Dutch football expert Arthur Renard chronicles the journey and development of Manchester United's on-loan midfielder.
Player feature - Sofyan Amrabat
When football manager Ivan Juric was out of work in the first part of 2019, he decided to visit his friend Ivan Leko, who was managing Club Brugge at the time.
The two Croats knew each other from their playing days at Hajduk Split, so Juric came over for a week to Belgium to catch up with his friend and study their training sessions, in order to stay in touch with the game.
It was during those days that his attention was caught by Amrabat, who impressed him with his dedicated way of playing.
“I found him a very strong player, just really, really good,” recalls Juric. “I had seen him before in some Champions League games, but I learned he didn’t always play at Brugge; sometimes he was in the first XI, but some other games he wasn’t.”
Hellas Verona move
It was useful information, especially when Juric got appointed at Serie A side Hellas Verona in June. Once he arrived at the club, he knew exactly who he wanted to bring in.
Amrabat was key to his plans, as he felt he could inspire his new side to greater heights. And he managed to get his man, despite minimal resources available at his new club.
“When I went to Verona, there was an opportunity to take him on loan, so we didn’t have to pay a transfer fee,” says Juric.
Brugge weren’t that keen to let Amrabat go, but the fact he wasn’t an undisputed starter helped his case as he indicated how important it was to play week in, week out. At Verona, that chance was there and the Dutch Moroccan midfielder seized the opportunity with both hands when the Belgian club eventually gave the green light.
“He arrived with a lot of enthusiasm,” recalls Juric. “I played him immediately after two days [in a match against Bologna] and from the first moment he started to play very well. He showed a strong character, worked hard and he was really motivated.
"If you speak to him and make him important – like that he feels loved – then you’ve got a really good player at your disposal.”
Brawn with brains
From day one, Amrabat inspired his team with his physical presence, but Juric discovered another side to his game, too.
“As a team we had a high pressing style, a lot of one against one and it was perfect with him, because he is naturally really strong, very direct and he can run a lot," says Juric.
"But after maybe two months I noticed that he's very clever as well, like he really understands the game. When I watched him in Belgium and Holland, I always saw a physically strong player. But then I discovered a very intelligent player in him, too.”
Juric explains what Amrabat added on a tactical level. “When my teams have the ball, I always try to outnumber the opponent, like to create five against four or four against three situations. He was very clever, after a short while he understood exactly what was happening.
"He would go to the goalkeeper to collect the ball, to create two against ones. Or if we had a superiority situation on the right side, he would automatically go to the right side. He is very good in recognising situations on the pitch.”
Amrabat learned his trade on the streets of Huizen, a Dutch village roughly 25 kilometres from Amsterdam.
He grew up with three elder brothers, with one of them, Nordin (below), playing in the Ajax academy before going on to play for clubs like PSV Eindhoven, Galatasaray and Watford.
He is now at AEK Athens and played against Brighton & Hove Albion in the UEFA Europa League recently.
Waiting patiently
Sofyan went to the academy of Utrecht, where he made it to the first team, but patience was required before he started to play regularly.
In the summer of 2015, Erik ten Hag was brought in as first-team manager, but Amrabat still had to wait for his chance, something which was also down to himself, as he later acknowledged in Dutch weekly Voetbal International.
“When Erik ten Hag arrived, I endured a dramatic pre-season," said Amrabat. "Then you have little to say, especially as the team started to play well. Only at the end of that season, just before the first playoff game for European football against PEC Zwolle, he called me over. ‘Can you play wing-back?’ he asked.
"I had never played at that position, but I said it wasn’t a problem. ‘Of course, coach.’ I thought, 'I’ve waited for so long, even if he puts me in goal, I want to play.'"
Coincidentally, at Man Utd, Amrabat has also been asked to fulfil a kind of wing-back role by Ten Hag, with injuries at left-back meaning the team needed someone to play in that position.
Ten Hag's professional approach
In the second year of Ten Hag at Utrecht, Amrabat had his breakthrough, playing mostly in midfield. Amrabat credits Ten Hag for instilling a more professional approach in him in those years, investing more on and off the pitch.
Earlier this year, Amrabat explained in The Athletic how Ten Hag made a plan for him, asking about his strong points and what he wanted to improve.
“After every game, he would take me through a video and explain everything to me," says Amrabat. "I was 18 or 19 years old, so sometimes I was thinking, ‘Oof, again?’. But now, when I look back, I know it was so important for my career. I learned such a lot from him.”
The following season he was bought by Feyenoord, with whom he played in the UEFA Champions League. Although he started every match in Europe’s elite competition, he couldn’t command a starting spot in the league and decided to leave for Club Brugge after one year.
In Belgium he couldn’t really fulfil his potential too, also because he was playing in many different positions throughout the season.
But then there was Juric, who turned up for a week at Brugge, and things took a turn for the better. “I was like without work and I was very lucky that I went to visit my friend Leko at Brugge and saw Sofi live in training,” says Juric.
When Amrabat moved to Verona, he became a revelation for the Italian side. “He played a lot of really good games; he was dominating all year. We operated in a 3-4-3 and he always played as a defensive midfielder,” explains Juric.
It was invaluable for Amrabat, who got the time to make that position his own. “I think Verona was perfect for him and he was perfect for us. It was like a perfect situation,” says Juric. “Everybody loved him. He's a really good guy.”
Focused at Fiorentina
In the January 2020 transfer window, Verona triggered the buy-option clause in his contract and sold him on to Fiorentina, who secured his services for the subsequent summer. “It was very good business for Verona,” says Juric. “Because we paid 3.5million euros and sold him for 20m euros.”
The impending transfer didn’t mean Amrabat lost any of his focus for the remainder of the season. Rather the contrary.
He continued to impress for Verona, helping his team to a ninth-place finish – the club’s highest in 20 years – and earning the club’s Player of the Year award in the process. Juric gives an example of how Amrabat stayed fully committed until the very last moment.
“When we played the final game of the season – when he was already sold to Fiorentina – he got a red card in injury time. That's something I remember, because he was about to go out of the club, but he still had this kind of mentality to give everything he could until the last minute.”
Amrabat’s development took further strides at Fiorentina, where he would spend three years before he secured a loan move to Old Trafford. With I Viola, he reached the Italian Cup and UEFA Conference League final last season, which they lost to Internazionale and West Ham United respectively.
World Cup star
It was also during last year when he announced himself on the global stage with Morocco, as he inspired them to the semi-finals of the FIFA World Cup 2022 by beating the likes of Belgium, Spain and Portugal.
After losing the semi-final against France, the French president Emmanuel Macron came into Morocco’s dressing room, congratulating the team for their efforts and personally praising Amrabat for his performances during the tournament.
After the World Cup, Amrabat was heavily linked with moves to Barcelona, Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur, but he ended up at Old Trafford, where he was reunited with Ten Hag.
The two developed a really good bond, just as he did with Juric - and that’s when you get the best out of him, indicates the Croatian manager.
“He does well when he feels the confidence," says Juric. "Be open to him and then he will give you everything he has. We created a really good relationship. Even today we speak with each other. We were texting during the World Cup, but we were also in contact after the earthquake in Morocco.”
Juric, who is now managing Torino, thinks Man Utd will get the most out of Amrabat if he plays in his natural position.
“If they put him in the middle, then he can play at a very high level," he says.
"He doesn't need to be scared of anybody who plays in that position. As a centre midfielder, he's one of the best in Europe, just like he played with Morocco at the World Cup. I think the way he played there epitomises the footballer he is.”
Arthur Renard is a Dutch journalist specialising in European football. https://arthurrenard.com/