“Contact with many clubs”
©IMAGO
VfB Stuttgart was not Bilal El Khannouss’ first choice last summer. “Of course the Premier League was my priority for the last transfer window. I was in contact with many clubs and I was even in advanced negotiations with some of them,” the 21-year-old revealed in an interview with “Foot MercatoUltimately, on deadline day, he initially moved to the Swabians on loan from the English first division relegated Leicester City.
El Khannouss said that it was mainly with Crystal Palace. With Newcastle United just “a little bit”. The attacking midfielder didn’t have it easy that summer. It was difficult to find a way out of Leicester. Things supposedly could have happened quickly with an exit clause. “No club wanted to pay them,” said El Khannouss. He couldn’t understand it.
He is happy that the deal with VfB came about. The club was always present. “Of course I feel very comfortable here. It’s a good club, with a good philosophy and I have a very good coach (Sebastian Hoeneß; editor) who suits me best. I had to take this step in order to develop further as a player,” said El Khannouss. The Swabians had to transfer a fee of 3 million euros to Leicester for the loan and they will probably sign him permanently at the end of the season. Most recently it was said by “Sky” that the purchase obligation applies to 20 appearances and a realistic table position for VfB (to the news). In that case, a further 20 million euros would be due.
El Khannouss immediately developed into a regular force with five goals and four assists. Only one mission is missing from the required 20 at the sixth place in the table. His market value before the upcoming Bundesliga update on December 19th is 28 million euros, which makes him the second most valuable Stuttgart professional – behind leader Angelo Stiller (45 million). Last year, the offensive player moved from KRC Genk to England for 22.5 million euros, but was unable to make a lasting impact there. In 39 appearances for the Foxes he had three goals and seven assists.