Mansour Muftah

Mansour Muftah Faraj Bekhit Al-Abdullah, or simply Mansour Muftah, alternatively spelled Mansoor Moftah (, born 1955) is a former Qatari footballer who represented Qatar national team and Al-Rayyan as a striker. In 84 games for the national team, Muftah has scored 48 goals, In 2023, Almoez Ali overtook him as the top goal-scorer of the Qatar national team all-time top goal scorer. Additionally, Muftah played for Al-Rayyan for the majority of his club career. He scored 179 league goals in the Qatari League first division. Al-Rayyan became one of the leading teams in Qatari football during this period. Throughout his career, Muftah also finished as the Qatari League's top goal-scorer seven times.

Early life Mansour Muftah was born on 22 November 1955, in Doha, Qatar.

Club career

Al-Rayyan (1974–1994) Muftah got promoted to the senior squad at the age of nineteen. He played for Al-Rayyan from the years 1974 till 1994, during his tenure he became a club legend and one of their greatest-ever players.

He helped the team win six Qatari League titles, and was also the league’s top scorer on several occasions (1973–74, 1976–77, 1977–78, 1981–82, 1982–83, 1983–84, and 1985–86 seasons).

In the 1985–86 campaign of the Qatari League, Under his captainship, Muftah set a remarkable record by scoring 22 goals In just 12 appearances out of the teams total 34 goals, featuring in all of Rayyan's matches, he was declared the top goal-scorer of the league, scoring an average of 1.83 goals per game. Due to this feat, he became the first player to win the Arabian Golden Boot twice, first in the 1981–82, and the second in the 1985–86 season, he also contributed to Al-Rayyan’s victory in the Qatar Sheikh Jassem Cup in 1992.

Al-Wakrah (1995–1998) In 1995, Muftah was set to join Al Sadd, but strong opposition from Al-Rayyan fans due to the fierce rivalry between the two clubs prevented the move. As a result, he signed with Al-Wakrah instead. He played with the team till 1998. During his tenure, He scored 19 goals in 44 matches, and won the Qatar Sheikh Jassem Cup in 1998.

Muftah also notes regrettably when he scored the game-winning goal in a 1–0 victory over his old team, Al-Rayyan, Since they only needed a win or draw to be declared champions of the 1995–96 league season, The goal not only gave Al-Wakrah the victory but also allowed Al-Arabi to snatch the league title. Muftah later apologised for scoring in the game.

Transfer offers from abroad Due to his performances at Al-Rayyan, Muftah received numerous transfer offers from clubs abroad such as Al-Nasr and Al Jazira, and most notably an offer from Al Hilal in 1981, where he would have played alongside Rivellino. However, the deal was never finalized. He scored four goals in six games in the tournament, including a two-minute brace against Bahrain. He then featured in the 1978 Asian Games scoring a brace to level the game against arch-rivals Saudi Arabia to enable a draw. He also featured in the 1979 Gulf Cup in Iraq, scoring a single goal against the UAE, and again in 1982 Gulf Cup. scoring a goal against Oman. He scored his first World cup qualifier goal in 1978 against Bahrain at the 40th minute resulting in a 2–0 win for Qatar. International Success (1982–1988) In the 1980s, Muftah played a key role in Qatar's participation in tournaments, with his most successful spree in the FIFA World Cup qualification in 1986 where he scored a hat-trick and a poker against Lebanon, however, both matches were counted as annulled. Another one of his memorable moments came in 1990 where he scored a header from a difficult angle against rivals Saudi Arabia in the 87' minute to salvage a draw, In the same qualifying stage he scored in the 87' minute after teammate Mahmoud Soufi who scored a few moments prior in the game against China to give Qatar the victory.

In 1981, he participated in the World Military Cup held in Qatar, helping his team finish as runners-up. He scored the winner against Syria in the qualifying rounds which enabled Qatar to play at the men's tournament at the 1984 Summer Olympics. Later years and captaincy (1988–1990) In 1988, he scored two goals and attained three assists in the group stage of the 1988 AFC Asian Cup held in Qatar. After Qatar made an early exit, Muftah, who was the team captain, stated he felt humiliated for not at least reaching the knock-out stage. In a post-tournament interview, he apologized to the Qatari fans on behalf of the team. Despite losing in the group stages, he earned 45,000 QR for winning two of the games. Despite announcing international retirement, he returned to play in the 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification, marking his last few appearances for the national side.

In 2000, Muftah was selected for his last international match for Qatar, In which he retired, the match resulted in a 0–1 win for Egypt.

Personal life Muftah's brother, Faraj Muftah, was a former volleyball referee and player who played for the Al Rayyan Volleyball Team and the Qatar national volleyball team. Muftah's son, Tameem Mansour, is also a professional footballer who plays for Al-Rayyan as well as the Qatar national team.

Legacy Muftah is regarded as one of the best arab goal-scorers of his era. He was the first player to win the Arabian Golden Boot twice in 1981–82 and 1985–86, he was also an influential player for both club and country, contributing numerous goals and attacking plays. A record seven-time top scorer, he is also the all-time leading goal scorer in the Emir Cup with 36 goals and in the Sheikh Jassim Cup with 34 goals. Nicknamed "The Fox" due to his speed and ability to score from inside the box as well as with long-range shots alongside his dribbling skills, He reportedly scored 317 goals in 324 matches for both club and country.

from 2013–14 Qatar Stars League season onwards, the top goalscorer award was renamed to the "Mansour Muftah Award" in recognition of his outstanding contribution to Qatari football.

To honour his immense contributions to football in Qatar, Aspire Zone Pitch 7 was named after Muftah for the FIFA U-17 World Cup.

Career statistics

Honours

Club Al-Rayyan Qatari League (6): 1975–76, 1977–78, 1981–82, 1983–84, 1985–86, 1989–90. Sheikh Jassem Cup (1): 1992

Al-Wakrah Sheikh Jassem Cup (1): 1998

International

Qatar Arabian Gulf Cup runner-up (2): 1984, 1990 World Military Cup runner-up (1): 1981

Individual

Qatari League top goal-scorer (7): 1973–1974, 1976–1977, 1977–1978, 1981–1982, 1982–1983, 1983–1984, 1985–1986 Qatari League highest goal average: 22 goals in 12 matches 1982 Gulf Club Champions Cup top goal-scorer: 6 goals Arabian Golden Boot (2): 1981-82, 1985–86 AFC Asian All Stars (1): 1985