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Barcelona have continued their policy of recruiting young Arab talent, announcing on Thursday the signing of Moroccan midfielder Mehdi El Mimouni.
In an official statement on X, the Catalan club confirmed they had struck a deal with Belgian side Royal Charleroi for the 17-year-old. They revealed neither the financial details nor the length of the contract.
El Mimouni will join the Under-19 team. That is where Egyptian forward Hamza Abdelkarim began his Blaugrana career after arriving from Al Ahly a few months ago.
Rated as one of the brightest names in Belgian football, El Mimouni is comfortable in the defensive midfield role and can also operate as a number 8. He boasts high technical quality and reads the game superbly, building and moving the ball with ease.
His tactical intelligence, vision and knack for dictating tempo from the anchor role have drawn comparisons with Barcelona legend Sergio Busquets. Those same qualities alerted several European clubs, most notably PSV Eindhoven and a handful of Premier League sides, chief among them Newcastle.
Holding both Moroccan and Belgian nationality, the youngster can represent either country in the years to come.