3 days ago
9
Signed for up to €25m
©TM/IMAGO
It was an incredible moment of brilliance by Bilal El Khannouss. The Moroccan forward received the ball outside the box, stopped it, looked up, and, surrounded by four Heidenheim defenders, managed to beat goalkeeper Diant Ramaj with a perfect shot to win the game for VfB Stuttgart (1-0). “He showed what he can do,” Stuttgart head coach Sebastian Hoeneß said after the game about the 21-year-old Moroccan national team player.
Signed on loan with a conditional obligation to buy from Leicester this summer, El Khannouss has had an instant impact in Stuttgart. The playmaker, who can also play on the wing, has now scored three goals and two assists in nine games across all competitions for Stuttgart. Once triggered, Stuttgart would be on the hook for €25m including add-ons, but if El Khannouss continues to develop, the Bundesliga club will happily pay the fee.
In fact, Stuttgart head coach Hoeneß has quickly gained a reputation in Germany for taking on projects and turning them into world-class players. Nick Woltemade is the most prominent example. Signed on a free transfer from Werder Bremen in the summer of 2024, Stuttgart sold the striker to Newcastle United in a deal worth up to €85m. Aside from Woltemade, Hoeneß has also turned Chris Führich, Deniz Undav, Maximilian Mittelstädt, Jamie Leweling, and Angelo Stiller into German national team players.
El Khannouss at VfB Stuttgart – Hoeneß makes players better
Other notable players include Serhou Guirassy, Waldemar Anton (both Dortmund), Hiroki Ito (now Bayern Munich), and Enzo Millot (Al-Ahli). All those players arrived at VfB for very little money and were sold with a significant transfer profit. Even if they have to pay the full €25m price tag for El Khannouss, Stuttgart feels that the investment could be worth it. “He is two-footed and has already improved his ability to score goals since he arrived here,” Hoeneß said. “He is also still only 21 and has a very high ceiling.”
What does El Khannouss need to improve to become a top-class player? “He needs to become more consistent,” Hoeneß said. “Sometimes he takes too many risks. Sometimes he doesn’t try enough. He needs to be more direct and not try to look for an extra dribble or pass. The most important thing is to find a balance. We also want him to be more efficient in the box; that’s the place where you score the goals. In some ways, the goal today highlighted exactly what he should be working on.” Going back to his time in Belgium, there was never any doubt that El Khannouss is a high-potential player. Now, with Hoeneß, he has a coach who can bring out the best in him.
