Ashley Nazira (born 11 November 1995) is a Mauritian professional footballer, who plays as a forward for the Mauritius national football team.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] He played for San Diego Loyal SC, an American professional soccer team based in San Diego, California, during the 2020 USL Championship season. Since 2021, he now plays for Saint-Pauloise FC, a football club based in Saint-Paul, Réunion, France.

Ashley Nazira
Personal information
Full name Steven Ashley Rex Nazira
Date of birth (1995-11-11) 11 November 1995 (age 28)
Place of birth Pamplemousses District, Mauritius
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
Saint-Pauloise FC
Number 21
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2014–2019 Boulet Rouge 86 (53)
2020 San Diego Loyal 2 (0)
2021– Saint-Pauloise FC 53 (25)
International career
2015– Mauritius 33 (11)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 1 February 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 21 November 2023

Club career

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Nazira began playing football at the age of six.[11] He played for Boulet Rouge, a Mauritian Premier League club, for his entire career up until the 2019–2020 season. During his spell within Mauritian football, Nazira was the league's top goalscorer for four times.[11]

Following his time spent in his homeland, Nazira then signed for San Diego Loyal SC, the new USL Championship expansion team, on a 12-month deal in January 2020. By doing so, he became the first ever Mauritian professional footballer to play in a top league in North America.[12][13]

He previously had a successful trial with Réunion Premier League club Saint-Pauloise FC in February 2019 after being top goal scorer in the Mauritian first division with twenty goals.[14] However the signing was put on hold by the club for financial reasons.[15]

Two and a half years after his failed attempt to join Saint-Pauloise FC, he finally signed for the Réunionese club in September 2021.

International career

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Nazira made his senior international debut for Mauritius on 25 March 2015 in a 2–2 friendly draw with Burundi.[16] With three goals, he was the join top-scorer at the 2019 COSAFA Cup.[12][13]

International goals

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Score and result list Mauritius's goal tally first.[16]

# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1
21 March 2019 Churchill Park, Lautoka, Fiji   New Caledonia
3–1
3–1
Friendly
2
25 May 2019 King Zwelithini Stadium, Umlazi, South Africa   Eswatini
1–0
2–2
2019 COSAFA Cup
3
2–1
4
29 May 2019   Comoros
1–1
1–2
5
18 July 2019 Stade George V, Curepipe, Mauritius   Seychelles
1–0
1–1
2019 Indian Ocean Island Games
6
22 July 2019   Madagascar
1–1
1–1
7
13 October 2019 Estádio Nacional 12 de Julho, São Tomé, São Tomé and Príncipe   São Tomé and Príncipe
1–2
1–2
2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
8
27 March 2022 Anjalay Stadium, Belle Vue Harel, Mauritius   São Tomé and Príncipe
3–3
3–3
2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
9
11 June 2023 Complexe Sportif de Côte d'Or, Saint Pierre, Mauritius   Pakistan
2–0
3–0
Friendly
10
14 June 2023 Anjalay Stadium, Belle Vue Harel, Mauritius   Djibouti
1–0
1–3
Friendly
11
2 September 2023 Elgeco Plus Stadium, Antananarivo, Madagascar   Comoros
1–0
2–0
2023 Indian Ocean Island Games
Last updated 14 June 2023

International statistics

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As of match played 21 November 2023[16]
Mauritius
Year Apps Goals
2015 3 0
2018 1 0
2019 12 7
2022 5 1
2023 12 3
Total 33 11

References

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  1. ^ "LE RÊVE AMÉRICAIN D'ASHLEY NAZIRA". 5plus.mu.
  2. ^ "ASHLEY NAZIRA APPELÉ À VOLER PLUS HAUT". 5plus.mu.
  3. ^ "Ashley Nazira : " J'ai plusieurs offres pour le prochain mercato "". lemauricien.com.
  4. ^ "Nazira, partir pour rester ?". lemauricien.com.
  5. ^ "Ashley Nazira, de Lallmatie à San Diego". lexpress.mu.
  6. ^ "Ashley Nazira ne cesse de scorer sous le maillot du Club M en 2019, ses statistiques à découvrir ici". defimedia.info.
  7. ^ "Ashley Nazira le messie". defimedia.info.
  8. ^ "Nazira : " Je suis impatient de jouer "". sport.info.
  9. ^ "Ashley Nazira : "Marquer le plus de buts possibles"". sport.info.
  10. ^ "Ashley Nazira: "Ça a toujours été mon rêve de réussir dans le football"". lexpress.mu.
  11. ^ a b Pledderer, Sarah. "San Diego's Never Been Closer to Having an MLS Team". San Diego Magazine. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
  12. ^ a b "Football : Ashley Nazira signe au San Diego Loyal" (in French). lemauricien.com. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
  13. ^ a b "COSAFA Cup unearths another gem as Mauritian star heads to USA". COSAFA. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
  14. ^ Gangaram, Loic. "Transfert : Ashley Nazira rejoindra la Saint-Pauloise FC en juin" (in French). Defi Media. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
  15. ^ Robinson, Anthony. "Saint-Pauloise FC - AS Jeanne d'Arc : Grondin, l'habile discret" (in French). clicanoo. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
  16. ^ a b c "NFT profile". National Football Teams. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
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