Courtesy: bbc.com

Faissal El Bakhtaoui: From futsal in France to free-scoring in Fife

It's straight from the pages of Roy of the Rovers. A 20-year-old arriving in a foreign country, unable to speak the language and trying out a sport that is alien to him.

He then goes on to great success, scoring goals for fun on a weekly basis and is idolised by the club's supporters.

Welcome to the story of Faissal El Bakhtaoui, Scotland's leading goalscorer this season.

The Morocco-born striker arrived at Dunfermline in 2012 after then manager Jim Jefferies had been tipped off about the skills of a young man spotted playing futsal in the south of France.

"My friend knows Jim Jefferies," El Bakhtaoui told BBC Scotland.
"He came to see me in a game and then asked me if I wanted to come to Scotland and play in a trial game. I said yes okay and I came over for one week. After that Jim said he wanted me and I signed a contract for two years and then another two years."

Adapting to a new country and a new form of the game on a new surface took some time.

"I didn't play much in my first year as Jim had me on the bench to give me some experience," added the 22-year-old. "It's better now playing outside. Futsal is very quick and is a good level but it is nothing like professional football."

Faisal has scored 14 goals in 11 games this season, with Dunfermline topping the UK scoring charts on 41 goals so far.

The Pars knocked Dundee out of the League Cup in August and on Tuesday they visit Tannadice attempting to oust Dundee United from the same competition.






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