Karim Essediri

Karim Essediri (كريم السديري; born 29 July 1979) is a former professional footballer who played as a right winger. Born in France, he earned eight caps with the Tunisia national team at international level.

Career
Essediri was born in Paris. Before joining Lillestrøm in 2006, he played for Rosenborg, Bodø/Glimt and Tromsø in Norway, Club Meaux and Red Star 93 in France, and Club Africain in Tunisia.

Essediri experienced a tough start at Tromsø, and was given partial blame for the club's 2001 relegation. The following year he was lent out to another Norwegian club Bodø/Glimt. When he returned to Tromsø, he was not considered first-team material. However, the arrival of Per Mathias Høgmo as head coach made Essediri the starting right winger in Høgmo's counterattacking style of play. Essediri's pace made him an important figure in setting up Tromsø I.L.'s counterattacks, and he ended the 2004 season being among the top three for assists in the Premier League. Essediri had successfully turned from scapegoat in 2001 to hero in 2004.

Following his success at Tromsø, Essediri was picked for several matches for Tunisia, both in the World Cup 2006, and the 2005 Confederations Cup.

Having struggled to break into the Lillestrøm side, the 2009 season has seen Essediri convert to right back with success, and was a regular during the 2009-season.

In 2012 Essediri left Lillestrøm, trained with Kevin Knappen's Elverum before deciding to retire as a player. A last-minute move back to Tromsø was denied by the club's board, stating that the club could not afford Essediri's wages.

Essediri, who married a Norwegian woman from Sortland, settled in Lillestrøm. He was the manager of Lillestrøm U14, Eidsvold Turn, Strømmen U20 and assistant manager of Oppsal IF. In 2020 he was in the picture as IF Fløya's new manager, which would entail a return to Tromsø, but it fell through for economic reasons. The COVID-19 pandemic in Norway saw Essediri leave coaching for the time being to work in a kindergarten. In the second half of 2022, Essediri was brought back to Eidsvold Turn as their manager in an effort to save the team from relegation from the 2022 2. divisjon.