Fiorentina's Sofyan Amrabat flattered by Barcelona, Atletico Madrid interest

The 26-year-old has caught the eye of top clubs around Europe with a string of dynamic performances at the World Cup to help Morocco reach the semi-finals, becoming the first-ever African team to do so.

Amrabat has played every minute for the Atlas Lions at the Qatar tournament so far, although Morocco suffered semi-final heartache in a 2-0 defeat to France on Wednesday evening.

Nevertheless, Amrabat will be expected to start when Walid Regragui's men face off against Croatia in Saturday's third-placed playoff, and he could be the subject of significant transfer interest in January.

When asked by reporters about links with the likes of Atletico and Barcelona, Amrabat reiterated his love for Fiorentina but claimed that he was a fan of Diego Simeone's tactics.

"I'm proud to be linked to top clubs like Barcelona and Atletico. But I'm a Fiorentina player, I respect the club and I have a great relationship with the president," Amrabat said. "We have a good coach at Fiorentina too but...yes, I like Cholo's style."

Amrabat was rumoured to have been on the radar of Tottenham Hotspur during the summer transfer window, but the Lilywhites opted to sign Yves Bissouma from Brighton & Hove Albion instead.

The former Hellas Verona man helped Fiorentina reach the Europa Conference League with a seventh-placed finish in Serie A last season, and his form is also believed to have attracted the attention of Liverpool.

Jurgen Klopp has already held one meeting with Amrabat's entourage, according to journalist Аnas Bakhkhar, and the two parties are supposedly planning to touch base again after the World Cup.

"Liverpool's coach Jurgen Klopp has met the agent of Sofyan Amrabat, we can also mention that his brother, Nordin Amrabat, who has been working on his brother's career for a long time now, was also there and they both met with the coach," Bakhkhar told Empire of the Kop.

"It was a very good meeting, it was positive and they will be meeting a few days after the end of the World Cup to see if the interest is the same for Jurgen Klopp.

"After his performances in Qatar, the interest shouldn't change and there will be other meetings to see the demands of Fiorentina, also the demands of his agent - to see if that transfer will go ahead or not."

Amrabat is under contract at Fiorentina until the summer of 2024 with the option of a further year, and he has one goal under his belt from 78 appearances in a Viola shirt.

The Moroccan's brother Nordin Amrabat has also urged Paris Saint-Germain to enter the race, but it is unclear if the French champions have any interest in a deal.