1. Overview
Hamza Rafia (حَمْزَة رَفِيعَةHamza RafiaArabic) is a professional footballer from Tunisia, who plays as an attacking midfielder for Italian club Lecce and the Tunisia national team. Born in Tunisia, Rafia moved to France as a child and began his football education there, representing France at youth international levels before ultimately choosing to represent his native country, Tunisia, at the senior level in 2019. Throughout his career, he has played for the reserve teams of Olympique Lyonnais and Juventus FC, making his senior debut with Juventus and subsequently having loan spells at Standard Liège and U.S. Cremonese before permanent transfers to Pescara and then Lecce.
2. Early life
Hamza Rafia was born on April 2, 1999, in Kalaat es Senam, Tunisia. As a child, he relocated to France, where he began his football journey in the youth sectors of local clubs such as Bron Terraillon and Bron Grand Lyon. He then joined the prestigious youth academy of Lyon, playing there from 2010 to 2016, where he developed his skills and progressed through their system.
3. Club career
Rafia's professional club career began in France with the reserve team of Olympique Lyonnais before he moved to Italy to join Juventus's youth and senior ranks, subsequently experiencing various loan spells and permanent transfers across Italy and Belgium.
3.1. Lyon B
Coming through the youth system of Olympique Lyonnais, Rafia played for their reserve team, known as Lyon B, in the Championnat de France Amateur, which is the fourth tier of the French football pyramid. He made his debut on May 28, 2016, during the 2015-16 season, in a 4-3 home defeat against Moulins Yzeure Foot. His first goal for Lyon B came during the 2018-19 season, on August 18, 2018, contributing to a 5-2 victory against Monaco B. Over four seasons with Lyon B, Rafia made 26 appearances and scored five goals. In the 2018-19 season alone, he scored five goals in 18 league games.
3.2. Juventus U23
On July 16, 2019, Rafia transferred to Juventus on a three-year contract. The transfer fee was 400.00 K EUR, with potential add-ons that could reach 5.00 M EUR, and a 20% sell-on clause for any future transfer. Rafia joined Juventus's reserve team, Juventus U23, which competes in Serie C. He made his professional debut for the U23 team on August 26, 2019, in a 2-0 away loss to Novara in a league match.
On December 18, Rafia scored his first goal for Juventus U23 in a 2-1 victory away against Piacenza in the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia Serie C. He played a crucial role in Juventus U23 winning the tournament, even scoring against Ternana in the final, which ended in a 2-1 victory. During the 2019-20 season, Rafia played 20 league games and made 9 appearances in other competitions, including two appearances in the Serie C promotion play-offs and seven appearances with three goals in the Coppa Italia Serie C. In the Coppa Italia Serie C, he scored three goals and provided three assists. On November 29, 2020, Rafia scored his first Serie C league goal for Juventus U23 in a 2-1 away defeat to Olbia. He continued to feature for Juventus U23 during the 2020-21 season, making 23 league appearances and one play-off appearance. He also made 13 appearances and scored two goals in the 2022-23 Serie C season for the team, alongside one additional appearance. In total, he made 67 appearances and scored 7 goals for Juventus U23 across various competitions.
3.3. Juventus
Rafia made his senior debut for Juventus on January 13, 2021, coming on as a 77th-minute substitute in a Coppa Italia match against Genoa. He notably scored in the 104th minute, helping Juventus secure a 3-2 victory after extra time. This marked his only senior team appearance and goal for Juventus.
3.4. Loan to Standard Liège
On August 18, 2021, Rafia moved to Belgian club Standard Liège on a loan deal from Juventus. He made 9 appearances for the club during his loan spell.
3.5. Loan to Cremonese
On January 31, 2022, Rafia was loaned to Serie B side Cremonese. During his time there, he played in 12 matches.
3.6. Pescara
On January 27, 2023, Rafia signed a 2.5-year contract with Serie C club Pescara. He played 12 league matches and made 6 appearances in the Serie C promotion play-offs, scoring 1 goal in total for the club.
3.7. Lecce
On July 18, 2023, Rafia signed a three-year contract with Serie A club Lecce. He made his top-tier debut for the club in their season opener against Lazio on August 20, 2023. As of recent records, he has made 28 appearances and scored 1 goal for Lecce.
4. Style of play
Hamza Rafia is primarily an attacking midfielder. He is also capable of playing as a right winger, demonstrating versatility in offensive roles. He is right-footed and stands at 70 in (178 cm) tall.
5. International career
Rafia initially represented France at youth international levels, playing for the under-17 and under-18 teams. However, he later chose to represent his birth country, Tunisia, at the senior level.
He made his senior international debut for the Tunisia national team on September 6, 2019, coming on as a substitute in a 1-0 friendly victory against Mauritania. He has since scored four goals for the Tunisian national team.
6. Honours
Juventus U23
- Coppa Italia Serie C: 2019-20
Juventus FC
- Coppa Italia: 2020-21
7. Career statistics
7.1. Club statistics
| Club | Season | League | National cup (Includes Coupe de France, Coppa Italia) | Continental | Other (Includes Serie C promotion play-offs, Coppa Italia Serie C) | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Lyon B | 2015-16 | Amateur | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | 2 | 0 | |||
| 2016-17 | Amateur | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | 0 | 0 | ||||
| 2017-18 | National 2 | 6 | 0 | - | - | - | 6 | 0 | ||||
| 2018-19 | National 2 | 18 | 5 | - | - | - | 18 | 5 | ||||
| Total | 26 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 5 | ||
| Juventus U23 | 2019-20 | Serie C | 20 | 0 | - | - | 9 | 3 | 29 | 3 | ||
| 2020-21 | Serie C | 23 | 2 | - | - | 1 | 0 | 24 | 2 | |||
| 2022-23 | Serie C | 13 | 2 | - | - | 1 | 0 | 14 | 2 | |||
| Total | 56 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 3 | 67 | 7 | ||
| Juventus | 2020-21 | Serie A | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Standard Liège (loan) | 2021-22 | Division A | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 11 | 0 | |
| Cremonese (loan) | 2021-22 | Serie B | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 12 | 0 | |
| Pescara | 2022-23 | Serie C | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 18 | 1 |
| Lecce | 2023-24 | Serie A | 28 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 1 |
| Career total | 143 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 4 | 163 | 15 | ||
7.2. International statistics
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 12 September 2023 | 30 June Stadium, Cairo, Egypt | Egypt | 3-1 | 3-1 | Friendly |
| 2. | 17 November 2023 | Hammadi Agrebi Stadium, Tunis, Tunisia | São Tomé and Príncipe | 3-0 | 4-0 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3. | 20 January 2024 | Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium, Korhogo, Ivory Coast | Mali | 1-1 | 1-1 | 2023 Africa Cup of Nations |
| 4. | 14 November 2024 | Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria, South Africa | Madagascar | 1-0 | 3-2 | 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |