Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Full name | Pilar Tony Khoury[1] | ||||||||||||||||
Date of birth | 25 August 1994 | ||||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Ottawa, Ontario, Canada[1] | ||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.64 m (5 ft 5 in)[2] | ||||||||||||||||
Position(s) | Forward | ||||||||||||||||
Team information | |||||||||||||||||
Current team | Strasbourg | ||||||||||||||||
Number | 7 | ||||||||||||||||
Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
2004–2011 | Ottawa Gloucester Hornets | ||||||||||||||||
College career | |||||||||||||||||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
2011–2016 | Ottawa Gee-Gees | (58) | |||||||||||||||
Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
2016–2018 | Albi | 31 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
2018–2019 | Grenoble | 22 | (11) | ||||||||||||||
2019–2021 | Saint-Étienne | 17 | (10) | ||||||||||||||
2021–2023 | Nantes | 38 | (11) | ||||||||||||||
2023– | Strasbourg | 19 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||
2021– | Lebanon | 7 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 26 May 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 8 April 2023 |
Pilar Tony Khoury (Arabic: بيلار توني خوري; born 25 August 1994) is a footballer who plays as a forward for Première Ligue club Strasbourg and the Lebanon national team.
Khoury played at the college level for the Ottawa Gee-Gees, the University of Ottawa's team; she left in 2016 as their all-time goal scorer with 58 goals. Khoury moved to France the same year, where she joined Albi in the Division 1 Féminine; she then played for Division 2 sides Grenoble, Saint-Étienne, Nantes and Strasbourg.
Born in Canada, Khoury is of Lebanese descent and has represented Lebanon internationally since 2021. She helped Lebanon finish runners-up at the 2022 WAFF Championship, in which she scored her first international goal.
Khoury was born in Canada to Lebanese parents.[3] She noted that she was surrounded by Lebanese people and culture growing up, due to the large presence of Lebanese diaspora in her area.[3]
At 10 years old, Khoury began her youth career at local club Ottawa Gloucester Hornets, where she remained for seven years.[4] She began as a defender, before being moved up to forward in her last year at the club.[4]
Khoury then moved to the University of Ottawa's team, the Ottawa Gee-Gees.[4] She made her breakthrough in her third season at the club, breaking the university's scoring record twice and winning multiple individual titles.[4] Khoury finished her career with the Ottawa Gee-Gees as their all-time leading goal scorer, with 58 goals.[5]
Khoury began her senior career in 2016, moving to Division 1 Féminine side Albi in France on 1 August.[6] After being a reserve for the first half of the 2016–17 season, she became a regular in the second half and helped her side avoid relegation.[4] Her second season saw Khoury miss multiple matches due to injuries, and the club was relegated to the Division 2 Féminine.[4]
She moved to Grenoble for the 2018–19 season in the Division 2.[4] After a slow start, scoring once in the first half of the season, Khoury scored 10 goals in her next 10 games.[4] She also scored three goals in four Coupe de France féminine games.[7]
In 2019, Khoury joined Division 2 runners-up Saint-Étienne where, in the 2019–20 season, she scored six league goals in 11 matches.[7] She also scored a goal in her only Coupe de France appearance.[7] In 2020–21, Khoury scored four goals in four games,[7] before the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in France.[8] She finished with 11 goals in 18 games in all competitions.[7]
On 27 July 2021, Khoury moved to Nantes.[9] She made her debut on 5 September, in a 3–0 win against Lens.[10] On 10 October, Khoury scored her first goal for Nantes, helping her team win 3–0 against Orléans.[11] She ended the 2021–22 season with six goals in 20 league games,[7] missing out on Division 1 promotion by one point.[12] Khoury also scored one goal in five Coupe de France games,[7] helping her side reach the semi-finals.[12]
The following season, in 2022–23, Khoury scored five goals in 18 league games, as well as two goals in three cup games.[7] Nantes finished in third place.[13]
On 28 July 2023, fellow Division 2 team Strasbourg[14] She scored four goals in 19 games in the 2023–24 league season,[7] helping her team win the championship and gain promotion to the Division 1.[15]
announced the signing of Khoury.Born in Canada, Khoury is of Lebanese descent.[4] She has stated her preference to play for Lebanon over Canada, saying that she dreamed of representing Lebanon from a young age.[4]
Khoury was first called up for Lebanon in April 2021, ahead of a friendly tournament in Armenia.[16] Regarding her first call-up, she stated: "I have difficulty expressing how much it means to me. To represent my parents' country after all the sacrifices they made for my soccer career".[16] However, due to resulting positive to COVID-19, she was unable to travel.[3]
She made her debut on 21 October, helping Lebanon beat the United Arab Emirates 1–0 in the 2022 AFC Asian Cup qualification.[2] Khoury was called up to represent Lebanon at the 2022 WAFF Championship;[17] she helped her side finish runners-up, scoring her first international goal against Syria on 4 September.[18]
Initially a striker, Khoury developed into a winger during her stay at Nantes.[3] She is capable of playing in all attacking positions.[14]
Khoury's maternal grandfather, Louis Saad, was also a footballer;[4] he died in 2013.[16] Khoury stated that he taught her how to play football.[16] A few days prior to dying, her grandfather passed his French citizenship onto her, which facilitated her move to play professionally in France three years later.[3]
While playing for the Ottawa Gee-Gees, Khoury completed a bachelor's degree in health sciences with a minor in psychology.[4] Khoury was also a student during her time at Albi.[4]
Club | Season | League | Coupe de France | Total | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Albi | 2016–17 | Division 1 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 2 |
2017–18 | Division 1 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 17 | 2 | |
Total | 31 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 33 | 4 | ||
Grenoble | 2018–19 | Division 2 | 22 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 26 | 13 |
Saint-Étienne | 2019–20 | Division 2 | 13 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 7 |
2020–21 | Division 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | |
Total | 17 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 18 | 11 | ||
Nantes | 2021–22 | Division 2 | 20 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 25 | 7 |
2022–23 | Division 2 | 18 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 21 | 7 | |
Total | 38 | 11 | 8 | 3 | 46 | 14 | ||
Strasbourg | 2023–24 | Division 2 | 19 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 21 | 4 |
Career total | 127 | 39 | 17 | 7 | 144 | 46 |
National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
---|---|---|---|
Lebanon | 2021 | 1 | 0 |
2022 | 2 | 1 | |
2023 | 4 | 2 | |
Total | 7 | 3 |
No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 4 September 2022 | Petra Stadium, Amman, Jordan | Syria | 5–0 | 5–2 | 2022 WAFF Championship |
2 | 5 April 2023 | Fouad Chehab Stadium, Jounieh, Lebanon | Chinese Taipei | 1–0 | 1–5 | 2024 AFC Olympic Qualifying Tournament |
3 | 8 April 2023 | Fouad Chehab Stadium, Jounieh, Lebanon | Indonesia | 2–0 | 5–0 | 2024 AFC Olympic Qualifying Tournament |
Strasbourg
Lebanon
Individual[19]
Records