By the barest margin, France lost the chance to become the third nation to defend their World Cup title. However, such is the insane depth that the French possess that they are one of the favourites for the next Euros and the FIFA World Cup. Les Bleus have an array of talented players making their mark across the top five leagues. Rayan Ait Nouri is a player that falls exactly in that category.
The left-back has been one of the few positives in an abysmal season for Wolverhampton Wanderers. The team currently is in 19th, winning three, drawing five, and losing 10. However, if they are to avoid relegation, the players will need to perform far better.
Rayan Ait Nouri is a product of the famed Angers academy that, in recent times, has produced several young talents. Mohamed-Ali Cho, who now plays for Real Sociedad and Azzedine Ounahi, who shone for Morocco at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, both plied their trade at Angers.
So, who is Rayan Ait Nouri, and how good is he?
How good is Rayan Ait Nouri?
Rayan Ait Nouri was born on June 6, 2001, in Montreuil, a suburb of eastern Paris. His footballing journey started in 2009 at the local club AS Val de Fontenay. After three years, he switched to another local club ASF Le Perreux 94, where he would play till 2014. It is here where he caught the eyes of the scout of FC Paris. So Ait Nouri made the switch, and two years later, he got the big call from Angers.
He finally made his debut for the senior team on August 25, 2018, in a 3-1 loss against Paris Saint Germain. At the same time, he also got called to France’s under-18 side, where he would make seven appearances.
The next year he would make 17 appearances playing 1285 minutes and providing two assists. Then, he was sent on a season-long loan to Wolverhampton Wanderers, where he made 21 appearances, scoring one goal and providing one assist.
This was enough for Wolves to sanction a £9.8 million move to make his transfer permanent. Since then, he has been an integral part of the team making 36 appearances.
Described as a ‘wide creator’ by Soccerment, Ait Nouri is one of the best fullbacks when it comes to Expected Threats (xT).
Rayan Ait Nouri stats
Since joining Wolves, Ait Nouri has taken his game to the next level. Since he is an attacking fullback who is adept at creating chances, his dribbling numbers are brilliant. According to fbref, Ait Nouri completed 1.98 dribbles per 90 minutes in the last 365 days, putting him in the top one percentile…
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