Barcelona continued its policy of attracting young Arab talents, as it announced on Thursday its signing of Moroccan midfielder Mehdi El Moumini.

The Catalan club confirmed in an official statement on its X account that it reached an agreement with Belgian club Royal Charleroi to sign El Moumini, aged 17, without disclosing financial details or the contract duration.

Barcelona explained that El Moumini will join the under-19 team, the same team with which Egyptian striker Hamza Abd El Karim began his career with Barça, after joining from Egypt's Al Ahly a few months ago.

El Moumini is considered one of the promising names in Belgian football. He can play as a defensive midfielder, with the ability to play as a number 8, and possesses high technical skills and great ability in build-up play and passing.

Mehdi El Moumini is characterized by his tactical intelligence, distinctive vision of the game, and ability to control the tempo of the match from the pivot position. These qualities have led some to compare him to Barcelona legend Sergio Busquets, and have also attracted interest from several European clubs, most notably Dutch PSV Eindhoven, as well as a number of English Premier League clubs, led by Newcastle.

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The young player holds both Moroccan and Belgian nationalities, which gives him the right to represent one of the two national teams in the coming years.