Assad Al-Hamlawi completes transfer to Universitatea Craiova
24 year old becomes second most expensive transfer in Palestine national team history
Assad Al-Hamlawi will continue his rapid ascent up the football ranks with a transfer to Universitatea Craiova. This time last year, the striker had just signed with IK Oddevold after a three month stint with Prime Bangkok- where scored eight goals in 11 appearances- in the Thai third tier.
14 goals in 28 appearances was enough to win him top scorer of the Swedish Superettan which in turn attracted the interest of Slask Wroclaw.
Slask had only lost out on the Polish league title in 2023/24 due to inferior goal difference but their 2024/25 campaign had gotten off to a dreadful start. The team was firmly planted in last place when they completed the signing of Al-Hamlawi.
The Helsingborgs native was an instant hit in Silesia and scoring 7 goals in 16 appearances. Unfortunately, his heroics were not enough to save the club from relegation and with a contract through 2027 it looked as if Al-Hamlawi might continue with the club in the Polish second tier.
For their part, Slask left no doubt about a possible sale. The team demanded the release clause of €1 million be triggered in order to sell him. Since returning to preseason training it was clear that there was interest in the player and one club soon emerged as front runners for his services- Universitatea Craiova.
The transfer was not without its drama- Assad Al-Hamlawi departed Slask’s preseason camp and was deemed to have breached the rules of his contract. The club responded by putting out a statement condemning his behavior and fined him 200,000 zloty (€45,000).
Late last week there was a rumor that Al-Hamlawi would go to Al-Ahly as a replacement for his Palestine teammate Wessam Abou Ali- who is subject of rampant transfer speculation himself. In the end, Universitatea Craiova paid the release clause and got their man.
Slask Worlcaw’s sale of Al-Hamlawi is the sixth most expensive transfer fee they have received in their history and nets them 4x return on their initial investment. The striker becomes the second most expensive transfer in Palestine national team history eclipsing the transfer of Mahmoud Wadi who was sold to Pyramids FC by Al-Masry for €975,000.
Al-Hamlawi’s first task will be to help Craiova qualify for the UEFA Conference league. The team’s first qualification match is slated for July 24, with the second leg set for July 31st.
Craiova’s league season starts on July 12th with an away fixture against UTA Arad.