Moroccan forward Zakaria Aboukhlal completes move to Torino

Morocco national team forward Zakaria Aboukhlal’s transfer to Italian Serie A side Torino was confirmed by the club on Tuesday. The Maroons brought in Aboukhlal from French Ligue 1 club Toulouse for a fee of €8.5 million to boost their attack.

 

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The 25-year-old joins on a four-year contract and will look to boost an underwhelming attack that kept Torino from progressing beyond a midtable position. The 11th place finishers at the conclusion of the 2024-25 Serie A season only managed 39 goals in 38 league games.

Dutch-born Aboukhlal, who began his career with PSV, is not the most prolific scorer but a versatile forward who can contribute in many ways. His best season came in the 2022-23 campaign for Toulouse where he produced 10 goals and 5 assists in 37 league games.

Possessing the ability to play on either wing and capable with both feet, the skilled forward will give Torino manager Marco Baroni plenty to work with. Aboukhlal has a promising physical profile and is also very quick and strong on the dribble.

With the likes of Ché Adams and Antonio Sanabria in contention to lead the attack and Colombian veteran Duván Zapata’s impending return from a long-term injury, Aboukhlal has plenty of competition for playing time. However, his versatility can complement the pure goal scorers of Torino which is taking big steps to address their attacking deficiencies from last season.

Torino have friendly games against AS Monaco and Spanish club Valencia ahead before they begin their season with a Coppa Italia fixture against Serie B side Modena on August 18.