Rabat – Morocco’s rising star Eliesse Ben Sghir, who has impressed so far for Monaco this season with three Ligue 1 MVP-winning performances, might be on the verge of joining FC Barcelona during the January transfer window.
According to the Spanish news outlet Mundo Deportivo, the Blaugrana sees the 19-year-old prodigy as one for the future.
“The club’s market strategy is increasingly focused on promoting young talents from La Masia and on finding untapped gems, such as the recent cases of Pedri or Araujo,” Mundo Deportivo reported on Wednesday. “And that is where the name of Eliesse Ben Seghir, a young winger who is emerging at Monaco, has emerged in recent days.”
The wonderkid has scored so far seven goals this season and provided four assists in 23 games. According to the website Transfermarkt, the young Moroccan is valued at $30 million.
In a recent interview with Onze Mondial, a French sports magazine, Ben Sghir spoke of his admiration for two former Barça superstars.
“Neymar is my role model. I love his freedom and his style of play. All the young players see themselves reflected in him,” he said. “And, of course, there’s Messi , whose ability to dribble past an entire team is incredible.”
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Eliesse Ben Seghir plays as a left winger for AS Monaco and the Morocco national team, and might be a welcome addition to FC Barcelona as they look to bolster their three-men attack with a dribbling winger to complement Lamine Yamal and Robert Lewandovski.
The Atlas Lion began his football journey with SC Cogolinois and later played for Fréjus Saint-Raphaël before joining AS Monaco’s youth academy in 2020.
Ben Seghir made his debut for Monaco on November 3, 2022, in a UEFA Europa League game against Red Star Belgrade. A month later, he made his Ligue 1 debut and scored two goals to secure a 3–2 victory over Auxerre.
On the international level, Ben Seghir represented France at youth levels but then chose to play for Morocco, making his senior debut on March 22, 2024 in a friendly against Angola.
He was also part of the Morocco U23 squad that won the bittersweet bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics Games. He has eight caps for the Morocco national team and scored three goals.
