Xavi involves 17-year-old Ilias Akhomach in first training session: 4 things to know about him

Xavi involves 17-year-old Ilias Akhomach in first training session: 4 things to know about him


Origins
Ilias was born in Spain to Moroccan parents; he joined Barcelona's youth ranks at the age of 7.

Ilias Akhomach has made his unofficial debut for Barcelona B already at the age of 16.

Position
Akhomach can play in all three positions upfront but he feels most natural on the right wing, just like Lionel Messi.

Positive feedback
Back in 2019, Patrick Kluivert called the youngster 'the Leo Messi coming through at La Masia'.

Garcia Pimienta said the following about him in 2020: "He's a cheeky, brave player with a lot of quality, but he's only 16. We have very young players and we can't load them with too much responsibility."

Xavi has recently watched Akhomach score a brace past Sevilla Atletico. The new Barca boss was said to be excited with Ilias' performance.

Fans watching Barcelona B games describe him as 'a very fast player who's also a skillful dribbler'.

Interesting facts
After five seasons at La Masia, when the time came to switch from 7v7 football to 11v11, Akhomach was told that he was no longer needed. He joined local side Gimnastic Manresa where he started playing 11v11, and the very next year several clubs, including Real Madrid, wanted him; fortunately, Barca managed to convince him to come back.

In 2020, several Premier League teams were after the youngster but he decided to stay.

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