FC Panathinaikos announces the acquisition of Ahmed Touba on a transfer from Turkish club Başakşehir! The 27-year-old Algerian central defender signed a three-year contract and is the second addition to the squad for the new season.
Ahmed Touba was born on March 13, 1998, in Roubaix, France. He started his football journey in Belgium, in the youth academy of Zulte Waregem. At the age of 17, he moved to Club Brugge, where he made his professional debut at 19. A year later, he was loaned to OH Leuven, a second-division team in Belgium. He stayed for the entire season, and in 2019 he was loaned again, this time to Bulgarian club Beroe.
In the summer of 2020, he moved to the Netherlands as RKC Waalwijk bought him from Club Brugge. He quickly became a key player and irreplaceable, significantly boosting his market value over two years.
In 2022, Turkish side Başakşehir signed him. Touba immediately became a starter, played in all of Başakşehir’s Conference League matches, and reached the Turkish Cup final, although they lost to Fenerbahçe.
The following year brought a major career challenge, as Italian club Lecce added him to their roster on loan. However, he did not establish himself in Serie A. In the summer of 2024, he returned to Belgium on loan to Mechelen, where he again secured a starting position.
Although born in France, Touba grew up in Belgium and played for the Belgian youth national teams. However, due to his parents’ Algerian heritage, he chose to represent the African nation at senior level. He is currently an international for Algeria, with 14 caps and 1 goal.
We welcome Ahmed to the Panathinaikos family!
