Achraf Hakimi: The Full-Back Who Becomes a Forward

The right-back arrives where a forward should be

Achraf Hakimi can begin an attack beside the centre-backs and finish it beside the striker. The distance is large, but the timing matters more than the speed. If he leaves too soon, the winger loses room and Paris Saint-Germain become vulnerable behind him. If he waits too long, the defence has time to close the lane.

Hakimi reads the movement ahead. A winger moving inside can release the touchline; a striker dropping short can create a diagonal run toward goal. The full-back then becomes the extra attacker the opponent did not assign to a centre-back.

Our ranking of the best defenders in the world right now places him eighth after Paris retained the Champions League and he shared the club’s lead for assists in the competition.

Madrid began a career built across systems

Hakimi was born in Madrid to Moroccan parents and developed at Real Madrid. He reached the senior team and collected major honours, but regular minutes arrived during a two-year loan at Borussia Dortmund.

Dortmund used him as a full-back and wing-back, giving him space to accelerate and responsibility for the whole right side. Inter then signed him permanently. Antonio Conte’s wing-back system placed a centre-back behind Hakimi and encouraged him to attack the last line. Inter won Serie A in his only season.

Paris signed him in 2021. By then, Hakimi had learned the same position inside several structures: Madrid’s possession, Dortmund’s transitions, Inter’s back five and Paris’ changing balance of star forwards and collective pressing.

Speed is most damaging without the ball

Hakimi is fast while carrying the ball, but an off-ball run is harder to defend. He does not need extra touches, and the passer can release him into space before the full-back has turned.

His best runs begin outside the defender’s vision. Hakimi can stay wide, then accelerate inside when the winger receives. He can also overlap beyond the ball and deliver low toward the penalty spot. The variation prevents the opponent from guarding one route.

Finishing makes those movements more than decoys. Hakimi can shoot across goal or attack the far side when play develops from Paris’ left. A defender who reaches those positions repeatedly changes how the opposition midfield must recover.

The defensive bill still arrives

An attacking role does not remove Hakimi from the back line. When Paris lose the ball, he may have more ground to cover than any team-mate. His recovery speed can close the first gap, but the centre-backs and midfield must protect the route until he returns.

Marquinhos often slides toward the right channel. Willian Pacho then holds or narrows the centre, while a midfielder tracks the runner Hakimi has left. If one player reacts late, the space created by the attack becomes the opponent’s clearest counterattacking route.

Hakimi’s one-on-one defending is strongest when he can match the winger’s run. Crosses toward his back post remain a test, especially against taller opponents. The role therefore has an unavoidable trade-off: Paris accept some exposure because his attacking contribution changes matches.

Paris turned both sides into weapons

Nuno Mendes gives Paris similar acceleration from left-back, but the pair do not simply mirror each other. One may advance while the other remains connected to the centre-backs. On the next possession, the balance can reverse.

With Khvicha Kvaratskhelia creating from the left and mobile forwards rotating centrally, Hakimi can arrive from the less crowded side. Paris’ attack becomes difficult to map because the width may come from a winger, a full-back or both at different heights.

That collective structure was central to the Champions League wins of 2025 and 2026. Hakimi was no longer simply providing running around isolated superstars; his movement was one coordinated part of the attack.

Morocco asks him to carry more than a flank

Hakimi chose Morocco at international level and became one of the team’s public and tactical leaders. His role can begin at right-back, but Morocco also look to him for progression, set pieces and the first forward run after regaining possession.

The official Paris profile recorded him passing 100 Morocco caps during the 2026 World Cup, when the team reached the quarter-finals. The landmark reflects unusual international responsibility before the age of thirty.

Paris marked Hakimi’s 200th club appearance on April 3, 2026, with 66 combined goals and assists at that point. Those totals will move, so they need a date. The more stable conclusion is that his career has made the attacking full-back a primary chance creator rather than a supporting extra.