Rising Star Khalil Fayad Emerges as Key Player for Montpellier Ahead of Reims Clash

Khalil Fayad made headlines last summer, during a training camp in Spain, surprising Téji Savanier. "Despite his age, he carried his balls on the pitch. What he had to do, he did very well," the MHSC captain had said. The young player has been a starter in three of the club’s last four games, reports Midi Libre.

"It’s a good school to learn in difficulty, it hardens me mentally, it allows me to question myself. But it’s a good baptism of fire," says the midfielder who will play on Sunday on this La Mosson pitch in his hometown. He signed his first professional contract in March, which sparked a wave of reactions. "I took it badly because it wasn’t necessarily true everything that was said in the media. I certainly had pressure from the executives but thanks to Mr. Nicollin and Mr. Mézy, it went very well," says the player of Moroccan origin.

"I really wanted to stay in Montpellier from the first day," insists Fayad, son of Mustapha, the former semi-professional player in Morocco, who believes he has not "proven anything yet". "They say I’m a prodigy, that I arouse expectations. But it goes through the field..." supports the young player who is pursuing marketing and business studies in parallel. Fayad, courted by the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF), joined the French U19 team on Thursday, saying he had "simply refused" the Moroccan solicitations.

With his amazing technical abilities, Fayad is one of Montpellier’s greatest hopes. "Yes, I’m small (1.76m) but in modern football, you have to combine that, technique, physique and intensity," notes this fan of Zizou, Verratti and Vieira, who has the confidence of his coach Romain Pitau. The young man is very "demanding" of himself. "When I miss something, it gets me through the whole training session," he says.