Liel Abada
Israeli footballer (born 2001)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Liel Abada (Hebrew: ליאל עבדה, /lɪˈɛl/ lih-EL; born 3 October 2001) is an Israeli professional footballer who plays as a winger or a forward for Major League Soccer side Charlotte FC and the Israel national team.
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|
Abada playing for Celtic in 2021 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 3 October 2001 | ||
| Place of birth | Petah Tikva, Israel | ||
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in)[1] | ||
| Positions | |||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Charlotte FC | ||
| Number | 11 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2006–2014 | Hapoel Petah Tikva | ||
| 2014–2019 | Maccabi Petah Tikva | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2019–2021 | Maccabi Petah Tikva | 67 | (20) |
| 2021–2024 | Celtic | 79 | (21) |
| 2024– | Charlotte FC | 66 | (12) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2017 | Israel U16 | 6 | (1) |
| 2017–2018 | Israel U17 | 21 | (2) |
| 2018 | Israel U18 | 4 | (0) |
| 2018–2019 | Israel U19 | 12 | (4) |
| 2020–2022 | Israel U21 | 8 | (1) |
| 2021– | Israel | 18 | (1) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 5 April 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 10 June 2025 | |||
Early and personal life
Abada was born in Petah Tikva, Israel, to a family of Mizrahi Jewish descent.[2] At the age of 13, his first manager in Maccabi Petah Tikva took Abada's father Ronen and him to celebrate his Bar Mitzvah in Barcelona.[3] His younger brother Orel Abada is also a footballer who plays for Hapoel Ra'anana.[3] Abada is observant and does not play football on the Jewish high holiday of Yom Kippur.[4]
Except for a three-month period in 2022,[5] he has been in a relationship with Israeli Bar Rashti since 2020.[6]
Club career
Maccabi Petah Tikva
Abada made his professional debut for Maccabi Petah Tikva in the Israel State Cup on 22 August 2019, coming on as a 63rd minute substitute against Hakoah Amidar Ramat Gan, in a match that ended in a 4–1 home win for his team.[7] On 9 September 2019, he scored his first senior Israeli Liga Leumit goal in the 90th minute against Bnei Sakhnin, that finished as a 1–1 home draw for Maccabi Petah Tikva.[8] On 30 August 2020, Abada scored his first Israeli Premier League goal, which coincided with his team's 86th minute winning goal, earning his side a 1–2 away victory over Maccabi Tel Aviv.[9]
Celtic
On 14 July 2021, Scottish Premiership club Celtic announced the signing of Abada on a five-year contract, for a reported fee of £3.6 million.[10] On 20 July 2021, he scored on his debut in the first leg of Celtic's Champions League second round qualifying match against Danish side Midtjylland, that ended in a 1–1 home draw.[11] On 21 August 2021, in his third Scottish Premiership appearance, Abada scored both his and Celtic's first two league goals, that led to a 6–0 home victory over St. Mirren.[12] On 4 November 2021, he scored the winning goal for Celtic in a 2021–22 UEFA Europea League Group stage match against Hungarian side Ferencváros.[13] On 26 December 2021, Abada netted an early brace in a 2021–22 Scottish Premiership match against St. Johnstone, earning his team a 1–3 away win.[14] Abada won the PFA Scotland Young Player of the Year award for 2021–22.[15]
On 28 August 2022, Abada scored a hat-trick and assisted one goal, in a 9–0 away win against Dundee United in the 2022–23 Scottish Premiership.[16] On 3 September 2022, he scored both the first and third goal against Rangers in an Old Firm derby league match, that ended in a 4–0 home win for Celtic.[17] Abada made his debut UEFA Champions League Group stage appearance on 6 September 2022, opening against Spanish side Real Madrid.[18] On 19 October 2022, he scored a brace in the span of 11 minutes and later on added an assist against Motherwell in the 2022–23 Scottish League Cup quarter-finals, to lead his team to a 4–0 away victory.[19] In January 2023, Abada was featured in the official 40-man list composed by UEFA.com – which named the best young players in the continent that: "have the potential to take European football by storm in 2023".[20][21]
On 1 September 2023, Abada signed a new four-year contract with Celtic.[22] His career with Celtic was affected by the Gaza war, as the Green Brigade fans group demonstrated their support for the Palestinians.[23][24] Abada met with Celtic senior management after these displays, which had led to him being criticised in Israel, and Celtic issued a statement saying that it was "inappropriate" for the fans to show those messages.[25] Abada was injured at the time the war started, and he returned to the team in December.[26] Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers said in February 2024 that it was "challenging" for Abada to produce his best form in the circumstances,[26] and then confirmed that Abada could leave the club.[27] On 8 March 2024, Abada left Celtic for a fee of £10 million.
Charlotte FC
Abada moved to Major League Soccer club Charlotte FC on 8 March 2024.[28]
International career
He also plays for Israel's U-21 since 2020.[29]
Abada was first called up to the Israeli senior side on 18 March 2021, ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA).[30] He made his senior debut with the Israel national team on 5 June 2021, in a friendly match against Montenegro, where he substituted Yonas Malede in the 61st minute with the score at 0–0; the game ended with a 3–1 away victory for Israel.[31] He scored his first senior goal against Iceland, during a 2022–23 UEFA Nations League match on 2 June 2022, which ended in a 2–2 home draw for his native Israel.[32]
2024 Summer Olympics
Abada was selected for Israel's squad to compete in the men's football at the 2024 Summer Olympics.[33]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 14 September 2025[34]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Maccabi Petah Tikva | 2018–19 | Israeli Premier League | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 3 | 0 | |
| 2019–20 | 29 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 34 | 8 | |||
| 2020–21 | 36 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 0 | – | 42 | 13 | |||
| Total | 67 | 20 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 0 | – | 79 | 21 | |||
| Celtic | 2021–22 | Scottish Premiership | 36 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 12[c] | 3 | 54 | 15 |
| 2022–23 | 34 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 5[d] | 0 | 47 | 13 | ||
| 2023–24 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 | ||
| Total | 79 | 21 | 8 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 17 | 3 | 112 | 29 | ||
| Charlotte FC | 2024 | Major League Soccer | 27 | 7 | – | – | – | 27 | 7 | |||
| 2025 | 28 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | – | 33 | 6 | |||
| Total | 55 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | – | 60 | 13 | |||
| Career total | 201 | 53 | 18 | 4 | 15 | 3 | 17 | 3 | 251 | 63 | ||
- Includes Israel State Cup, Scottish Cup, U.S. Open Cup
- Includes Toto Cup, Scottish League Cup, Leagues Cup
- Two appearances and one goal in UEFA Champions League, eight appearances and two goals in UEFA Europa League, two appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
- Appearances in UEFA Champions League
International
- As of 17 June 2023[29]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Israel | 2021 | 4 | 0 |
| 2022 | 5 | 1 | |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 10 | 1 | |
- Scores and results list Israel's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Abada goal.[35]
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 2 June 2022 | Sammy Ofer Stadium, Haifa, Israel |  Iceland | 1–0 | 2–2 | 2022–23 UEFA Nations League B |
Honours
Maccabi Petah Tikva U20
- Israeli Noar Premier League: 2018–19
Maccabi Petah Tikva
Celtic
- Scottish Premiership: 2021–22,[36] 2022–23[37]
- Scottish Cup: 2022–23[38]
- Scottish League Cup: 2021–22[39] 2022–23[40]
Individual
