Just how far can Achraf Hakimi’s engine take him? The Moroccan full-back finished off a fine breakaway move against Seattle Sounders FC on Monday and was named the Michelob Ultra Superior Player of the Match as he helped steer his Paris Saint-Germain side to the last 16 of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025™.
After marauding down his favoured right flank, he calmly fired past Stefan Frei in the Sounders goal in the 66th minute to register his tenth strike since the start of the 2024-25 season and his first at the global extravaganza. Reaching double digits is no mean feat for a defender and speaks volumes to Hakimi’s development under Luis Enrique.
“I’m happy, I’m feeling good, I’m in great shape,” Hakimi told FIFA after his side’s final Group B encounter. “I had a wonderful season, and I certainly don’t plan to stop now. My aim is to help the team and give everything I’ve got.”
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Those ten goals – a new previous best after he netted nine for Borussia Dortmund in 2019-20 – have met 12 assists already this campaign. What’s more, he has lifted virtually every piece of silverware up for grabs, including the Ligue 1 title, the Coupe de France, the Trophée des Champions and the UEFA Champions League.
But the Atlas Lion is hungry for more and showing no signs of abating. “I’m a really ambitious player, I love winning,” he said. “I’m a competitor, I want to win all the time, even when I’m playing on the PlayStation with my friends. And I’m at PSG, where winning is expected.”
Before facing Inter Miami CF in Atlanta on Sunday with their sights set firmly on a place in the quarter-finals, the Parisians now have five full days to recuperate, which should give Hakimi the chance to recharge his batteries before raring to go again.
“I’m going to work with the fitness coaches so that I recover properly, and with the nutritionists to make sure I eat and sleep well,” explained the Moroccan international. “I’m lucky that God gave me the gift of recovering quickly and to have that ability. The team can take advantage of me in that sense.”
