Bilal El Khannouss, who is just 18 years old, experienced a meteoric rise at the start of his senior football career.
At the end of the 2021/22 season, El-Khannouss debuted in the Genk first team, having been handed his debut by former manager Bernd Storck.
However, this season, he has become a regular starter for the top-of-the-table side, with the midfielder starting 15 of the 16 matches so far.
It does not stop there, though, as the 18-year-old has been named in Walid Regragui’s Morocco squad for the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
This demonstrates the level of performance that the Belgian-born Moroccan has displayed this season, with El-Khannouss not having a cap at senior international level yet.
This tactical analysis and Bilal El-Khannouss scout report will examine Bilal El-Khannouss’s strengths and illustrate why he has been fast-tracked into the Genk First Team and Moroccan senior national teams.
Bilal El khannouss Player profile
Since making his first start for Genk at the beginning of the Belgian Pro League season, El-Khannouss has become one of Wouter Vrancken‘s first names on the team sheet.
In the Belgian manager’s preferred 4-2-3-1 system, the Moroccan midfielder has been deployed as the central attacking midfielder but has been given the freedom to roam, as displayed below.
Bilal El-Khannouss Heat Map
As the heat map shows above, El Khannouss does not just play as a central attacking midfielder.
The 18-year-old has the freedom to roam throughout the attacking half of the pitch, looking for spaces to receive possession and help facilitate attacking moves.
The heat map illustrates that El Khannouss does not frequently occupy positions inside the penalty box.
This lack of penalty box presence is further evident in the midfielder’s goal involvements this season, with only one assist in all competitions for Genk so far.
However, even though the Moroccan has not yet made the biggest impact in terms of goals and assists, he has made up for it with his ability to link up play and create chances from deeper positions when he has been allowed to roam throughout the attacking half.
Vision on the ball and passing in the attacking half
When watching Bilal El Khannouss play, one of the first attributes that stands out is the vision on the ball and range of passing in the attacking half that the 18-year-old possesses.
So far this season in the Belgian Pro League, the attacking midfielder has averaged 47.25 passes per 90 minutes, with a success rate of 81.6%.
He also attempts a relatively decent number of long passes per match (4.01), with a decent success rate (70.8%).
Bilal El-Khannouss Pass Map
The data viz above shows Bilal El Khannouss’s successful passes so far this season.
As we can see, the young Moroccan midfielder is involved in all areas of the pitch for Genk when they are in possession.
This illustrates the influence the 18-year-old has had on the Belgian side since being in the starting lineup and shows one reason why Walid Regragui has handed the 18-year-old midfielder a spot in his Moroccan World Cup squad.
The image above shows a good example of the vision and range of passing that the 18-year-old possesses.
In the phase of play above, El-Khannouss has dropped deep into midfield to find a pocket of space and get on the ball.
After receiving possession, the Moroccan is able to use his vision to scan the play ahead of him and see the fullback’s overlapping run down the far side.
As the Anderlecht fullback steps up to close down the possible passing option in midfield, the channel opens up for Bilal El Khannouss to play a perfectly weighted through ball in behind the Anderlecht defence and into the path of the overlapping fullback.
The pass breaks both Anderlecht’s midfield and defensive line and does not allow time for the defenders to recover.
After receiving the pass from the Moroccan youngster, the ensuing cross by the fullback is tapped in for an easy goal by the Genk forward.
Though he did not get the assist, El Khannouss’s vision and range of passing influenced this goal for Genk.
The image above once again illustrates Bilal El Khannouss’s vision and knowledge of the play developing around him.
In Genk’s recent match against Zulte-Waregem, the young Moroccan can again play a difficult pass that eventually leads to a goal for Genk.
What is special about this chance created by El Khannouss is his innate ability to watch what is going on off the ball and recognise possible openings before they occur rather than just focusing on what he wants to do with the ball.
After receiving the ball in this phase of play, the Moroccan midfielder has his back to the goal and is moving away from it.
However, he was able to spot the fullback’s overlapping run by scanning his surroundings before gathering possession.
After spotting this opening, El Khannouss played a perfectly weighted backheel pass into the path of the fullback, which caught the opposition’s defensive line out.
The fullback then played a cross into the box, which the Genk forward headed in.
Even though he once again did not directly contribute with an assist, due to his vision and constant scanning before gathering possession, the young midfielder was able to create a chance that led to a goal for Genk.
The above image illustrates another example of the midfielder’s vision and passing ability to break through the opposition’s lines, creating a scoring opportunity as a result.
In the phase of play above against Anderlecht, after scanning for possible passing options, El Khannouss is able to play a line-breaking through ball in behind the opposition’s defence, sending the Genk winger in behind and on goal.
Unfortunately, the ensuing shot was saved by the Anderlecht goalkeeper.
Still, once again, operating from a deeper position, Bilal El Khannouss demonstrated his playmaking ability from these deeper-lying midfield positions.
Though he likely will not be a starter in Morocco’s squad in the World Cup, Bilal El-Khannouss’s vision and range of passing will be a valuable asset for Walid Regragui’s side.
As a result, there is a good chance that the 18-year-old will get some minutes off the bench in Qatar and may also create a few chances.
Pressing ability and Defensive work rate
When watching Bilal El Khannouss’s style of play, another notable strength that emerges is his ability to press and defend from the front, along with his high work rate when required to track back in defensive moments.
This season in the Belgian Pro League, the 18-year-old Moroccan midfielder has attempted 5.68 recoveries per 90 minutes, with 61.8% of them occurring in the opposition’s half.
Bilal El Khannouss High Regains Map
The data viz above shows the pressing ability that El Khannouss possesses, with him being one of the first lines of defence for Genk this season.
As the graphic shows, the Moroccan has been a reliable presser for the top-of-the-table side this season, with 22 counter-pressing recoveries in total for the young midfielder.
El Khannouss is also very tenacious when it comes to tracking back to defend.
He has a great work rate, with him consistently tracking back into the defensive half and putting in a shift defensively.
The pass map from the first part of this scout report also illustrated this, with many of the Moroccans’ successful passes occurring in the defensive half of the pitch.
This section will provide more detailed examples of these actions.
The image above shows an example of the work rate that El Khannouss demonstrates in the attacking third for Genk.
In the phase of play above against Antwerp, the Moroccan had just lost possession in the final third.
Instead of taking his time to get back up and track back, the young midfielder was able to counter-press quickly, putting in an attempted challenge on the Antwerp defender.
Unfortunately, El Khannouss’s attempt to win back possession was unsuccessful.
However, it still demonstrated the young attacking midfielder’s work rate and tenacity when pressing and attempting to regain possession in the attacking half.
The above example demonstrates Bilal El-Khannouss’s work rate and urgency to track back and help out defensively.
In this phase of play above against Leuven, the home side escaped the Genk pressure, with plenty of space in midfield for the player in possession to drive forward into.
The 18-year-old Moroccan noticed this and was able to get on his horse, track back, and attempt to slow down the attacker.
The Leuven attacker ends up playing the ball out wide to the fullback on the near touchline, but El Khannouss continues to track back, catching up to the player as a result.
This puts the midfielder in a good defensive position, allowing Genk to have an extra defender back.
The final image above again shows a situation where El Khannouss had to use his work rate to track back and assist in a defensive phase of play.
After being able to play through the Genk press, the Antwerp player was able to drive through the midfield, forcing Genk’s defensive line to drop off quickly.
The Moroccan midfielder quickly noticed the space and made up ground, closing the attacker down and forcing him into an errant pass.
Bilal El Khannouss’s urgency in tracking back quickly when Genk find themselves in a precarious defensive position is another key strength that has developed in the young midfielder’s game.
Along with tracking back, the Moroccan midfielder has also become crucial to Genk’s pressing and counter-pressing moments under Wouter Vrancken’s tactics.
These are both traits that will continue to develop over time but can already be classified as strengths for Genk’s number ’10’.
Conclusion
As this scout report and tactical analysis have shown, Bilal El Khannouss’s strengths likely contributed to his call-up to the Morocco senior squad for the World Cup in Qatar.
The 18-year-old midfielder will also have a chance to play with some of the very best Moroccan talents, with Chelsea star Hakim Ziyech, Bayern Munich defender Noussair Mazraoui, and PSG wingback Achraf Hakimi all included in Walid Regragui’s squad.
After the World Cup, El Khannouss will likely return to becoming a key player for Genk during the second half of the Belgian Pro League season, as the club looks to win the league for the first time since the 2018/19 season.
