Maghnes Akliouche is set to leave Monaco for Paris Saint-Germain, ending speculation that had also linked the 24-year-old with a move to Liverpool. To understand why two of Europe's most ambitious clubs were chasing the same winger, you need to look beyond the highlights reel.

A pressing monster with a creative edge

Monaco coach Sebastien Pocognoli gave the clearest explanation of Akliouche's appeal back in March, praising the forward after a performance against Lyon in which he scored an equaliser and won a decisive penalty. "If you have a player like that who puts in so much defensive effort — not just tracking back but also pushing forward since he is the one who wins back the most balls high up the pitch in Ligue 1 — it means he is an atypical and modern player," Pocognoli said.

That assessment is backed up by the numbers. Akliouche finished last season ranked third for possessions won in the final third of the pitch — a statistic that caught the attention of Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola, who demands the same relentless high press that Luis Enrique has built his PSG side around.

What his former technical coach saw every day

Abel Lorincz, who served as Monaco's technical coach under both Adi Hutter and Pocognoli, watched Akliouche develop across that period and says his work rate was no surprise to those inside the club. "He is a really good pressing player," Lorincz tells Sky Sports. "He really shined in Adi's system. High energy, high pressing, lots of intensive actions."

Lorincz is equally emphatic about the technical side. "He has amazing technical ability but he also has really high game intelligence," he says. The coach places Akliouche among a rare category of players who contribute to their own development in ways coaches do not always anticipate. "They come up with solutions in games that maybe you did not think of as a coach."

Goals, variety, and the weaker foot

Akliouche's goal record at Monaco illustrates the breadth of his finishing. His overhead kick against Rennes stands out for its acrobatic quality, while a composed finish against Brest — chipping the goalkeeper — showed an entirely different skill set. Of his 18 Ligue 1 goals, five were scored with his weaker right foot, a detail that underlines how difficult he is to defend against.

Set-pieces, coachability, and the World Cup

Lorincz also highlighted a less obvious dimension of Akliouche's game: his effectiveness from set-pieces. Despite his slender build, the winger was regularly assigned to block for Eric Dier at attacking set-pieces — a role he carried out with consistency. "Even though he is not a particularly big player, he was able to deal with some players who were bigger than him, and that is a testament to his intelligence," Lorincz says.

That intelligence extends to how quickly he absorbs tactical information, something Lorincz describes as rare in attacking players of his type. "He is a really coachable player," the coach emphasises. "Sometimes, when you say something at half-time, you are not sure the players will remember in the second half. But he always followed the instructions and did it."

Akliouche also featured for France at the World Cup this summer, earning minutes off the bench in Didier Deschamps's squad — an experience Lorincz believes will sharpen him further. "If you are in that France squad and Didier Deschamps takes you to the World Cup, it is for a reason," he says. "One hundred per cent. He is a really big talent."

A new challenge at Parc des Princes

The move to PSG will reunite Akliouche with a stadium where he has already left a mark — he scored the opening goal in each of Monaco's two consecutive visits to the Parc des Princes earlier this year. Now Luis Enrique, the only manager to have won the UEFA Champions League three times in the current era of club football, will look to harness those qualities on a larger stage. For Akliouche, the biggest games are still ahead.