Ounas was four years old when he joined the local club Tours encouraged by his father, Hadji Ounas, a former goalkeeper.[citation needed] He played for Tours for ten years before joining the U14 youth team of Châteauroux.[citation needed]
One year later, due to juvenile mistakes, he left Châteauroux and played for a small local club, Football Club Ouest Tourangeau 37, where Arnaud Vaillant, scout for Bordeaux and Yannick Stopyra discovered him.[4]
Bordeaux
In April 2013, Ounas joined Bordeaux on a one-year contract and in April 2014, he signed a two-year trainee contract.
Ounas made his first-team debut for Bordeaux on 4 October 2015, being introduced in the 72nd minute and scoring the last goal in his club's 3–2 defeat away to Lorient.[5] He started in the following match against Montpellier, before being substituted in the 59th minute,[6] and was introduced in the 77th minute of Bordeaux's 0–1 defeat to Sion in the Europa League on 22 October.[7] On 25 October, Ounas scored his second Ligue 1 goal 11 minutes after having come on in the 67th minute, helping his club to a 1–0 win over Troyes AC.[8] In December, Bordeaux rewarded him with a professional contract running until June 2019.[9]
Napoli
On 3 July 2017, Napoli confirmed the signing of Ounas from Bordeaux.[10][11] He scored his first goal for the club in a 1–3 loss to RB Leipzig in the Europa League 1st knockout round first leg.[12]
Loan to Nice
On 30 August 2019, Ounas moved to Ligue 1 side OGC Nice, on a loan deal with a purchase option.[13] On 6 May 2020, Nice decided not to trigger the purchase option and Ounas returned to Napoli.[14]
Loan to Cagliari
On 6 October 2020, Ounas joined Serie A side Cagliari on a season-long loan with an option to buy.[15] On 28 January 2021, Ounas parted ways with Cagliari due to lack of playing time.[16]
Loan to Crotone
On 1 February 2021, Ounas joined Italian club Crotone on a loan deal.[17] He scored his first goal for the club on 14 February in a 2–1 home loss to Sassuolo.[18] His second marker came against Torino on 7 March; following the match, he became the target of cyber racism, allegedly from Torino fans, which included direct messages on Instagram, of which he published screenshots, calling him a "monkey", telling him to "return to Africa", and even hoping for his death.[19]
Lille
On 1 September 2022, Ounas signed with Lille for two seasons, with an option for a third season.[20] As his contract ended, it was not renewed and he was linked to a move to Greek club Olympiacos.[21]
Born in France to Algerian parents, Ounas is eligible to represent both countries internationally because he holds both nationality.[25] After initially playing for the France under-20 team, he opted to change his allegiance to Algeria in October 2016.[26] Shortly after the switch, Ounas was called up to the Algeria national team for the first time for a 2018 World Cup qualifier against Nigeria.[27]
12"A. Ounas". Soccerway. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
↑Edwards, Mathias (20 December 2015). "Adam Ounas, L'étincelle Bordelaise"[Adam Ounas, Bordelais spark]. So Foot (in French). Archived from the original on 26 February 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
