It has been an intriguing introduction to the Premier League for Leicester City’s Bilal El Khannouss.
His first start, at home to Everton in September, featured torrential rain and a thunderstorm of biblical proportions: hardly the ideal conditions for a technical ball player.
His second start last weekend saw him involved in a sensational comeback at Southampton. He is quickly learning that Leicester don’t do boring.
The 20-year-old Morocco international’s early experiences in England have certainly been eventful since his £20million ($26m) summer move from Genk in Belgium.
El Khannouss, who was the Belgian Pro League’s young player of the year last season, has only been given 148 minutes of Premier League action but, as his turn and shot that struck the post at St Mary’s Stadium last weekend showed, there is plenty more to come. His manager Steve Cooper is in no doubt that the fee will be money well spent.
As El Khannouss’ player dashboard from Saturday’s 3-2 win at Southampton shows, he was not on the ball as much as he would have liked. He only made 29 passes as Leicester toiled, but three of those were ‘progressive’ (passes that move the ball 25 per cent closer to the centre of the goal) and he registered the fourth-highest involvements in attacking sequences during the game before he was substituted off in the 68th minute.
He also dovetailed with Facundo Buonanotte in taking the set pieces, which were a threat in the first period.
Michel Ribeiro, who coached El Khannouss for four years at Genk, believes it won’t be long before his former prodigy becomes the latest academy product from his old club to make their mark in England, like Kevin De Bruyne, Thibaut Courtois and Divock Origi before him.
El Khannouss is also following the Genk-to-Leicester pathway trodden by Dennis Praet, Timothy Castagne and Wilfred Ndidi.
“He is ready for the Premier League, 100 per cent,” Ribeiro tells The Athletic. “He is ready to play and he has shown he can adapt.
“He played in a World Cup bronze-medal match against Croatia (in 2022) at the age of 18 and has played in the Olympics. He plays without fear.
“Almost three years ago, I said that Bilal will be the next guy coming through — he will have a very successful career.”
Ribeiro says El Khannouss, who joined the Genk academy in 2019 after leaving Anderlecht, was hungry to learn and dedicated to becoming a first-team player.
“He has good speed, has fantastic feet and he sees everything,” he says. “A lot of times, he is ahead of other players because he sees the game much faster.
“He is always open to learning and is an unbelievably hard worker. He always wanted to do extra work after training sessions.”
El Khannouss has been recruited to provide Cooper with more attacking midfield options and he will chiefly be a creator. He has only scored four goals and provided 14 assists in his club career, but Ribeiro believes his offensive output will grow at Leicester.
“His numbers could be more but I don’t agree with all the stats,” says the former Genk assistant manager. “If he thinks the game is not speeding up, he will drop deeper to get on the ball and try to make it happen, which takes him further away from goal.
“He’s always there to create. The level at Leicester City will be a little higher but he will adapt well in time.”
As well as the creative side of his game, in Cooper’s system, El Khannouss will be asked to lead the press with Vardy.
“He’s a total player,” says Ribeiro. “He can read the game. He’s not the guy you will see flying into tackles but he’s very smart at stealing balls. He has grown strong.”
Former Genk team-mate Bryan Heynen says he has seen El Khannouss change from a timid young boy stepping up to senior level into a strong, confident and effective player.
“He made some big steps forward in the last two seasons when he was with us,” Heynen tells The Athletic. “He came into the first team when he was only 18. He was still a kid but even physically, he improved a lot last season.
“His body became like a man’s body and he also behaves like an adult. He’s still a young kid but he plays very maturely. He knows that there’s something at stake at senior level.”
El Khannouss had a strong relationship with the Genk supporters and Heynen is convinced that, in time, he will become a fans’ favourite at Leicester too.
“He’s always playing with a lot of passion,” he says. “He works for the shirt, for the club and fans, and he cares a lot about the club he’s playing for. He will give his life on the pitch, and he will show it as well.
“He works hard when the team don’t have the ball and he’s very creative. He can find spaces other players can’t find. He is a huge plus for Leicester.”
The fee Leicester paid to sign El Khannouss may seem steep for such a young player, unproven at Premier League level, but Heynen believes Leicester may have got themselves a bargain.
“I have only played in Belgium, but the Premier League is probably the biggest league in the world,” he says. “There’s only top players there.
“He will adapt quickly to the level he’s playing. Maybe he will need some time but he will do well. He should be valued higher than Leicester paid for him but when Genk make an agreement with a player that they can leave, they always try to find the best solution for the player as well as the club.
“Genk probably should have got more for him but I don’t know the details of the clauses. Maybe it is a fair deal. He is certainly worth what they paid for him, and maybe worth more.”
He is a mostly unknown quantity in England but Ribeiro and Heynen saw El Khannouss emerge as one of the most exciting young players in the Belgian Pro League. They will be watching closely again as he looks to make a big step up in England.
(Top photo: Michael Regan/Getty Images)
