31 Facts About Yaser Kasim

Yaser Safa Kasim Al-Kadefaje is an Iraqi former footballer who played as a midfielder.

At age 6 Kasim left Iraq with his family to Jordan and after spending a year in Jordan where he experienced his first taste of school, the family arrived in England.

Yaser Kasim's mother told of a story of when he was young, kicking a ball in their second floor flat in West London, the peppy Yaser would break everything at home and have the neighbours below complaining about her son.

Yaser Kasim's father recounted when the family were living in Baghdad where his son was returning home with his filthy clothes knee deep in mud.

Yaser Kasim joined the youth setup at Spurs in 2007 and remained until his 18th birthday with the club.

Yaser Kasim departed the club in the summer of 2010, after turning down a pro contract, claiming that he did not feel the club had the player's best interest in mind.

On 7 May 2011, Yaser Kasim made his debut for Brighton starting against Notts County.

On 12 July 2012, Yaser Kasim joined Conference Premier side Luton Town on a six-month loan deal.

On 8 February 2013, Yaser Kasim joined Conference Premier side Macclesfield Town on an initial one-month loan.

Yaser Kasim signed a three-year deal with Swindon Town after a trial with the club.

Yaser Kasim scored his first goal for the club on 21 December 2013.

In October 2013, Yaser Kasim signed a contract extension keeping him at the club till 2016.

Yaser Kasim received a one match suspension for an accumulation of yellow cards, he missed a league fixture vs Port Vale.

Yaser Kasim missed some matches during January due to being called up for Iraq in the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, in which Iraq finished 4th.

For most of his final year his head coach Luke Williams at Swindon Town turned into his injury spokesman giving weekly updates on his recuperation rather than his football coach and at each press conference it was the same comment "Yaser Kasim's situation is ongoing".

In January 2020, Yaser Kasim signed for Iraqi Premier League club Erbil in the hope that it would further increase his chances of being recalled to the Iraqi national team.

Yaser Kasim was unveiled to the media in a press conference alongside Sherko Karim.

Yaser Kasim made five appearances for the club before the Iraqi Premier League season was suspended and then cancelled due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

In June 2020, just five months after moving to Iraq, Yaser Kasim left Erbil claiming he hadn't been paid wages since arriving at the club.

Yaser Kasim went on trial with National League side Notts County in July 2022.

In September 2022, Yaser Kasim announced his retirement from professional football.

On 16 October 2022, Yaser Kasim signed for National League South side Welling United.

Yaser Kasim left on January 4,2023, as a mutual agreement.

In May 2024, Yaser Kasim announced his retirement from football in order to focus on coaching and other industries.

Yaser Kasim made his debut for Iraq against China on 5 March 2014.

Yaser Kasim had refused an earlier call-up prior to the Asian Cup qualifying game with Saudi Arabia, deciding to concentrate on playing for Swindon Town in League One, where he had become a key figure in the club's five-man midfield, which included Australia's Massimo Luongo.

Yaser Kasim then requested three days leave, stating something about signing a new contract with his club and then went AWOL, switched off his phone and never explained why he had not returned.

Yaser Kasim had been the first overage player selected by the U-23 coach when the player was in Baghdad recovering from an injury but he left unexpectedly.

Yaser Kasim left and never returned, his mobile was shut and officials from Olympic and Iraq FA were unable to contact him.

One Iraq FA official wrote a report on the U-23 team's stay in Europe and recommended Yaser Kasim should be suspended.

In 2017, Yaser Kasim Ignore invitations from the new coach Basim Qasim, before announcing his retirement.