CHELSEA'S chances of signing exciting young Spanish/ Moroccan right-back Achraf Hakimi this summer will likely depend on a looming conversation with his Real Madrid coach and long-term mentor Zinedine Zidane.
With a very successful two seasons on loan at Borussia Dortmund due to end in June, Achraf has made it clear that his number one aim remains to succeed long term at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu.
But having enjoyed playing regularly for Dortmund, the 21-year-old does not want to return to the Bernabeu to sit on the bench. Hence if Zidane must convince him that he would be an important first teamer for Madrid next season, or he could be available for his attractive looking reported release clause of €60 million.
A significant step in this process took place last weekend, with the Daily Mail claiming that Chelsea had asked Madrid about Achraf’s current situation and were told that no decision had yet been made about what happens next.
Despite his tender years, Achraf has already racked up quite the CV. His breakthrough 2017/18 season, when aged just 18, brought 17 appearances for Madrid’s first team and a Champions League winners medal. At Dortmund he has played 65 times across the Bundesliga and UCL, and won a German Supercup winners medal. His 28 caps for Morocco include three impressive appearances at World Cup 2018, and he was also named Young African Footballer of the Year in 2019.
The Getafe-born youngster has remarkable physical and technical gifts – with the pace and athleticism to get forward into super positions around the box, and then the composure and intelligence to produce an end product. He has also often played further forward on the wing, and regularly showed even more versatility by playing on the left flank. In total he has 10 goals and 17 assists in less than two seasons at Dortmund – pretty phenomenal numbers for a young defender.
The Champions League stage seems to suit the relaxed and confident character. He delivered three assists in one game against Atletico Madrid in the group stages last season, as well as double strikes against both Slavia Prague and Inter Milan this term. “This has been my best season, that’s true,” he told Telefoot in March. “I’m not a defender who stays back, but I also like to take part in the attack, come up the pitch and help the team. I consider myself a modern defender.”
It has not all been plain sailing however. While at Madrid there were some dodgy defensive moments – including during a UCL group defeat at Tottenham, and embarrassing Copa del Rey defeat to neighbours Leganes. Another low point came in the UCL last 16 second leg at Paris Saint-Germain, just before football went into lockdown, when Neymar caught him napping at a corner to grab the crucial goal in the tie.
Despite this setback, Dortmund have been hoping to either prolong their loan agreement, or sign him outright. But their deal with Madrid includes no firm option to buy, and they know the price will be high, given interest from the Premier League and elsewhere.
So the next question is whether Madrid can persuade him to return happily to the Bernabeu, especially considering he has just 12 months left on his current contract. “I grew up in Madrid, it is my home, and I would like to grow further there,” he told AS last October. “But if not there, then somewhere else.”
The key figure in all this is Zidane, who has been a long term backer of Achraf, who entered Madrid’s youth system aged just eight years old. In summer 2017, the former galactico stopped the then 18 year old kid going on loan to Alaves, and instead gave him regular minutes in La Liga ahead of much more experienced options.
“I had a very good relationship [with Zidane], and I still do,” Achraf told AS. “He has always given me good advice, you see he wants the best for me, as if I were his son. He gave me the chance to play at Real Madrid, the best club in the world. Whatever happens, I will always have a good relationship with him.”
That 'whatever happens' looks a key clause ahead of their next serious discussion. Zidane’s current first choice at right-back, Dani Carvajal, turned 28 in January and in theory should be coming into the peak years of his career. But the idea of reintroducing Achraf along with fellow young talents Martin Odegaard, Fede Valverde, Vinicius Junior and others excites many at the Bernabeu.
“Madrid is my home,” Achraf told Telefoot. “If Madrid want me back, I will come back. If not, I will have to make history at some other club.”
Chelsea, and many other top clubs around the Premier League and Europe, will be following developments closely.
