Moroccan football player and attacking midfielder for Belgian club KRC Genk Bilal El Khannouss was named Belgium’s Talent of the Year 2022 at the 69th edition of the Belgian Golden Boot award on Wednesday.
Thanks to his impressive skills and performances, the 18-year-old footballer has succeeded in solidifying his reputation as a distinguished emerging player.
El Khannouss notably caught the interest of football fans for being the youngest player in the Moroccan national team’s squad list for the Qatar World Cup, which took place in late 2022.
Despite his young age, El Khannouss managed to emerge as one of the Moroccan teams’ key players in the global tournament.
Prior to the World Cup, he made headlines in Belgium for his outstanding performances with Genk. At the time, hopes were high for the young player to represent the European country and feature alongside the Belgian team in Qatar, but El Khannouch chose to represent his home country, Morocco.
In an interview with sports news site Kooora, El Khannouss said: “I won’t submit myself to any sort of pressure. I made my decision and announced it publicly to represent Morocco.”
Commenting on the Moroccan player’s choice, the coach of Belgium’s under-21 football team Jackie Matise told TVM Sportcafe that it is a “pity because he [El Khannouss] is a very good and interesting player.”
Following Morocco’s historic World Cup run, El Khannouss has come on the radar of Dutch club Ajax Amsterdam. Converging reports suggested that the European club is “ready” to offer €20 million (MAD 223 million) for the Atlas Lions’ transfer fees.
In addition to the award El Khannouss received, his club Genk collected four other titles; Goal of the Year, Golden Shoe, Coach of the Year, and Best Belgian Abroad.
The award ceremony took place in the Belgian city of Antwerp, in the presence of several football and sports personalities.
