Hicham Zerouali
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Hicham Zerouali | ||
| Date of birth | 17 January 1977 | ||
| Place of birth | Morocco | ||
| Date of death | 4 December 2004 (aged 27) | ||
| Place of death | Rabat, Morocco | ||
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1996–1999 | FUS de Rabat | ||
| 1999–2002 | Aberdeen | 37 | (11) |
| 2002–2003 | Al-Nassr | ||
| 2003–2004 | FAR Rabat | ||
| National team | |||
| 1999–2004 | Morocco | 17 | (3) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
|||
Hicham Zerouali (Arabic: هشام زروالي; born 17 January 1977 – 4 December 2004), nicknamed 'Zero' or the 'Moroccan Magician', was a Moroccan footballer. He played as a forward for clubs in Morocco, Scotland and the United Arab Emirates. He was a Moroccan international who won 17 caps.
Zerouali was signed by Aberdeen manager Ebbe Skovdahl from FUS de Rabat in 1999. He became the first player in Scotland to wear the shirt number '0' in 2000 (something outlawed the following season by the Scottish Premier League and the Premier League in England) and in one of his more memorable outings scored a hat-trick against Dundee.
In January 2000, Zerouali scored a thirty-yard free kick in a fourth round Scottish Cup tie away to St Mirren to take the tie to a replay. Zerouali then scored in the 2–0 replay win at Pittodrie to help Aberdeen into the next round of the cup. Aberdeen eventually reached the final of that season's Scottish Cup.
In 2000, Zerouali was injured during a match against Motherwell, and subsequently missed out on a place at the Sydney Olympic Games.
A firm fans' favourite at Pittodrie, he was affectionately known as 'Zero' to the supporters. A memorial and tribute was held at Pittodrie after he died, which thousands of fans attended, despite him not playing for the club at the time.
...
Wikipedia