Haitam Aleesami
Norwegian footballer (born 1991)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Haitam Aleesami (Arabic: هيثم العصامي; born 31 July 1991) is a Norwegian professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Eliteserien club Bodø/Glimt.
|
Aleesami with FC Rostov in 2021 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Haitam Aleesami[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 31 July 1991 | ||
| Place of birth | Oslo, Norway | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[2] | ||
| Positions | |||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Bodø/Glimt | ||
| Number | 5 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2007 | Nordstrand | ||
| 2008 | Holmlia | ||
| 2009–2010 | Skeid | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2010–2012 | Skeid | ||
| 2012–2014 | Fredrikstad | 68 | (5) |
| 2015–2016 | IFK Göteborg | 45 | (2) |
| 2016–2019 | Palermo | 90 | (1) |
| 2019–2020 | Amiens | 22 | (1) |
| 2020–2021 | Rostov | 13 | (0) |
| 2021–2023 | Apollon Limassol | 36 | (0) |
| 2024–2025 | KFUM Oslo | 25 | (1) |
| 2025– | Bodø/Glimt | 30 | (2) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2015–2020 | Norway | 31 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 26 April 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 11 October 2020 | |||
Club career
Born in Oslo and of Moroccan descent,[3] Haitam Aleesami started playing football for Nordstrand, Holmlia and later Skeid.[4] He joined Skeid's first-team squad in 2010, playing in the Second Division, and was named "Skeid's best young player of the year" in 2011.[5]
In August 2012, he joined Fredrikstad FK to replace Benjamin Dahl Hagen, who had returned to Vålerenga after a loan spell.[6] Aleesami made his debut in Tippeligaen and assisted Tarik Elyounoussi's goal when Fredrikstad won 2–0 in the match against Tromsø on 5 August 2012.[7][8]
On 18 August 2014, he signed a four-year contract with Swedish club IFK Göteborg. He joined the club in the pre-season before the 2015 season.[9]
On 8 August 2016, he signed with Palermo.[10]
On 17 October 2020, he joined Russian Premier League club FC Rostov.[11] He left Rostov on 19 May 2021.[12]
On 16 August 2021, he signed a two-year contract with Apollon Limassol in Cyprus.[13]
After half a season without a club, Aleesami signed with newly promoted Eliteserien side KFUM Oslo in December 2023.[14]
On 15 March 2025, Aleesami signed a two-year contract with Bodø/Glimt.[15]
Personal life
Haitam's younger brother Ayoub Aleesami is also a professional footballer. Like his older brother, Ayoub is a defender in the Eliteserien and currently plays for Haitam's former club KFUM. While Ayoub and Haitam have similar appearances, the latter is vastly more known due to playing internationally; thus, Ayoub is often confused for Haitam.[16]
Career statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Skeid | 2012 | Norwegian Second Division | 13 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 15 | 2 | |||
| Fredrikstad | 2012 | Tippeligaen | 13 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 13 | 0 | ||||
| 2013 | Norwegian First Division | 30 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 31 | 4 | ||||
| 2014 | 25 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 1[c] | 0 | 28 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 68 | 5 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | 72 | 5 | ||||
| IFK Göteborg | 2015 | Allsvenskan | 30 | 2 | 5 | 0 | — | 4[d] | 1 | 1[e] | 0 | 40 | 3 | |
| 2016 | 15 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 5[d] | 0 | — | 23 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 45 | 2 | 8 | 0 | — | 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 63 | 3 | |||
| Palermo | 2016–17 | Serie A | 31 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 33 | 1 | |||
| 2017–18 | Serie B | 30 | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | 32 | 1 | ||||
| 2018–19 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 29 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 90 | 1 | 4 | 1 | — | — | — | 94 | 2 | |||||
| Amiens | 2019–20 | Ligue 1 | 22 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 25 | 1 | ||
| Rostov | 2020–21 | Russian Premier League | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 14 | 0 | ||
| Apollon Limassol | 2021–22 | Cypriot First Division | 20 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | 21 | 1 | |||
| 2022–23 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 4[f] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 | |||
| Total | 36 | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 1 | |||
| KFUM Oslo | 2024 | Eliteserien | 25 | 1 | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | 28 | 2 | |||
| Bodø/Glimt | 2025 | 25 | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | 6[g] | 1 | — | 34 | 3 | |||
| 2026 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 4[h] | 0 | — | 12 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 30 | 2 | 6 | 0 | — | 10 | 1 | — | 46 | 3 | ||||
| Career total | 342 | 14 | 30 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 23 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 399 | 19 | ||
- Includes Coupe de la Ligue
- Appearance in Norwegian First Division promotional play-offs
- Appearances in UEFA Europa League
- Appearance in Svenska Supercupen
- Appearances in UEFA Conference League
- Appearances in UEFA Champions League
- Appearances in UEFA Champions League
International
- As of 11 October 2020[17]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Norway | 2015 | 3 | 0 |
| 2016 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2020 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 31 | 0 | |
Honours
IFK Göteborg
