Ad-Diba

Mohamed Diab Al-Attar, known as Ad-Diba, (Arabic: محمد دياب العطار‎‎; 17 November 1927 – 30 December 2016), was a footballer who played for the Al Ittihad Alexandria Club and the Egypt national football team. He later served as an international football referee. In 2007, he was named one of the 200 greatest African footballers.

Ad-Diba
Personal information
Full name Mohamed Diab Al-Attar
Date of birth (1927-11-17)17 November 1927
Place of birth Alexandria, Egypt
Date of death 30 December 2016(2016-12-30) (aged 89)
Place of death Alexandria, Egypt
Position(s) Centre forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1944–1958 Al Ittihad Alexandria Club – (81)
National team
1948–1958 Egypt – (–)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Biography

Ad-Diba was born in Alexandria and joined the Al Ittihad Alexandria Club as a centre forward in 1944. In 1948 he helped the team win the Egypt Cup and was the top scorer in the first Egyptian Premier League tournament (alongside El-Sayed El-Dhizui). He remained with the team until 1958, when they were relegated to the Egyptian Second Division, and retired to take up refereeing.[1] Internationally, he was a member of the Egypt national football team and competed at two editions of the Summer Olympic Games in 1948 and 1952.[2] He also helped Egypt win the first edition of both football at the Pan Arab Games in 1953 and the Africa Cup of Nations in 1957. In the latter case, he was the tournament's top scorer with five goals, four of which came in Egypt's 4-0 victory over Ethiopia in the final.[1]

As a referee, Ad-Diab presided over the final of the 1968 African Cup of Nations[1] and also refereed during the 1972 Gulf Cup of Nations[3] and the 1976 Summer Olympics. By career he was a water manager and a journalist.[2] In 2007, he was included in an initial list by the Confederation of African Football of the top 200 African footballers of all time.[4] In September 2016 it was reported that he was suffering from Alzheimer's disease and in critical condition in an Alexandria hospital.[5] He died on 30 December 2016 at the age of 89.[6]

References
  1. صبرى, عمرو (3 October 2014). تقرير : الديبة .. الاودائماً (in Arabic). Al Ittihad Alexandria Club. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  2. "Mohamed Diab El Attar". World Referee. 20 February 2011. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  3. الحكام (in Arabic). Gulf Cup of Nations. 2016. Archived from the original on 9 November 2016. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  4. "Kenya missing out on Africa soccer Elite list". Kenya Football. 5 January 2007. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  5. حلمي, رانيا (7 September 2016). مصدر: نجم الاتحاد يعاني من الزهايمروحالته حرجة (in Arabic). مصر العربية. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  6. سعيد, سامح (30 December 2016). وفاة محمد دياب العطار "الديبة".. أسطورة الإسكندرية (in Arabic). alwafd.org. Retrieved 3 January 2017.
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