Nabil Dirar (; born 25 February 1986) is a Moroccan professional footballer who plays as a winger for Maltese club Santa Lucia.Morocco's Nabil Dirar leaves Monaco for Fenerbahce‚ goal.com, 18 June 2017
Club career Early career Born in Casablanca, Dirar moved to Belgium in his early teens and began his career at RWD Molenbeek and Saint-Gilloise before moving to Diegem Sport in 2004, where he began his professional career. During his two-year stay, he scored 2 goals in 26 appearances.
Dirar's performances drew the attention of many clubs, including Westerlo, which won the race against other clubs to sign him, contracting him for three years effective 1 July 2006.
Westerlo 2006–07 season Dirar made his Westerlo debut in the opening match of the 2006–07 season, appearing as a late substitute for Patrick Ogunsoto in a 2–1 loss against Roeselare. He scored his first Westerlo goal on 21 October in the sixth round of the Belgium Cup, a 1–0 win over Zaventem. He provided two assists in a 2–1 win over Mons on 10 February 2007, and did so again in a 4–2 win over Zulte Waregem on 21 April. In the last match of the season, Dirar scored his first Westerlo goal in the Belgian First Division, in a 1–1 draw against Gent. He finished the 2006–07 season with 2 goals from 35 appearances in all competitions.
2007–08 season The 2007–08 season saw Dirar score his first goal of the season on 24 September 2007, in a 2–1 loss against Standard Liège. He then set up two goals to help the club defeat Roseselare 6–0 on 20 October. On 19 January 2008, he scored one goal and assisted two others in a 7–2 win against RWDM Brussels. However, as the 2007–08 season progressed, he suffered injuries, restricting him to 25 appearances across all competitions.
Dirar's performances at Westerlo attracted interests from other clubs, including Ajax, Anderlecht, Club Brugge and Standard Liège. Ultimately, he ended up joining Club Brugge, signing a five-year contract on 21 May 2008.
Club Brugge 2008–09 season The next day after signing for Club Brugge, Dirar joined the squad, alongside Joseph Akpala and Ronald Vargas. He made his Club Brugge debut in the opening match of the 2008–09 season, where he started and lasted the entire 90 minutes in a 4–1 win against Tubize. After making his UEFA Cup debut against Swiss side Young Boys on 18 September 2008, He scored his first Club Brugge goal in the Bruges derby, a 3–1 win against Cercle Brugge on 19 October.
After making his debut, Dirar became a first-team regular under the management of Jacky Mathijssen, then made three assists, which he did twice against Zulte Waregem and once against Kortrijk between 29 October 2008 and 1 November 2008, both of which were wins.
Dirar scored his second goal of the season on 31 January 2009 in a 3–1 win over Tubize and again set up three assists, which he did twice against Roeselare and Cercle Brugge between 28 February 2009 and 8 March 2009 respectively, which were also both wins. During the last match of the season, he scored and set up two goals in a 4–1 win over Royal Excel Mouscron. In his first season at the club, he helped the club finish third place behind Anderlecht and Standard Liège, therefore qualifying for the following season's UEFA Europa League, and made 40 appearances, scoring 3 goals and assisting 11 times in all competitions.
2009–10 season Ahead of the 2009–10 season, Dirar was linked with a move to the English Premier League, with Tottenham Hotspur and Everton expressing an interest in signing him. Dirar, however, stayed at the club, while changes had been made, with manager Mathijssen replaced by Adrie Koster and Dirar being forced to compete with new signing Ivan Perišić in the starting lineup. Despite this, Dirar scored and set up a goal in the opening match of the season, a 2–1 win over Charleroi. In a 3–2 win against KV Mechelen on 15 August 2009, he spat at opposition player Yoni Buyens, which although went undetected by the referee, was caught on television. Consequently, he served a five-match ban, three on immediate effect and two on the last match of the season. However, after an appeal from the club, his ban was reduced to two matches. Around the same time, Dirar was suspended by the club and was sent to the reserve team after being late for training.
Dirar made his return to the first team on 1 October in a 2–2 draw with Toulouse in the UEFA Europa League. After again being late for training in mid-November, he was dropped from the squad against Charleroi and, as punishment, trained alone. On 30 December, he returned to the first team and scored his second goal of the season (also setting-up another) in a 4–1 win over Kortrijk. In early February, Dirar suffered an injury that kept him out throughout February and early March. He was involved in altercation with the club captain Stijn Stijnen in training.
Dirar returned to the first team on 21 March 2010, where he set up two goals in a 4–1 win over Beerschot. Weeks later, he scored two goals in two matches against Anderlecht and Gent on 3 and 11 April respectively. He finished the 2009–10 season with 4 goals and 11 assists in 42 appearances across all competitions.
2010–11 season Ahead of the 2010–11 season Dirar signed a new contract with Club Brugge lasting until 2014. However, he was again sent to the reserve team for two weeks after he failed to attend the fan day, though he claimed he did not attend because he was ill. After two weeks with the reserves, he was reinstated to the first team. Following a 1–0 loss against Lokeren on 23 October 2010, Dirar was again sent to the reserve side for three weeks after he fouled Tiko, which could have earned him a red card; he was substituted off in the second half as a result.
After a three-week absence, he was reinstated to the first team and scored his first goal of the season on 28 November in a 2–1 win over Sint-Truidense. He scored his second goal in a 4–3 win over Westerlo in the next match. In the match against Gent on 26 December, Dirar set up one of the goals but was sent-off in the eventual 2–0 win. After the match, he was suspended for two matches. Ultimately serving only a one-match ban, he returned to the first team and scored and assisted another goal in a 5–0 win over Charleroi on 29 December.
During a 2–1 victory against Lokeren on 21 February 2011, Dirar was involved an incident with teammate Ivan Perišić over who should take a free-kick; Perišić took the kick and scored, though Dirar refused to celebrate. He was sent to the reserve team for the third time that season after a 4–1 win over Kortrijk on 12 March when he again was involved in an incident with a teammate over who should take a free-kick, this time with Vadis Odjidja-Ofoe. After the incident, Club Brugge supporters booed him, leading him to respond to the supporters with an obscene gestures. He was ordered by manager Koster to leave the pitch to avoid aggravating the situation. After the match, Dirar apologized to the club and Odjidja-Ofoe during a press conference, saying his behaviour was unacceptable.
A few weeks later, before the start of the playoffs, manager Koster reinstated Dirar to the first team, and he went on to appear in all of Brugge's playoff matches. He finished the 2010–11 season with 3 goals and 11 assists in 40 appearances in all competitions. At the end of the season, he signed a contract with the club, which would keep him until 2016.
2011–12 season In the 2011–12 season, Dirar became one of the most productive players at the club, tallying the most assists for Club Brugge that season (11). He started the season well when he scored his first European goal in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League qualifying phase, in a 4–1 win over Qarabağ, and went on to progress to the next round despite losing 1–0 in the return leg. Dirar scored again in the Europa League group stage and set-up another in a 2–0 win over Maribor. He followed this by scoring his first league goal of the season, in a 2–1 win over Lokeren on 18 September 2011, as well as setting-up another goal. Between 26 October and 30 November, he scored seven goals in six appearances in all competitions, against Gent, Genk, Standard Liège, Cercle Brugge and scoring a brace against Maribor in the Europa League.
In the January transfer window, Dirar was linked with a move away from Club Brugge. French side Monaco made a bid for him, which led to him not playing against RAEC Mons on 29 January 2012 due to a hip injury.
Monaco 2012–13 season
On 31 January 2012, Dirar joined Ligue 2 side Monaco for a €7.5 million transfer fee, the highest transfer fee ever received by Club Brugge. Upon joining Monaco, he stated leaving Club Brugge for Monaco was an offer he could not turn down, though he made an apology to manager Christoph Daum.
Dirar made his Monaco debut on 13 February 2012, coming on as a substitute in a 1–0 loss against Bastia. Nine days later, on 24 February, he scored his first goal for the team in a 2–1 win over Stade Lavallois. He then scored two more goals in the 2011–12 season, against Châteauroux and Istres. Dirar finished the half of the 2011–12 season scoring 3 goals from 15 appearances in all competitions.
In the 2012–13 season, Dirar started the season well for the club, setting-up a goal in a 4–0 win over Tours in the opening match of the domestic season. On 25 February 2013 he scored his first goal of the season, in a 1–0 win over Lens. After missing two matches, he scored on his return on 15 March in a 2–2 draw against Angers. On 22 April, he contributed a goal and an assist in a 4–0 win over Clermont. After a two-year absence from top-flight football, Dirar helped the club reach promotion to Ligue 1. On 24 May 2013, in the final match of the 2012–13 season during a match against Tours, he ruptured his cruciate ligaments. Following the match, it was announced he would be out for six months with cruciate ligaments injury. He finished the 2012–13 season with 3 goals from 37 appearances in all competitions.
2013–14 season The 2013–14 season saw Dirar continue rehabilitating his injury, and after seven months on the sidelines, he made his return to training from injury in January 2014. It was not until 1 February 2014 when he made his return from the first team, where he came on as a substitute for James Rodríguez in the 62nd minute in a 2–2 draw against Lorient. Dirar then scored his first goal of the season on 10 May in a 2–1 win over Valenciennes. He finished the 2013–14 season with 1 goal in 13 appearances across all competitions.
2014–15 season In the 2014–15 season, Dirar started the opening match of the Ligue 1 season at right-back in a 2–1 loss to Lorient. It came after when new manager Leonardo Jardim began slotting Dirar at right-back position during the pre-season. After missing one match due to an ankle injury, Dirar scored his first goal for the club on 21 September in a 1–0 win over Guingamp. After suffering two separate injuries in November he set up a goal for Lucas Ocampos to score the only goal in a UEFA Champions League match against Bayer Leverkusen, a 1–0 victory on 26 November.
Following a shinbone injury at the start of 2015 Dirar made his first team return on 17 January 2015, coming on as a substitute in the second half in a 1–0 win over Nantes. He then captained Monaco for the first time following absence of the team captain Jérémy Toulalan in the Champions League knockout stage in the first leg, a 3–1 win over Arsenal. One month later, on 22 March, he scored his second goal of the season in a 3–1 win over Stade de Reims. As the 2014–15 season progressed, Dirar suffered an injury and was sent-off in a 4–1 win over Toulouse on 3 May 2015. He finished the 2014–15 season with 2 goals from 41 appearances in all competitions.
2015–16 season