Ibrahim Maza, who is under contract with Bayer Leverkusen, will play for Algeria at the World Cup in North America – not for his native Germany. The 20-year-old, who also holds Vietnamese citizenship, chose the North African country where his father comes from. “I’m a multicultural kid with three different nationalities: Germany, Algeria, and Vietnam,” Maza said according to club media.
Maza, known to everyone as “Ibo,” was born in Berlin in 2005. His father Sofiane is from Algiers and met his Vietnamese wife in Germany. As a child, Ibrahim regularly traveled to Algeria: “I was often there with my father. We practically spent every summer there visiting the family,” he told Leverkusen’s in-house Werkself TV.
Maza began his football education in Berlin at Reinickendorfer Füchsen – a club known for its youth work. Among those who learned the game there were Kevin-Prince Boateng and Thomas Hässler, a 1990 World Cup winner. Later, Maza moved to Hertha BSC before joining Bayer Leverkusen in 2022.
Julian Nagelsmann and many German fans had hoped to win Maza over for the German national team. But by the time Nagelsmann became aware of the talented offensive player, it was already too late: Maza had already played a competitive match for Algeria, binding him permanently to the African association.
At the World Cup in North America, Algeria will face Argentina in the group stage, among others. Maza showed himself combative ahead of the tournament: “We will beat Lionel Messi!” he announced. The Leverkusen player is considered one of Algeria’s greatest talents and is being watched by several top European clubs.
Source: www.dw.com
