Mohamed Achi (born 16 January 2002) is a French professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Championnat National club Paris 13 Atletico on loan from the Ligue 1 club Nantes.

Mohamed Achi
Personal information
Full name Mohamed Achi Bouakline
Date of birth (2002-01-16) 16 January 2002 (age 22)
Place of birth Bondy, France
Height 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
Paris 13 Atletico
Youth career
2010–2016 AS Bondy
2016–2021 Nantes
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2020– Nantes B 34 (3)
2021– Nantes 3 (0)
2023–Paris 13 Atletico (loan) 8 (0)
International career
2019– France U20 6 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 6 April 2023
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 4 June 2022

Early life

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Mohamed Achi was born in Bondy, Île-de-France, where he started playing football, at the local club, along the likes of Ateef Konaté, William Saliba or even his elder Kylian Mbappé, as Kylian's father Wilfried Mbappé was his youth coach there.[1][2]

Club career

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Having joined the Nantes youth system as a 14-year-old, his promising career was however halted by a serious leg injury, still managing to win the national U17 championship during the 2018–19 season,[1][2] in a team comprising the likes of Jean-Claude Ntenda, Gor Manvelyan, Jean-Baptiste Gorby and Quentin Merlin.[3] But it was during the following 2019–20 [fr] Coupe Gambardella that he became a prominent figure of the Nantes academy, reaching the quarter finals of the national youth cup, before the competition was eventually canceled because of covid.[1]

Achi signed his first professional contract with Nantes in December 2021, having already become a central piece of the reserve team in National 2, as he had scored 3 goals and delivered 3 assists for 13 appearances during the first part of that season.[1][2]

He made his first team debut under Antoine Kombouaré's management on the 21 May 2022, replacing Randal Kolo Muani during a 1–1 home Ligue 1 draw against Saint-Étienne.[4]

On 31 January 2023, Achi was loaned to Paris 13 Atletico in Championnat National.[5]

International career

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Also eligible for the Morocco national team through his dual nationality,[6] Archi was first called up to the France U20 in November 2021,[7] making his debut during a friendly game against Germany where he scored a goal from a 25-meter free kick, temporarily equalizing, before Germany eventually scored a late goal to win the game 3–2.[1][8][9] He subsequently became a regular with the French youth selection.[10]

Style of play

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First growing as a number 10 through the youth academies, Achi was later moved to the lower positions of milieu relayeur or defensive midfielder.[2]

Described as a sharp and elegant midfielder, able to make progressive and precise passes, he also added a more aggressive and explosive dimension to his game as he made his first step into professionalism in 2021–22.[1][3]

Honours

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Nantes

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g Boudard, Jean-Marcel; Ouggourni, Pierre-Hakim (11 December 2021). "Le prometteur Mohamed Achi a signé pro". Ouest-France. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d "Mohamed Achi signe professionnel !". FC Nantes (in French). 14 December 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  3. ^ a b c Bourdeau, Denis (5 June 2019). "Johann Sidaner, leur entraîneur, présente ses jeunes joueurs champions de France". Presse-Océan [fr]. Ouest-France. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  4. ^ Cail, Gabriel (21 May 2022). "Nantes 1-1 ASSE, Ligue 1, résultat et résumé du match". L'Équipe (in French). Retrieved 21 May 2022.
  5. ^ "MOHAMED ACHI PRÊTÉ AU PARIS 13 ATLETICO" (in French). FC Nantes. 31 January 2023. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
  6. ^ "Mohamed ACHI". unfp.org. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  7. ^ "Mohamed Achi appelé en équipe de France U20". Ouest-France. 8 November 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  8. ^ Gaillard, Claire (11 November 2021). "La France battue sur le fil". FFF. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  9. ^ Équipe de France Jeunes [@edfjeunes] (12 November 2021). "Le superbe but de Mohamed Achi face à l'Allemagne" (Tweet) (in French) – via Twitter.
  10. ^ Barbaud, Maxime (19 May 2022). "France U20 : la liste de Bernard Diomède pour le tournoi de Toulon". Foot Mercato [fr] (in French). Retrieved 24 May 2022.
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