Ilan Boccara

Early career

Born in Boulogne-Billancourt, a western suburb of Paris to a Dutch mother and a French father, Boccara joined local club ES16 in the 16th arrondissement of Paris at the age of six. After one season, he transferred to Stade Français, to play for Athletic Club de Boulogne-Billancourt for the next five years.

Paris Saint-Germain

At the age of 13, Boccara was discovered by scouts of Paris Saint-Germain, who recruited him to their academy. After progressing through the youth system, he was promoted to the reserve squad playing in the Championnat de France amateur during the 2010–11 season. He spent most of the season on the bench. In the 2011–12 season, Boccara played in 28 matches, starting in 26 of them. His performances earned Boccara a call-up to the Netherlands national under-19 team. In 2011, Paris Saint-Germain was purchased by Qatar Sports Investments, which invested millions bringing in star footballers. Boccara decided on a transfer to Dutch club Ajax for regular game time, moving to his mother's hometown of Amsterdam.

Ajax

In the Summer of 2012, Boccara signed a three-year contract with Ajax, when the club paid a transfer fee of €500.000 to PSG for the young midfielder. Having started the season with Jong Ajax, Boccara was promoted to the first team in late August 2012, making his Eredivisie debut in the away match against Heerenveen as a substitute for Lasse Schöne in the 77th minute.

Loan to Evian

On 2 September…

Boccara played for Netherlands at U-19 level. He made third place with Jong Oranje at the Festival International Espoirs 2012 in Toulon, France. He holds dual citizenship and is still eligible to represent either Netherlands or France at senior level, and has expressed his interest in playing for Netherlands. He played for Team France in Israel at the 2017 Maccabiah Games.

Boccara is Jewish, and is the second cousin of chairman of the board of directors at AFC Ajax, Michael Kinsbergen by way of his mother.

Ajax

Eredivisie: 2012–13