Rabat – Morocco international and PSG right-back Achraf Hakimi remains the most expensive player in Africa, according to the International Center for Sports Studies (CIES).
While his ranking in Africa remained unchanged, Hakimi, who features on CIES’s list of the 100 most expensive players in terms of his estimated transfer value, has dropped from the 15th position in January to the 36th position worldwide.
The current estimated value of the Moroccan right-back who now plays for France’s Paris Saint Germain (PSG) is €75.2 million, ahead of Egypt’s Mohamed Salah who came 81st worldwide with an estimated market value of €55 million.
Hakimi outperformed other renowned players such as the British defensive midfielder Declan Rice and the Swedish Dejan Kulusevski.
Meanwhile, the first place in this ranking went to PSG’s Kylian Mbappe with €205 million, followed by Real Madrid player Vinícius Júnior (€185.3 million), and Manchester City’s Erling Haaland (€152.6 million).
While Hakimi remains the African player with the highest estimated market value, one notable takeaway is that the Moroccan’s value has sharply declined in recent months.
In the biannual list of the CIES Football Observatory, published last January, Achraf Hakimi’s transfer value was set at €108.2 million. He was also the only African to feature in the ranking.
Following an impressive 2020-2021 season in which he scored seven times with Inter Milan in Italy’s Serie A, the Moroccan player signed a record-breaking contract last summer with PSG until 2026.
In addition to his remarkable outing at club level, Hakimi has been in particularly eye-catching form with Morocco’s national team. Earlier this year, his freekick against Malawi in the Africa Cup of Nations’ (AFCON) Round of 16 was selected among the continental cup’s best goals.
An undroppable member of Morocco’s Atlas Lions squad, the PSG star is expected to join the Moroccan team in their first AFCON 2023 qualifiers game against South Africa on Thursday, June 9.
Read Also: AFCON Qualifiers: South Africa ‘Up for the Task’ Against Morocco’s Atlas Lions
