“Very grateful”: Saibari wants to continue his soccer fairy tale at FC Bayern | OneFootball

Ismael Saibari has begun a new chapter in his career with FC Bayern. At his official presentation on Friday, the 25-year-old spoke not only about his athletic goals in Munich, but also about a personal story that has been with him since childhood.

Today, Bayern’s new signing, Ismael Saibari, is regarded as a technically skilled and physically strong offensive player. However, there was initially no indication during his childhood that the Moroccan would one day become a professional soccer player and compete at the top international level.

Quite the contrary: Saibari was born with a severe foot deformity. At the time, doctors even doubted whether he would ever be able to walk normally. For his parents, this posed major challenges in the early years. They did everything in their power to ensure their son could develop as normally as possible.

At his official introduction, the 25-year-old spoke about it himself: “It’s true, I had problems with my feet when I was born. My parents made many sacrifices so that I could walk properly and live a normal life. I’m very grateful for that.”

For the new Bayern star, this past is an important part of his story. The challenges he faced as a child did not stop him from pursuing his dream of playing professional soccer.

Saibari draws strength from his faith

Photo: IMAGO

Saibari’s faith also plays an important role in his personal development. The Moroccan is a devout Muslim and does not view his journey so far as solely the result of hard work.

„I am also a devout Muslim; I believe in God and that this was part of His plan,“ the forward explained.

Saibari suffered another setback at RSC Anderlecht. He was once cut from the team there because the coaching staff did not consider him physically fit enough to perform at a high level.

All in all, Saibari looks back on an eventful history, which makes his career and his move to FC Bayern Munich all the more impressive.

After his time at Anderlecht came to an end, he eventually ended up at KRC Genk following a brief stint elsewhere. In 2020, he moved to PSV Eindhoven, where Saibari has developed over the past few years into the top-tier player he is today.