A RANGERS RAMADAN: FOLLOW FOLLOW FAITH AND FOOTBALL

             It was quite fitting that as Bilel Mohsni’s face appeared on Zoom he was amidst a mad rush to the local grocery store. I had reached out to the Paris born, former Tunisia defender to discuss the hardships professional athletes face during Ramadan. It was 7pm over in France when Bilel answered the call, and fasting would soon be broken for the day as Ramadan continued around the world. “A lot of people are fasting, and just finishing work, so now many of them head to the bakery”, the former Rangers and Dundee United player informed me.

 

Bilel’s career had all sorts of fascinating twists and turns. From a clean sheet against Salah in 2014 to a potential rap sheet against Motherwell’s Lee Erwin one year on. However, with Ramadan beginning in March this year, I was intrigued to hear how Bilel was able to maintain his devotion to Islam all while focussing on the task at hand with Rangers.

 

Unlike his native France, clubs in Scotland aren’t as well versed in catering for the Islamic faith. The holy month of Ramadan is a period of up to 30 days in which Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset. This can be a catalyst for a rise in fatigue amongst footballers. 

In the modern era of football, with sports science dictating large aspects of a player’s preparation, clubs encourage the consumption of protein before both training and matches. This ensures muscles are developed properly and that the body recovers quickly post exercise. With fasting amongst Muslim athletes restricting them from eating pregame meals or maintaining hydration it can clash with their daily routines. 

 

“I HAD SALAH IN MY BACK POCKET!”

Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah is perhaps the most renowned Muslim footballer on the planet, despite Bilel jokingly revealing to me, “I had Salah in my back pocket!”, when discussing his international career with Tunisia. In 2018 Ramadan concluded on 14 June, just one day before Egypt’s World Cup campaign kicked off against Uruguay. This meant that Salah and his Egyptian teammates’ preparation for the tournament fell under the fasting period.

 

Although historically Islamic nations are more prepared for the holy month Bilel admits that Rangers pulled out every stop to ensure the Parisien could continue practising his faith without hesitation. “It was amazing at Rangers, and most of the clubs in the UK. Ally McCoist was very kind to me, very respectful, and this is what I loved.”

 

Bilel was full of praise for his former Gers boss, insisting that McCoist was aware of the importance of Muslim routines.    “The manager allowed me 10/15 minutes to leave for the mosque, so I was able to pray with all my Muslim brothers. Normally when you arrive for the game, you concentrate on the game, but he knew my faith was important, so he helped me to practise it well.” This included the introduction of Halal food within the Rangers training centre.

Mohsni and myself in 2014

Most Muslims pray five times each day; dawn, afternoon, late afternoon, after sunset and in the evening. To ensure Bilel could complete his prayers without straying too far away from his teammates and duties, the club installed a prayer room in both Ibrox and the Rangers training facilities. 

 

“When you play for a club, and they understand you’re Muslim, and say they’re going to make life easier for you, that helps a lot.” The life of a professional footballer requires you to maintain peak fitness levels all year round, therefore it’s very rare for a Muslim athlete to remain idle during the holy Ramadan month. Bilel endured such an experience ahead of his second season with the Ibrox side. “I remember the second year Ramadan was in July. I was rubbish that pre-season, I was so knackered because the sunrise was at like 3am, the sunset was around 10:30pm! Imagine training, morning, afternoon, morning, afternoon, my tongue was like a desert, like the Sahara!”

 

To make matters worse this was no ordinary pre-season. Ahead of a Scottish Championship campaign, which featured both Edinburgh giants Hearts and Hibs, Rangers headed to North America for a tour in California and the west coast of Canada. A combination of the sweltering North American summer, and his religious obligations to fast, it was a pre-season to forget for the Tunisian internationalist. “My performance was very bad. I remember in Canada I missed the ball altogether. I was so knackered I didn’t see the ball. My eyes and my body were slow. But Ally McCoist told me he knew it was Ramadan, he knew it was difficult, and not to worry.” 

Even as one of ‘Super Ally’s’ biggest advocates Bilel was taken aback by the manager’s support off the back of a poor display. “Imagine that, we’re preparing for the season, and the manager says it’s fine if you don’t do well!”

Bilel's final match for Rangers was that infamous afternoon in Motherwell. A 3-0 victory for the Steelmen, 6-1 on aggregate, condemned Rangers to another season in the Scottish Championship. But each headline centered towards the post match bust up between Well forward Lee Erwin and Bilel. This led to an on field melee with the pair both being shown red cards. This would prove to be Bilel's final match in Scotland for three years when he arrived back in the Scottish second tier to see out the tail end of the 2017/18 campaign with Dundee United. After a tumultuous spell in Saudi Arabia with Al-Rawdhah Bilel returned to the UK, joining ex-Gers teammate Dean Shiels at Dungannon Swifts. His aim was to see out the 2021/22 season, keeping Dungannon in the Northern Irish topflight, then head home and assess his options. However, Dungannon’s final match of the 2021/22 campaign would prove to be his last dance, and Bilel announced his retirement late last year.

Now Bilel faces a different adjustment to his usual diet. Dealing with the large-scale portions that only a mother produces. “I maybe added like five kilos. I go to see my mum often, and oh my god, before I was eating rice and chicken, very healthy, now I can eat anything!”

Bilel was in the middle of a mad rush to the local shop for a baguette as we spoke. The table was being readied for the breaking of fast, everything laid out ready to enjoy as a family, everything but a loaf. “My mum does everything last minute. Can you imagine, you’ve had all day to buy bread, we eat in like an hour, and they tell me to go get bread.”

Almost a decade on, a remote reunion

 

Ahead of Ramadan this year the English Premier League announced that they would arrange breaks in play for practising Muslims to break their fasts. Bilel believes that recognition of religious needs is paid back by the players as their performances improve through peace of mind. “In football it’s very good to help people believe in their faith because if your mind is set, peaceful, you’re ready to play football again. If you’re not able to fast or pray it’s a shame because those things help a player be more dedicated.”

Bilel insists that Muslim lifestyle, and a Muslim diet, has a great deal of health benefits for professional athletes. “For example, we don’t drink alcohol, so you know at the weekend we won’t be drunk. It’s scientific if you fast, you rest your body, you come back healthier. If you add the faith to the science you can see the religious side can help a player become better.”

 

Since retirement Bilel has been able to relax and enjoy more time with his loved ones. His career saw him bounce across the globe. France, England, Scotland, back to France, Tunisia, back to Scotland, Greece, back to England again, Saudi Arabia, and finally, Northern Ireland. After all this globetrotting it’s no wonder Bilel is relishing his retirement.

 

Ramadan brings the family together as they pray and break their fast together. Bilel referenced the Ramadan spread as like a scene from a medieval movie. “Every table is fit for a king.” Yet he revealed that despite all the food on display, you don’t inhale it all, in fact you are so full after just a few bites. “You cut your stomach in thirds”, Bilel told me, “First, water, second, food, third, empty. So normally, you’re never full.”

 

A glass of water, a few dates, some couscous and soup seems to do the job for Bilel. 

 

In a city, and a football rivalry, that has been plagued by religious divide and sectarianism Bilel showed that faith and football can be separated respectfully while both still being observed appropriately.