Charles De Ketelaere, a high-calibre player who will face Barça

192 centimetres tall and with immense quality in his left foot. This is Charles de Ketelaere, a 23-year-old Belgian footballer trained in the Club Brugge youth academy. He was signed by Milan in 2022 for 37.5 million euros, but his time at the Rossoneri team did not work out: 40 games, 0 goals, 1 assist. He went on loan to Atalanta and, after a season, La Dea and the player himself realised that he had found his place, so they opted for a transfer. Now he is the third highest scorer (11) and the one who gives the most assists to his teammates (10).

However, he is much more than those figures. He rose to fame after a great performance with Brugge on the first day of the Champions League in 2021, against PSG. He did what he wanted with Marquinhos and Kimpembe, who were in charge of suffering him. In attack, he can play in any position. In fact, from pivot forward, he has been placed in all positions. Where he has played the most is at the top of the attack, although he is far from being a pure '9'. His second area of ​​action is as an attacking midfielder. He scores goals, assists and dribbles.

The Belgian Thomas Müller?

His physique and his game, as well as his work areas, remind us of Thomas Müller. Or rather, a more modern version of the German. De Ketelaere is left-footed, although he also has no qualms about bringing out his supposed 'bad leg'. These are those footballers with a different rhythm, who know how to manage the tempo of the game as soon as they receive the ball. Another of his great qualities is short dribbling. He is a true specialist in body feints. He has exquisite ball control and great vision of the game, so he has given 21 assists in 81 matches with the Bergamo team. In addition, like the Bayern midfielder, he has a powerful header, thanks to his great height.

He is still in the maturation phase, although he looks very good. He was a great player in Belgium and Milan went for him. Perhaps it was the weight of the Rossoneri shirt, but he was not able to bring out his talent. The historic club had no patience with him and, for fear of losing a lot of money, sold him to Atalanta for 22.70 million euros after a good first season on loan. Now, at La Dea, he is being a key figure in the Champions League with 4 goals and 5 assists in 7 games. He completes almost 2 dribbles per game and wins more than half of the duels he plays.

Charles De Ketelaere is established in Gian Piero Gasperini's plans although, at times, he is not in the starting line-up. His starting position this Wednesday against FC Barcelona is practically guaranteed. Given the injury to Ademola Lookman, it is very likely that the Belgian will accompany Retegui in attack, acting as a second striker. Therefore, the FC Barcelona defenders will have to keep their eyes peeled, because this player is very dangerous.