From Barcelona to Levski - the path of Jawad El Jemili
A little over a year ago, a 20-year-old Barcelona-born boy arrived at Levski. He quietly crossed the threshold of Georgi Asparuhov stadium – without loud definitions of his transfer. To date, he is the leading scorer of the Blues, although he is not a pure striker, but an offensive midfielder. And his name is heard more and more often, the “Gerena” chant it louder. Jawad El Jemili. The Spaniard with Moroccan roots was born on September 4, 2002 in Barcelona’s Poblenou neighborhood. His parents emigrated from Morocco and are working hard to provide normal conditions for their two children. And Jawad’s idol is his brother, who is a former footballer.
El Jemili started kicking in the neighborhood, and played futsal. He trained at a Barcelona football school, and made it to Espanyol’s academy. Having just turned 19, he went to Cyprus to sign his first professional contract with the local Akritas (Chloraka). His potential was noticed and at the end of February 2023 El Jamili was attracted to Levski. He has 2 goals in 19 games for Akritas. In his 19 games for Levski in Ligue 1 so far this season, Javad has 8 goals.
He played in all six of the Blues’ European games during the campaign. His performances in his debut 3 months at the “Gerena” at the end of the previous season, when he played only around 260 minutes in 11 games, were obviously just a warm-up. And his acclimatisation was more than successful. And now that the Brazilian stars Welten and Ronaldo, who brought serious revenues to the club coffers, are gone, another foreigner shines on the pitch – the Barcelona boy.
But from the moment Javad El Jemili was liked by Levski to the signing of the contract with the Blues, there was one important step that the club might have failed to make. And it is the most important one – the transfer fee. Then the Sport in Bulgaria Foundation financed the transfer of the Spaniard of Moroccan origin. And the offensive midfielder, known by his nickname Mr. Showtime for his attractive feints, signed a 3-year contract with Levski. Now, from the position of time, the facts say one thing – El Jemili will obviously have an increasingly serious role at Levski and will also raise his price significantly, bringing “blue” joy. Javad was also the main hero in Levski’s last championship match – he scored two goals for the 3-0 success over Etar in Veliko Tarnovo. So he has already three games this season in which he scored twice.
Javad was the main hero in the last championship match of Levski – he scored two goals for the success over Etar with 3:0 in Veliko Tarnovo. Thus, he already has three games this season in which he scored twice. First he did it in the 3:1 success over Botev in Plovdiv. You sent 169 foreign players have dressed Levski’s team in history so far, but El Jemili is only the second legionnaire to score two goals in at least three games of a season. The first was Serge Joffou – in the 1999/2000 season the Ivorian striker scored twice in 4 matches. But there is something more important with El Gemili – with him, the show is really close to the fans. He doesn’t just score goals, he scores beautiful goals. He scores with his left and right foot (like against Botev), he scores from the second line, he scores with nice shots and wonderful raids (like against Etar). He also scores when the team is having fun (like in the 4-0 win over Arda) and when someone is needed to lead the Blues to success in a tight game (like in the 1-0 win over Cherno More).
Source: 24 Chasa