Salah El Din Ahmed Said[1] (Amharic: ሳላዲን ሰይድ; born 29 October 1988), also known as Salhadin SaidorSaladin Said, is an Ethiopian former professional footballer who played as a forward. His energy, skill, and goal scoring ability in critical games have made him one of the indispensable players in eastern Africa. Salhadin finished as the top scorer in the 2017 CAF Champions League.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Salah El Din Ahmed Said | ||
| Date of birth | (1988-10-29) 29 October 1988 (age 35) | ||
| Place of birth | Asosa, Ethiopia | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Muger Cement | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2007–2011 | Saint George | 112 | (41) |
| 2011–2014 | Wadi Degla | 15 | (6) |
| 2013 | → Lierse (loan) | 5 | (1) |
| 2014–2015 | Al Ahly | 17 | (4) |
| 2015 | MC Alger | 5 | (0) |
| 2016–2021 | Saint George | - | (15) |
| 2021–2022 | Jimma Aba Jifar | 12 | (6) |
| 2022–2023 | Sidama Coffee | 11 | (9) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2007–2017 | Ethiopia | 28 | (14) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 12:00, 25 June 2023 (EST) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 5 March 2018 | |||
In 2010, Salhadin was on trial with Serbian club Partizan, but the transfer failed.[2] Subsequently, he trialled with FK Vojvodina, but did not manage to go further than gaining good wishes and compliments from coach Zoran Milinković.[3]
In 2011, Salhadin scored five goals in a 2011 Kagame Inter-Club Cup game against AS Port from Djibouti.[4]
On 9 October 2011, Salhadin got transferred to Egyptian club Wadi Degla FC, who paid 2,040,000 Ethiopian birr, ($240,000 US),[5] at the time the highest sum ever paid for an Ethiopian footballer.
Salhadin said ahead of Ethiopia's game against Burkina Fasoin2013 Africa Cup of Nations that he was moving to Belgium club Lierse after the Africa Cup.[6]
On 23 April 2014, Saladin moved from Wadi Degla to the league rivals Al-Ahly where they had captured 2013 CAF Champions League title.[7]
After an unsuccessful stint at Algerian side MC Alger, Said returned to Saint George in 2016.[8]
Said debuted for the Ethiopia national team in 2005. Since then he has been Ethiopia's top scorer in 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 June 2007 | Addis Ababa Stadium, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |  DR Congo
|
1–0 | 1–0 | 2008 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 2 | 8 September 2007 | Addis Ababa Stadium, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |  Namibia
|
2–1 | 2–3 | 2008 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 3 | 7 June 2008 | Stade Nacional, Nouakchott, Mauritania |  Mauritania
|
1–0 | 1–0 | 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 4 | 5 June 2011 | Addis Ababa Stadium, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |  Nigeria
|
1–1 | 2–2 | 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 5 | 2–1 | |||||
| 6 | 3 June 2012 | Royal Bafokeng Stadium, Rustenburg |  South Africa
|
1–0 | 1–1 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 7 | 10 June 2012 | Addis Ababa Stadium, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |  Central African Republic
|
1–0 | 2–0 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 8 | 2–0 | |||||
| 9 | 14 October 2012 | Addis Ababa Stadium, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |  Sudan
|
2–0 | 2–0 | 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 10 | 7 January 2013 | Al-Wakrah Stadium, Al Wakrah, Qatar |  Tunisia
|
1–1 | 1–1 | Friendly |
| 11 | 7 September 2013 | Stade Alphonse Massemba-Débat, Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo | Central African Republic
|
1–1 | 2–1 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 12 | 6 September 2014 | Addis Ababa Stadium, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |  Algeria
|
1–2 | 1–2 | 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 13 | 14 June 2015 | Bahir Dar Stadium]], Bahir Dar, Ethiopia |  Lesotho
|
2–1 | 2–1 | 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification]] |
| 14 | 3 September 2016 | Awassa Kenema Stadium, Hawassa, Ethiopia |  Seychelles
|
2–1 | 2–1 | 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |