Moussa Dembele, a Frenchman born on 12 July 1996 (age 29), is a forward striker currently performing his footballing acrobatics for Al-Ettifaq. His stature, an imposing 6ft (1.83m) and weight of 12st 6lb (79kg) forms the physical canvas on which his football artistry is drawn.
Dembele's professional journey began in July 2012 when he joined Fulham, a squad situated in England. In the first season of 2013-14, he rarely got the nod, making only two first team league appearances. However, the 2014-15 season saw an improvement when he found himself playing in 11 first team league matches. By the 2015-16 season at Fulham, he had fully warmed up, scoring 15 goals in an impressive 43 first team appearances.
In July 2016, Celtic, a distinguisable Scottish team, pledged around £500k for his transfer from Fulham. During Dembele's 2016-17 season in Scotland, he deeply entrenched into the Celtic side, clocking up 29 first team league appearances and securing 17 goals. His performance continued to ripple through the 2017-18 season where on 25 occasions he got the nod and managed to score nine goals. He was seen donning the Celtic green once in the 2018-19 season.
August 2018 marked a significant move when Dembele transferred to Lyon, nestled in the French Ligue 1, for a staggering £20m. The French air seemed to invigorate him. He made 33 first team appearances and scored 15 goals in the 2018-19 season. Further, he slotted 16 goals on the back of 27 matches during the 2019-20 term. In a twist of events, his goals dipped to one, even if he did feature in 16 matches of the 2020-21 period. He managed a robust recovery, scoring 21 goals during his 30 encounters for the 2021-22 season. His stats receded slightly to three goals from 23 appearances in the 2022-23 term.
Dembele then took the opportunity to temporarily don the Atletico Madrid jersey on loan from Lyon in January 2021. His stint in Spain saw him play only five times in the 2020-21 league matches. June 2021 brought Dembele's return to Lyon from Spanish loan, only to discover he was bound to take flight again in due course.
In July 2023, Dembele decided to trade the French turf for Saudi Arabian sands, affirming a transfer to Al-Ettifaq in the Pro League. His playing time grew to 13 first team appearances in the 2025-26 season, during which he net five times, indicating he may be adjusting to fresh surroundings.
