Youcef Atal

Youcef Atal (; born 17 May 1996) is an Algerian professional footballer who plays as a right-back for the Algeria national team.

Club career After beginning his professional career in his native Algeria with Paradou AC, Atal was sent on loan to Belgian club KV Kortrijk in 2017. Despite a season in which he suffered a myriad of injuries, Kortrijk nevertheless decided to exercise the purchase option in the loan. Atal joined French club Nice from Kortrijk in 2018, and started the opening match of the season. He scored his first goal for his new side in November, recorded a hat-trick in April, and ended his first season with six total goals. He underwent surgery in December 2019 to repair a torn meniscus.

On 9 February 2024, Atal signed for Turkish Süper Lig club Adana Demirspor until the end of the season.

In September 2024, Al-Sadd SC of the Qatar Stars League signed Atal to a two-year contract.

International career On 1 June 2017, Atal was called up to the Algeria national team for the first time for a friendly match against Guinea and a 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Togo.

In December 2023, he was named in Algeria's squad for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

Controversy On 14 October 2023, amidst the Gaza war, Atal posted a video on social media of Palestinian preacher Mahmoud al-Hasanat asking God to "send Jewish people a dark day". He quickly removed the video after receiving criticism, notably from Nice mayor Christian Estrosi, who stated that unless Atal "denounces Hamas terrorists, he no longer has a place at [OGC Nice]". Atal subsequently published a message on Instagram apologizing for posting the video, and clarified his beliefs by stating that he "denounce all forms of violence". Two days later, OGC Nice suspended Atal until further notice after the antisemitic post. On 25 October, he was suspended for seven matches by the Ligue de Football Professionnel for posting the message.

On the 24 November, Atal was detained by French Police over the antisemitic posts. In January 2024, Atal was convicted of inciting religious hatred and given an eight-month suspended sentence.

Career statistics

International

Algeria score listed first, score column indicates score after each Atal goal.

Honours Paradou AC Algerian Ligue Professionnelle 2: 2016–17

Nice Coupe de France runner-up: 2021–22

Algeria Africa Cup of Nations: 2019