Ayman Hussein Ghadhban Al-Mafraje (Arabic: أيمن حسين غضبان المفرجي; born 22 March 1996), nicknamed Abu Tubar (The Hatchet Man),[3] is an Iraqi professional footballer who plays as a striker for Qatar Stars League side Al-Wakrah, on loan from Al-Khor, and the Iraqi national team.

[4] At the end of the season 2012–13, Hussein was offered the opportunity to play in the Iraqi Premier League for the first time when he was contacted by the assistant coach of Duhok, Khalid Mohammed Sabbar and was offered a lucrative contract to play for the club which Hussein said he agreed to immediately amid “great joy” working under the former Iraq captain and the two renowned coaches Syrian Fajr Ibrahim and Thair Ahmed during his spell with Duhok.

He appeared only a few times for Duhok scoring one goals in the first stage of the season, however with salaries going unpaid for months at the cash-strapped club feeling the full ramifications of the financial crisis which had hit the Kurdistan region, Hussein made the decision to try his luck in Baghdad.

[17] Aymen would then leave the Al-Shorta to join the Iraqi U-23 side in the 2018 AFC U-23 Championship in China, despite the club's objections.

[25][26][27] On 15 September 2018, Tunisian club Sfaxien announced on the last day of the summer transfer window the signing of Hussein on a three-year contract.

He did not make any appearances in the first half of the season due to a paperwork error, rendering him ineligible to play competitive games for the side.

Aymen struggled to get consistent gametime, mainly due to his lack of match fitness after missing the first half of the season.

[39] In July 2022, newly-promoted side Al Markhiya signed Aymen Hussein, to keep the player in Qatar.

[42] Aymen was given permission to join the Iraqi national team during the Arabian Gulf Cup, despite the league season still ongoing.

[43] Due to his great performance in the first half of the season, which was followed up by being the joint top goal scorer in the Arabian Gulf Cup tournament, Aymen attracted the attention of Emirati giants Al Jazira.

[47] On 23 August 2023, Hussein signed a renewable one-year contract with Moroccan side Raja CA.

However, his season had a bitter end, as his team fell short to local rivals Al-Shorta in both the league and the cup, finishing runners up to them on both occasions.

[55] In September that year, he suffered a rib injury during the first international break of the season, which kept him out of action for a month, missing 3 league games for Al-Khor.

[60] He also scored another goal against Saudi Arabia, to ensure that Iraq won all three games and qualified for the 2018 AFC U-23 Championship.

Aymen Hussein was called up to the Iraqi U23 side participating in the 2024 Summer Olympics as one of the three overage players.

He scored his first goal against the United Arab Emirates on September 5, 2017, in a 1–0 victory in a World Cup qualifying match.

In a bizarre incident, Iraq's manager, Željko Petrović, got on the field and forcibly removed Aymen from re-taking a last minute penalty against Oman.

Aymen secured his first title with his country by winning the 25th Arabian Gulf Cup, hosted on home soil.

Aymen is often deployed as a target man, tasked with holding up the ball, being physical with defenders, and being in the box for crosses.

Hussein was born in the rural village of Al-Safra in the Hawija district of Kirkuk, which had been controlled by ISIS and was the scene of coalition air-strikes from 2014 to 2017.