1. Early life and career beginnings
Lassad Hassen Nouioui was born on 8 March 1986, in Marseille, France. He began his footballing journey within the youth system of AC Ajaccio, where he was promoted to the club's B team in July 2004. In July 2006, he transferred to the B team of LB Châteauroux in Ligue 2. He played for LB Châteauroux until January 2008 before making a free transfer to Deportivo de La Coruña.
2. Club career
Lassad Nouioui's professional club career involved several key stages across various leagues and countries.
2.1. Deportivo La Coruña
Lassad joined Deportivo de La Coruña in January 2008, initially playing for their reserve team, Deportivo Fabril. His impressive performances with the reserves earned him a call-up to the first team. He made his official debut for Deportivo on 1 February 2009, coming on as a substitute for Riki in a 3-0 home victory against Villarreal CF. In his next match, he earned a penalty that led to a 1-1 away draw against RCD Mallorca.
Following these strong initial showings, Lassad signed his first professional contract with Deportivo on 13 February 2009, committing to the club until 2012. He scored his first La Liga goal on 5 April 2009, in a 3-1 defeat away to RCD Espanyol. For the 2009-10 season, he was officially promoted to the main squad. However, he faced several injuries, which limited him to only 19 league appearances.
In the 2010-11 season, a healthier Lassad played 33 matches and scored five goals. Despite his contributions, the team finished 18th, resulting in their relegation to the Segunda División for the first time in 20 years. The following year, during the 2011-12 season, he played a crucial role in helping Deportivo win the Segunda División championship and secure immediate promotion back to La Liga, scoring 18 official goals and becoming the team's top scorer. His scoring prowess was also evident in the Copa del Rey, where he netted four times in a 5-1 victory over Girona FC on 7 September 2011. Overall, he appeared in 107 official matches for Deportivo, scoring 29 goals.
2.2. Celtic
On 2 September 2012, Lassad signed a two-year deal with Celtic in the Scottish Premier League, joining the club on a free transfer after being released by Deportivo and successfully passing a medical examination. His transfer was surrounded by controversy, as Levante UD claimed they also had signed the player; however, Lassad maintained that Celtic was always his preferred choice.
He scored his first goal for Celtic on 17 November 2012, contributing to a 2-0 away victory against Aberdeen. Eleven days later, he found the net again in another away fixture, this time against Heart of Midlothian. He also made appearances in the UEFA Champions League. Despite his contributions, injuries plagued his time at Celtic. After featuring in 19 games across all competitions during the 2012-13 season, Lassad was released by the club on 31 August 2013.
2.3. Arouca
Following his departure from Celtic, Lassad signed with Portuguese club F.C. Arouca on 4 December 2013. He made his debut in the Primeira Liga 11 days later, playing 35 minutes in a 2-0 home loss to Vitória de Guimarães. He remained with Arouca for the rest of the season before departing the club.
2.4. Later clubs
After leaving Arouca, Lassad spent a period unattached. In April 2015, he began training with FC Tokyo in Japan, and his signing was officially announced in May 2015. He was registered under the name "Lassad" for the J1 League. His contract with FC Tokyo was a short-term deal for the first stage of the season, and he subsequently left the club in late June 2015 after just two appearances.
On 2 September 2015, Lassad signed a two-year contract with Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 side Club Africain. After nearly two years of inactivity, he returned to Spain in February 2018, joining CD Toledo in Segunda División B. He made two appearances for the club.
3. International career
Although born in France and holding dual French and Tunisian nationality, Lassad opted to represent the Tunisia national team at the international level. He received his first call-up to the senior team in March 2009 for a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Kenya, though he did not make an appearance in that match.
Lassad earned his first international cap three months later on 4 June 2009, playing 15 minutes in another World Cup qualifier against Mozambique. He also participated in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. He made a total of three international A-match appearances for Tunisia between 2009 and 2012, without scoring any goals.
4. Health issues and retirement
On 14 April 2018, while with CD Toledo, Lassad Nouioui suffered a cardiac arrest prior to a match against Real Madrid Castilla. He was immediately taken to the intensive care unit of a hospital in Toledo. One month later, at the age of 32, Lassad announced his retirement from professional football, stating that "there are more important things in life."
5. Honours
Deportivo
- Segunda División: 2011-12
Celtic
- Scottish Premier League: 2012-13
- Scottish Cup: 2012-13
6. Career statistics
Lassad Nouioui's professional playing career statistics are detailed below. He stood at 74 in (188 cm) tall and weighed 172 lb (78 kg) during his playing career.
6.1. Club
The "National cup" column includes appearances and goals in the Copa del Rey, Scottish Cup, and Taça de Portugal. The "League cup" column accounts for appearances and goals in the Scottish League Cup and J.League Cup. The "European" column represents appearances and goals in the UEFA Champions League.
Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Europe | Total | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Deportivo B | 2007-08 | Segunda División B | 15 | 8 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 15 | 8 | ||
2008-09 | Segunda División B | 20 | 8 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 20 | 8 | |||
Total | 35 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 16 | ||
Deportivo | 2008-09 | La Liga | 14 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 14 | 3 | ||
2009-10 | La Liga | 19 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | 20 | 2 | |||
2010-11 | La Liga | 33 | 5 | 4 | 1 | - | - | 37 | 6 | |||
2011-12 | Segunda División | 33 | 14 | 3 | 4 | - | - | 36 | 18 | |||
Total | 99 | 24 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 107 | 29 | ||
Celtic | 2012-13 | Scottish Premier League | 14 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 19 | 3 |
Arouca | 2013-14 | Primeira Liga | 14 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 15 | 4 | |
FC Tokyo | 2015 | J1 League | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | 4 | 0 | |
Club Africain | 2015-16 | Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 6 | 0 | |
Toledo | 2017-18 | Segunda División B | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 2 | 0 | ||
Career total | 172 | 47 | 11 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 188 | 52 |
6.2. International
National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
---|---|---|---|
Tunisia | 2009 | 2 | 0 |
2012 | 1 | 0 | |
Total | 3 | 0 |