayla and Inaya Mahrez with ex-wife Rita Johal. He also has another daughter Mila Mahrez with his current girlfriend Taylor Ward.
PARTNER
Mahrez is currently dating model Taylor Ward since 2020.
HOUSES
Mahrez owns a $2.5 million apartment in downtown Manchester. The city center pad features three bedrooms, multiple bathrooms, and unreal panorama views. Mahrez lives there along with his partner and model, Taylor Ward, who built a walk-in closet and had marble floors installed.
He 2018 FA Community Shield at Wembley Stadium. At the end of his first season with Manchester City, despite having “limited playing time” (including just 14 league starts), Mahrez won the Premier League title for the second time, and his first with Manchester City, becoming the second African player to win the title with two different clubs after Kolo Touré.