Shoots
Left
Signed
20/06/2022
Height
190 cm
Born
30/03/1996
Debut
27/10/2023
Nationality
Morocco
Weight
76 kg

Morocco defender Nayef Aguerd joined West Ham United from Stade Rennais on a five-year contract in June 2022.

The tall, left-footed centre-back developed at the national Mohammed VI Football Academy in his homeland before beginning his senior career and winning his first trophy with local club FUS as a teenager. Aguerd moved to France by joining Dijon in 2018 before moving to Rennes 2020.

A quick and elegant player, Aguerd helped Morocco finish fourth at the 2022 FIFA World Cup finals in Qatar before starring as West Ham won the UEFA Europa Conference League in June 2023.

Career

2023/24

Scored the opening goal in the 3-1 Premier League win over Chelsea at London Stadium on 20 August 2023, before being sent-off for two bookable offences in the same game...Netted the winner in the 2-1 UEFA Europa League Group A victory at SC Freiburg on 5 October 2023...Started Morocco's 1-1 international friendly draw with Ivory Coast on 14 October 2023...Started four of West Ham United's six UEFA Europa League Group A ties, all of them ending in victory...Started and completed 14 Premier League games in succession before suffering an illness which ruled him out of the festive fixtures against Manchester United and Arsenal...Started Morocco's 2023 CAF Africa Cup of Nations group-stage fixtures against Tanzania, DR Congo and Zambia in Ivory Coast in January 2024.

2022/23

Joined West Ham United from French Ligue 1 club Rennes on 20 June 2022 on a five-year contract...Suffered an ankle injury on his non-competitive debut in a pre-season defeat at Rangers at Ibrox on 19 July 2022, requiring surgery and ruling him out for over three months...Made his full debut in a 1-0 UEFA Europa Conference League Group B win over Silkeborg IF at London Stadium on 27 October 2022...Started the 3-0 UEFA Europa Conference League Group B win at FCSB in Romania on 3 November 2022...Started the EFL Cup third-round defeat by Blackburn Rovers at London Stadium on 9 November 2022...Made his Premier League debut by starting the 0-2 home defeat by Leicester City on 12 November 2022...Named in Morocco's squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup finals...Started Morocco's FIFA World Cup Group F ties with Croatia (0-0), Belgium (2-0) and Canada (2-1) as the Atlas Lions topped their group to reach the knockout stages for just the second time...Started Morocco's penalty shootout win over Spain in the FIFA World Cup round of 16 on 6 December 2022, but was withdrawn late in the second half with an injury...Returned to West Ham United's starting XI for the 2-2 Premier League draw at Leeds United on 4 January 2023...Kept his first clean sheet in Claret and Blue in the 1-0 FA Cup third-round win at Brentford on 7 January 2023...Kept his first Premier League clean sheet and enjoyed his first win in a 2-0 home victory over Everton on 21 January 2023...Started six of West Ham United's seven knockout stage ties in the UEFA Europa Conference League, winning five and drawing one...Scored his first goal for West Ham United with the winner in a 1-0 Premier League victory over Southampton at London Stadium on 2 April 2023...Scored his second Premier League goal for the Irons in a 4-3 defeat at Crystal Palace on 29 April 2023...Starred in the UEFA Europa Conference League 3-1 semi-final aggregate win over AZ Alkmaar in May 2023...Started and impressed in the 2-1 UEFA Europa Conference League final victory over ACF Fiorentina in Prague on 7 June 2023...Totaled 30 appearances and two goals across all competitions for the Irons in his debut campaign...Named in the UEFA Europa Conference League Team of the Season...Started Morocco's friendly international draw with Cape Verde in June 2023.

Before West Ham

Born in the city of Kénitra in the north of Morocco into a footballing family in March 1996... Son of a professional footballer who played in the Moroccan top-flight and an uncle, Abdelmajid Bouyboud, who was capped 34 times and appeared at the 1994 FIFA World Cup finals...Represented local club KAC of Kénitra as a boy before being scouted and recruited to the national Mohammed VI Football Academy in the capital city of Rabat...Spent four years at the Mohammed VI Football Academy training and playing alongside the likes of Sevilla striker Youssef En-Nesyri....Joined leading club Rabat FUS in 2014, aged 18...Made 12 first-team appearances in his debut season for Rabat FUS...Inspired FUS to their first-ever Moroccan Championship in May 2016, scoring a vital goal against Ittihad Tanger that all but clinched the title...Scored in the 2017 CAF Champions League and impressed regularly for FUS over the next two seasons...Joined French Ligue 1 club Dijon in 2018...Spent two encouraging seasons for Les Rouges...Transferred to Rennes in summer 2020...Started Rennes' first-ever UEFA Champions League match at home to Russian side Krasnodar and featured in four of six group-stage fixtures in the autumn of 2020, including two against English Premier League side Chelsea...Made 66 Ligue 1 appearances and helped Rennes qualify for Europe in each his two seasons at the club...Scored twice in seven UEFA Europa Conference League appearances and started 31 Ligue 1 games as Rennes finished fourth in Ligue 1 in 2021/22...Capped by Morocco at U20 and U23 levels before making his senior debut against Albania in August 2016....Helped Morocco win the African Nations Championship on home turf in 2018...Was an ever-present in Morocco’s successful 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign and run to the 2021 CAF Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals.

Honours

International Honours

Morocco
African Nations Championship (2018)

Club Honours

FUS Rabat
Botola (2015/16)
Throne Cup (2014)

West Ham United
UEFA Europa Conference League (2023)

Individual Honours

IFFHS CAF Men Team of The Year (2020)
UEFA Europa Conference League Team of the Season (2022/23)
Order of the Throne (2022)