Mohamed Simakan

Mohamed Simakan
Simakan with RB Leipzig in 2022
Personal information
Full name Mohamed Sanousy Simakan
Date of birth (2000-05-03) 3 May 2000 (age 26)
Place of birth Marseille, France
Height 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)
Positions
Team information
Current team
 Al-Nassr
Number 3
Youth career
2008–2009 Vivaux Marronniers
2009–2010 FC Bruz
2010–2011 FC Rouguière
2011–2014 Marseille
2014–2015 JO Saint-Gabriel
2015–2017 SC Air Bel
2017–2019 Strasbourg
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2017–2019 Strasbourg B 24 (1)
2019–2021 Strasbourg 38 (1)
2021–2024 RB Leipzig 85 (4)
2024– Al-Nassr 60 (4)
International career‡
2019–2021 France U20 2 (1)
2022–2023 France U21 7 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 9 October 2026 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 2 July 2023 (UTC)

Mohamed Sanousy Simakan (born 3 May 2000) is a French professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Saudi Pro League club Al-Nassr.

Early life

Born in Marseille to Guinean parents, Simakan acquired French nationality on 7 November 2005, through the collective effect of his mother's naturalization.

Club career

Strasbourg

On 16 May 2018, Simakan signed his first professional contract with Strasbourg. He made his professional debut in a 3–1 UEFA Europa League win over Maccabi Haifa on 25 July 2019.

RB Leipzig

On 22 March 2021, Simakan agreed to join German club RB Leipzig on a five-year deal for an undisclosed fee, to be effective in the summer of 2021. He made his debut for the club in the First round of the DFB Pokal against SV Sandhausen, which ended in a 4–0 win. He made his Champions League debut on 21 September 2021, in a 2–1 defeat to Club Brugge. Simakan immediately became an important player for the club, taking part in 28 Bundesliga matches, He missed two matches during the season due to the COVID-19 virus. He was also instrumental in the DFB Pokal, where he took part in all the matches on route to Leipzig winning the title.

In his second season with the club, Simaken continued to be an important part of the team, as he played 24 matches in the league, scoring once. On 6 September 2022, he scored his first UEFA Champions League goal in a 4–1 defeat against Shakhtar Donetsk. Simaken participated in 5 matches in the DFB Pokal, where RB Leipzig won the competition for the second straight season, however he was an unused substitute in the final.

On 19 September 2023, he scored the first ever goal of the 2023–24 Champions League season in the 3rd minute of a 3–1 away win over Young Boys.

Al-Nassr

Simakan with Al-Nassr in 2025

On 2 September 2024, Simakan joined Saudi Pro League runners-up Al-Nassr for €45 million. In the 2025–26 Saudi Pro League, his second season with the club, he was a key part of the Al Nassr team that won the title. A regular member in a defence which kept 16 clean sheets in 34 games, he also scored 3 goals, including a 95th-minute winner against Neom.

International career

Thanks to his great performance with Strasbourg in Ligue 1, Simakan was called up by Bernard Diomède to play for France U20 national team. He played his first game as a starter against Slovenia in which he scored a header contributing to his team's 2–2 draw.

Style of play

According to Sofascore.com's football algorithm, Simakan's strengths include ground duels and aerial duels. He is a ball-carrying, aggressive, versatile defender adept at playing either right-back or center-back.

Career statistics

As of match played 15 September 2026
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup Continental Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Strasbourg B 2017–18 Championnat National 3 181———181
2018–19 60———60
Total 241———241
Strasbourg 2019–20 Ligue 1 190105000250
2020–21 19100——191
Total 381105000441
RB Leipzig 2021–22 Bundesliga 2816070—411
2022–23 241517110373
2023–24 322207110423
2024–25 1010——20
Total 854141212201227
Al-Nassr 2024–25 Saudi Pro League 26120110—391
2025–26 283216120385
2026–27 5011100071
Total 5945218120847
Career total 205102034434027316
  1. ↑ Includes Coupe de France, DFB-Pokal, King's Cup
  2. ↑ Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  3. ↑ Four Appearances in UEFA Champions League, and three appearances in the UEFA Europa League
  4. 1 2 Appearances in UEFA Champions League
  5. 1 2 Appearance in DFL-Supercup
  6. 1 2 Appearances in AFC Champions League Elite
  7. ↑ Appearances in AFC Champions League Two
  8. ↑ Appearances in Saudi Super Cup

Honours

RB Leipzig

Al-Nassr

References

  1. ↑ "Mohamed Simakan". RB Leipzig. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  2. ↑ "JORF n° 0260 du 8 novembre 2005 - Légifrance" (PDF). legifrance.gouv.fr (in French). p. 17558. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  3. ↑ "Strasbourg : un jeune défenseur guinéen signe son premier contrat pro". 26 May 2018.
  4. ↑ "Premier contrat pro pour Mohamed Simakan". www.rcstrasbourgalsace.fr. 15 May 2018.
  5. ↑ "Strasbourg vs. Maccabi Haifa - 25 July 2019 - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com.
  6. ↑ "RB Leipzig sign Mohamed Simakan from Strasbourg". Bundesliga. 22 March 2021. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  7. ↑ "Club Brugge 2 - Leipzig 1". UEFA. UEFA. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  8. ↑ "Mohamed Simakan". Dfb. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  9. ↑ Gjerulff, Rune (26 November 2021). "Report: Three Leipzig players test positive for COVID-19". bulinews.com. Bulinews. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  10. ↑ "DFB-Pokal, 2021/2022, Finale". Dfb. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  11. ↑ "Mohammed Simakan". DFB Datacenter. DFB. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  12. ↑ "Visitors Shakhtar stun Leipzig 4-1 with Shved double on debut". ESPN. 6 September 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
  13. ↑ "Mohammed Simakan Dfb Pokal 22-23". Datacenter dfb. DFB. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  14. ↑ "2022-23 German DFB Pokal, Final". ESPN.com. ESPN. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  15. ↑ "Champions League group stage first scorers: Mohamed Simakan quickest off the mark in 2023/24". UEFA. 19 September 2023.
  16. ↑ "Official Mohamed Simakan signs for Al—Nassr". getfootballnewsfrance.com. 2 September 2024.
  17. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wsFdPFrMZw
  18. ↑ "Mohamed Simakan, buteur avec les U20: "beaucoup d'émotions"". 9 September 2019.
  19. ↑ https://www.sofascore.com/football/player/mohamed-simakan/945063
  20. ↑ https://breakingthelines.com/@btl/mohamed-simakan-leipzigs-french-colossus-in-defense-2
  21. ↑ "M. Simakan". Soccerway.
  22. ↑ Peeters, Thomas (23 May 2022). "A thriller in Berlin: how relentless RB Leipzig won their first major title". Red Bull. Archived from the original on 13 June 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  23. ↑ "Christopher Nkunku-inspired RB Leipzig beat Eintracht Frankfurt to win DFB Cup". Bundesliga. 3 June 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
  24. ↑ Lisjak, Mitja (12 August 2023). "Olmo s hat-trickom pokvaril veliki debi Kana pri Bayernu" (in Slovenian). RTV Slovenija. Retrieved 12 August 2023.
  25. ↑ "No joy for CR7: Al-Nassr fall short, end as continental runners-up". OneFootball. 16 May 2026. Retrieved 16 May 2026.