Yassine Meriah


Yassine Meriah is a Tunisian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 club Espérance de Tunis, whom he captains, and the Tunisia national team.

Club career

Mariah was formed in AS Ariana, the team that was active in the Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 2. In the 2013–14 season, he was transferred to ES Métlaoui when he was 20 years old. After spending two seasons with the team, he was prominently featured and invited to the Tunisian Olympic team. He attracted the attention of the officials of CS Sfaxien, one of the most important teams in the Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 who sought to sign with him, starting from the 2014–15 season. From his first season with CS Sfaxien, Meriah was a key figure in the squad and played in many of the team's defensive positions.

Olympiacos

On 28 July 2018, Meriah joined Olympiacos for an estimated transfer fee of €1,500,000, signing a four-year contract. On 2 September 2018, he scored his first goal for the club in a 5–0 home win against PAS Giannina.
On 31 January 2020, Meriah officially loaned in Süper Lig club Kasımpaşa, until the end of the 2019–20 season, with a €5 million buyout clause expected in the summer. Meriah started this year as de facto leader in Olympiakos defence, having a great presence in the Champions League qualifiers. Later, however, there were some games in which he made mistakes, so he was sidelined. On 13 September 2020, he signed a long season loan with another Süper Lig club Çaykur Rizespor.

Al Ain

On 28 July 2021, Meriah joined Al Ain for a reported transfer fee of €2 million signing a two-year contract.

Espérance de Tunis

On 4 August 2022, Meriah joined Espérance de Tunis as a free agent signing a two-year contract.

International career

Meriah's success with his club led him to the Tunisia national team for the first time by coach Georges Leekens on 13 June 2015 against Morocco in 2016 African Nations Championship qualification.
He scored his first goal against DR Congo in 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification.
In May 2018 he was named in Tunisia's final 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
In June 2019 he was named in Tunisia's final 23-man squad for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.

Career statistics

International

No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
11 September 2017Hammadi Agrebi Stadium, Tunis, Tunisia1–02–12018 FIFA World Cup qualification
213 October 2018Hammadi Agrebi Stadium, Tunis, Tunisia1–01–02019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
322 March 2019Hammadi Agrebi Stadium, Tunis, Tunisia4–04–02019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
417 November 2023Hammadi Agrebi Stadium, Tunis, Tunisia1–04–02026 FIFA World Cup qualification
515 October 2024Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium, Abidjan, Ivory Coast1–11–12025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
67 December 2025Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor, Qatar2–03–02025 FIFA Arab Cup

Honours

Olympiacos
Al Ain
Espérance de Tunis
Tunisia
Individual