Moustafa Zeidan: Making my debut for Palestine was the proudest moment of my life

The 2026 World Cup qualifier between Palestine and Lebanon last June was an unremarkable affair, with the sides playing out a 0-0 stalemate at Qatar’s Jassim bin Hamad Stadium.

But for Rosenborg midfielder Moustafa Zeidan, it was a match he will never forget. In the game’s 81st minute, Zeidan came on as a substitute to make his international debut.

For Sweden-born Zeidan, the journey from the Scandinavian country’s west coast to the pitches of west Asia has been a colourful one. It has included playing with Henrik Larsson as a teenager, spending two years at Aston Villa’s academy, and winning the Allsvenskan title with Malmo.

But among those impressive experiences, it is representing Palestine that means the most.

“I can't hide that it [his Palestine debut] was maybe the proudest moment in my life,” he tells The National. “I know how proud I make my grandparents and my parents, so it was a big moment for me. Just an unbelievable feeling.”

Zeidan had always been interested in playing for Palestine despite featuring regularly at youth level for Sweden and, after moving to the country’s biggest club Malmo, even played two international friendlies in 2023.

However, the Palestine Football Association persisted, and Zeidan now has five caps for his country.

Despite the devastation of Israel's war on Gaza, the Palestine national team has enjolyed success over the past year. At the 2023 Asian Cup, the team progressed from the group stage for the first time, while they are also enjoying a maiden campaign in the third round of Asian World Cup qualifying.

Palestine are currently bottom of Group B but only three points off fourth place, potentially good enough to advance to the next qualifying round. They face Jordan on Thursday night and Iraq next Tuesday with both games taking place in Amman.

“It's an amazing feeling to be part of writing history for the country,” Zeidan says. “We know how much it means for us but also to the people of Palestine. This is one of the ways you can make everyone proud.”

Zeidan insists there is still belief in the squad that a historic first World Cup appearance is possible.

“When we are there together, I think the feeling with the players is that it's possible,” Zeidan explains. “There should be hope and we need to have that mentality that we can do it.”

With the West Bank still unable to host international matches, Zeidan has yet to visit Palestine. But the 26-year-old hopes to be able to play in front of a home crowd in the future.

“This would be one of the biggest dreams in my life, honestly,” Zeidan says. “It would mean so much for the team and for the people in Palestine; it would be a very different feeling to see the support there.

“For me, everyone [in Palestine] feels like family and it [the Gaza conflict] hurts a lot. It's heartbreaking. It's been really tough. I have learnt a lot from my Palestine teammates because they've been through real struggle.

“I want to learn much more about the country and how it really is there. You get shocked sometimes about stuff they say. I have the biggest respect because of what they went through and they still made it to have this job and represent the national team.”

Zeidan’s pathway to professional football was a little more conventional, though it was punctuated by a couple of atypical encounters.

The first came as a teenager when Zeidan played alongside former Barcelona and Manchester United striker Henrik Larsson at his boyhood club Hogaborg. Zeidan was just 15, while Larsson had been convinced to temporarily come out of retirement age 42.

“Because it was such a long time ago, I don’t think about it so much but really it was an incredible feeling to play a competitive game with him,” Zeidan recalls. “He came from that club, and that neighbourhood where I come from.

“It was a crazy moment and even at that age he was unbelievable - still with a competitive mindset and high standards. I have so much respect for him.”

After making his senior debut for Hogaborg, Zeidan was scouted by English Premier League side Aston Villa and persuaded to move to the club’s academy aged 16.

Zeidan now plays his club football in Norway at the country's most successful club, Rosenborg, but also spent the 2023/24 season on loan at Hatta in the UAE's Pro League.

It was a chastening experience for Zeidan, who scored on his debut but then quickly fell out of favour. However, it gave the midfielder a taste of football in the Gulf that he hopes to one day recreate. And with his cousin Imad Khalili having played in Saudi Arabia for Al Shabab, Zeidan admits he would be keen to follow in those familial footsteps.

“We always followed it [the Saudi Pro League] and I am happy that Saudi Arabia has opened up and now people can play there,” Zeidan says. “The lifestyle, the pitches - you have the whole environment that is just perfect to play football.

“Hatta taught me that things can change quickly. You can be No 1 and then a manager gets sacked and you can immediately become a player who is not involved any more. But even when it is not a happy moment, you learn a lot.

“It is still one of my biggest dreams to play in the Middle East for a longer time. This is something I really want to do. I will be much better prepared than before.”