Joan Oumari


Joan Oumari is a Lebanese professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Japanese club FC Tokyo and the Lebanon national team. Mainly deployed as a center-back, Oumari's main strengths lie in his physical attributes and leadership.
After playing for eight seasons in Germany, between the fifth and second division, Oumari moved to Turkish side Sivasspor in 2016. In 2017, he signed for UAE Pro-League club Al-Nasr, before moving on a six-month loan to Japanese side Sagan Tosu the following season. After returning to Al-Nasr for one year, in 2019 Oumari moved back to Japan, joining Vissel Kobe. In 2020, Oumari signed for FC Tokyo.

Early life

Oumari was born on 19 August 1988 in Berlin, Germany, to Lebanese Kurds from Beirut. Oumari's parents emigrated from Lebanon to Germany in 1980 due to the Lebanese Civil War. He has two brothers, Ahmed and Hassan; the latter also plays football.

Club career

Early career in Berlin

Born in Berlin to Lebanese parents, his career began at NFC Rot-Weiß Berlin. After a few years in the youth department, the defensive player moved to the youth section of Reinickendorfer Fuchse. There, he made the leap to the first team during the 2006–07 season, which was playing in the fifth division. Oumari played 22 league games that season, scoring one goal and finished in third place. The following season, Oumari established himself as a regular player of Reinickendorfer Fuchse, playing 31 of 33 league games and scoring five goals. At the end of the season, his team came first in the league with the fewest goals conceded.

SV Babelsberg 03

The following season Joan Oumari, alongside his older brother Hassan, who also played regularly for Reinickendorfer Fuchse, moved to Regionalliga side SV Babelsberg 03. While his older brother was only used sporadically, Joan Oumari played in about half of the season games, mostly as a substitute.
During the 2009–10 season, Oumari only played 11 league games. His best performance was on 5 March 2010, in 3–0 home win over ZFC Meuselwitz, where he gave two assists and was declared the man of the match. At the end of the season, his team came first with the fewest goals conceded in the league and were promoted to the 3.Liga. There, the defender became a regular. Initially deployed as a left-back, Oumari was later moved as a center-back.

Rot-Weiß Erfurt and FSV Frankfurt

In May 2011, Rot-Weiss Erfurt announced the signing of Oumari on a two-year deal. In his first season he immediately took a regular place in central defense and played 29 league games. After another year in the third division, Oumari made the jump to the 2. Bundesliga, moving to FSV Frankfurt in the summer of 2013.

Sivasspor

2015–16: Süper Lig

During the winter transfer window of the 2015–16 season, Oumari moved to Turkish side Sivasspor. His first game for the club came on 16 January 2016, as a starter in a 3–1 away loss to Galatasaray. On his last game in the season, Oumari scored a goal against Fenerbahce on 19 May 2016 in a 2–2 draw. However, the draw wasn't enough as his team was relegated to the TFF First League.
Oumari played a total of 17 games in the Süper Lig during his first season.

2016–17: TFF First League

In his six-month stay in the TFF First League, Oumari played 13 league matches and scored one goal, on 10 December 2016 against Göztepe.

Al-Nasr

2017–18: First two seasons

In January 2017 Oumari moved to UAE Pro-League side Al-Nasr SC on a two-and-a-half-year deal. He played 32 league games in his first two seasons at the club.

2018: Loan to Sagan Tosu

In August 2018 Oumari signed for J1 League side Sagan Tosu on a six-month loan, becoming the first Lebanese player to play in the J1 League. His first and only goal for the club came on 20 October 2018 against Vegalta Sendai in a 2–3 away win. Oumari played a total of 11 league games for the club.

2018–19: Third season

Upon returning from loan to Al-Nasr, Oumari played nine league games in the 2018–19 season, as well as one cup game. He also debuted in the Asian Champions League, playing against Pakhtakor Tashkent in the 2019 play-off round.

Vissel Kobe

On 23 July 2019, J1 League side Vissel Kobe announced the signing of Oumari on a free transfer. He made his club debut on 17 August 2019, in a 3–0 home win against Urawa Red Diamonds in the league. He scored his only goal for Vissel Kobe on 19 October 2019, in a 1–3 home defeat against his eventual future club FC Tokyo. Oumari ended the 2019 season with one goals in four appearances in the league. He also made one appearance in the 2019 Emperor's Cup, which he won as his side defeated Kashima Antlers 2–0 in the final.

FC Tokyo

On 10 January 2020, Oumari joined J1 League runners-up FC Tokyo. His debut came on 12 July 2020 in the league, coming on as a substitute in a 3–1 away win against Yokohama F. Marinos. Oumari's debut from the starting lineup came two matchdays later, on 22 July, in a 1–1 draw against Consadole Sapporo.

International career

Oumari made his debut on 7 September 2013 for Lebanon in a friendly against Syria. His first goal for Lebanon came on 12 November 2015, scoring a long-distance shot against Laos. His second goal came five days later, scoring the lone goal of the match in a friendly against Macedonia. In December 2018, he was called up for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup squad. He played the whole 90 minutes in all three group stage matches, however Lebanon wasn't able to reach the knock-out stages of the tournament.
On 5 September 2019, the Lebanese Football Association announced Oumari's indefinite exclusion from the national team, alongside teammate Bassel Jradi, for refusing a call-up for a 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against North Korea. After issuing an apology explaining his reasons for refusing the call-up, the LFA lifted the exclusion and Oumari was reintegrated to the national team on 19 September 2019.

Style of play

Oumari's strengths lie mainly in his physicality and heading. In 2008, his former coach Dietmar Demuth stated that Joan Oumari, aged 20, had a "frighting commitment and aggressiveness", as well as "the maturity of an experienced footballer".

Career statistics

International

No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
112 November 2015Saida International Stadium, Sidon, Lebanon6–07–02018 FIFA World Cup qualification
217 November 2015Philip II Arena, Skopje, Macedonia1–01–0Friendly

Honours

Club

Reinickendorfer Fuchse
SV Babelsberg 03
Al-Nasr
Vissel Kobe
Award