| Abdulla Koni | |
| Fullname: | Abdulla Obaid Koni |
| Birth Date: | 19 July 1979 |
| Birth Place: | Dakar, Senegal |
| Height: | 1.85 m |
| Position: | Defender |
| Youthyears1: | 1990–1996 |
| Youthclubs1: | Al Sadd |
| Years1: | 1996–2014 |
| Clubs1: | Al Sadd |
| Caps1: | 222 |
| Goals1: | 15 |
| Nationalyears1: | 1998–1999 |
| Nationalteam1: | Qatar U20 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 3 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 0 |
| Nationalyears2: | 1997–2012 |
| Nationalteam2: | Qatar |
| Nationalcaps2: | 63 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 4 |
Abdulla Obaid Koni (ar|عبد الله كوني; born on 19 July 1979) is a former professional footballer who played as a defender for Al Sadd. Born in Senegal, he represented the Qatar national team.[1] He also played for their youth national team.[2]
Koni was born in Senegal. He captained Al Sadd to victory in the AFC Champions League in 2011. In the round of 16 of the tournament, he scored a decisive header against Al Shabab which turned out to be the winner. His team went on to win the tournament, defeating Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in the final in South Korea. As a result of the AFC Champions League triumph, he led his team into the 2011 FIFA Club World Cup. In the quarter-finals, he scored the winning goal against Espérance de Tunis slotting in a cross from teammate Lee Jung-Soo, earning his team a 2–1 victory. This set up a semi-final confrontation against Barcelona on 15 December 2011.
With Barcelona leading 1–0 in the 36th minute, Barcelona forward David Villa timed a run well and allowed for a ball to be played over the top into the path of his run. Villa and Koni raced toward the Al Sadd net. As the ball hit the ground, Villa failed to corral the ball, allowing Koni the time to catch up and challenge for the ball on its next bounce. He made a shoulder challenge on Villa as he attempted to strike the ball, causing Villa to fall awkwardly on his left leg and break it. Because of this, Koni was dubbed as "maybe the most influential player of the Euro 2012",[3] even though Spain went on to win the tournament without Villa.
Scores and results list Qatar's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Koni goal.[4]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 29 November 2003 | Jalan Besar Stadium, Singapore | 1–0 | 2–0 | [5] | |||
| 2 | 8 January 2004 | Al-Sadaqua Walsalam Stadium, Kuwait City, Kuwait | 1–1 | 2–1 | ||||
| 3 | 1 December 2004 | 4–0 | 4–1 | |||||
| 4 | 16 November 2007 | Thani bin Jassim Stadium, Al Rayyan, Qatar | 1–1 | 1–2 | Friendly match |
Al Sadd