Yacine Adli: A talent that augurs well for France

Yacine Adli was one of the best players for France in the 2017 European Under-17 Championship. Aware of his growing potential, clubs in Bundesliga are reportedly keen to have him in their side, but Yacine’s happy to be with PSG at the moment.

In the 58 minutes he played against New Caledonia, Yacine Adli produced three splendid assists for France.

Frenchman Yacine Adli was on the field for 58 minutes in the Group-E opener against New Caledonia in the FIFA Under-17 World Cup here. He spent less than an hour at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium but played a key role in the team’s huge win.   Each of Yacine's three assists stood out for its tactical nous and vision.   First, the 17-year-old ran past Richard Titouan and Iwa Bernard in one sweep, combined with Maxence Caqueret, before passing precisely to Amine.   Then, Yacine, from the right, deftly passed it to Amine, enough for the latter to toe-poke into the goal.   The third one was selfless in a way, but one that took New Caledonia by surprise. Off a cross from Andy Pelmard, Yacine had the angle to for the header, but he headed it to Maxence.   Born in a suburb in Vitry-sur-Seine in Paris, Yacine joined Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) youth academy from US Villejuif in 2013. Since then, it's been a journey of more ups than downs. Considered a part of a strong generation of young PSG players, which includes Dan-Axel Zagadou, Claudio Gomes, Antoine Bernede, Moussa Diaby and Timothy Weah, among others. Yacine was one of the best players for France in the 2017 European Under-17 Championship.    Aware of his growing potential, clubs in Bundesliga are reportedly keen to have him in their side, but Yacine said he’s happy to be with PSG at the moment.   With players of the calibre of Neymar and Edinson Cavani at PSG senior side, Yacine would have learnt and imbibed a lot by training and watching them. “Yes. I have trained a bit with them in the past. They are the best players in the world,” he said.   Lionel Rouxel, the France coach, said the idea of playing Yacine for 58 minutes was to preserve him. “He has the talent to go all the way. He is a good boy, got the game and the mentality. He can do what many others can’t do," he said.