RC Strasbourg Alsace had held their place in Ligue 1 for three straight years, and when I first wrote this they had just produced a talent who looked set for a big future. At 19, Mohamed Simakan was already a very promising defender, and this is what we saw at the time.
Player profile | Mohamed Simakan
Date of birth: May 3rd, 2000
Place of birth: Marseille
Nationality: France
Height: 187cm
Position: Right back/Centre-back
Preferred foot: Right
Who was Mohamed Simakan back then?
Simakan was the good surprise of that season in French football, especially at Strasbourg. He had started 17 times for the Alsatians, watching his surroundings, timing his tackles, and using his strength and pace to boss the game. His instinct to break forward and feed the attack stood out, and as a fringe player who was already playing beyond expectations, it was clear the bids from bigger clubs would follow.
His strengths
He had athletic qualities in the mould of Varane and Laporte. Mohamed showed maturity from the outset and an impressive perimeter of destruction against opposing attacks. He had started with an amateur licence under 19, signed an intern contract in January 2018, then a pro deal four months later. His decision making was good, and paired with his leadership he was a genuine motivator. He also ran attackers down with quick footwork and pace, and looked like the kind of defender every team wants. What I liked was how few mistakes he made for someone so raw. Plenty of teenage defenders have the physical gifts and then throw it away with a rush of blood or a lazy afternoon. Simakan already carried himself like a seasoned pro, timing his interventions rather than lunging, and that composure is usually the hardest thing to find in a young centre-back.
His weaknesses
Some full-backs are blessed with a long-range shot, and that was one thing Mohamed lacked. His vision under pressure was another gap: he did not always find a teammate when opponents pressed him hard. Off the pitch, the young man of Guinean origin admitted to spells when he thought his luck had run out, but his family carried him through. That included his brother, a certain Ismael Bangoura, former forward of Le Mans (2005-2007) and Rennes (09-10).
He was young enough for all of that to improve, and I expected the senior call-ups and the bids from bigger clubs to arrive in time.
What we saw that season
Mohamed had appeared in 19 of 24 matches, starting 17. At 19 he was already a huge asset for Strasbourg's line-up. We had seen nothing from him the previous season, when he was working up through Strasbourg B, but he hit the ground running with the first team after signing his full professional contract in the summer of 2019.
It was a mega debut season in Ligue 1. His story was one we loved: he flew under the radar in the youth ranks yet overperformed at every level, going from Air Bel U-19 to Strasbourg B to the first team in three years. That is a huge jump in a short time, and it said everything about his talent.
What convinced me most was how he handled the step up. Being thrown into senior football at 19 rattles a lot of players, and it did not touch him. If anything he looked like he welcomed the pressure. That is the trait I always came back to when scouting a young defender, because you can coach positioning and timing, but you cannot easily coach a player into enjoying the hard afternoons. For me he was already a first-XI pick and a genuine joy to watch, and I said as much at the time.
Where is he now
This is one prediction I got right, mostly. I was sure the bids would come, and they did. Simakan stayed at Strasbourg for one full Ligue 1 season and then moved to Germany with RB Leipzig, where he spent three strong Bundesliga campaigns as a regular. From there he made the switch to Saudi Arabia with Al-Nassr, where he has been a fixture ever since. I called Monaco as his next stop and missed on the destination, but the trajectory, a talented teenager climbing to a bigger stage, was exactly as billed.
For the record, my old shortlist of possible landing spots ran through England with Leicester and Spain with Valencia or Villarreal. He beat every one of them by heading to the Bundesliga and then the Saudi Pro League instead.
The table underneath tells the story of a player who kept starting week in, week out. Three Bundesliga seasons at Leipzig with the appearance count climbing towards a full 32-game campaign is exactly the consistency you want from a defender who is supposed to be the base of the team. The one-game 2024/25 Leipzig line is simply the front end of his move to Al-Nassr mid-season, where he has slotted straight in and even started chipping in with the odd goal. He never became the long-range shooter I flagged as a gap, but the athletic, front-foot centre-back and full-back I compared to Varane and Laporte is broadly the player he turned into. The move to Saudi Arabia will divide opinion, and some will read it as a step off the elite European track rather than onto it. From where I sit, it is still a defender who backed himself at every stage and kept being trusted with a starting shirt, which is the truest measure of the potential I saw in that teenager at Strasbourg.
| Season | Club | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020/21 | Strasbourg | 19 | 1 |
| 2021/22 | RB Leipzig | 28 | 1 |
| 2022/23 | RB Leipzig | 24 | 1 |
| 2023/24 | RB Leipzig | 32 | 2 |
| 2024/25 | RB Leipzig | 1 | 0 |
| 2024/25 | Al-Nassr | 26 | 1 |
| 2025/26 | Al-Nassr | 28 | 3 |
His early transfer record is on Transfermarkt. For his current ratings and form, see our scout report on Mohamed Simakan.
