Medhi Amine El Mouttaqi Benatia is a Moroccan footballer who plays for Italian club Juventus, and for the Morocco national team, as a centre back.
A tall, large, strong, and athletic defender, with good technique, ball-playing ability, defensive skills, and an ability to organise his defence, in recent years Benatia has earned a reputation as one of the best centre-backs in Serie A; he is known in particular for his tackling and ability in the air.
He began his career at Marseille, spending his time loaned out to Tours and Lorient before joining Clermont in 2008. Two years later he joined Udinese, spending three seasons there before transferring to Roma. After helping them finish as Serie A runners-up in his only campaign there, he was signed by Bayern Munich for €26 million, winning the Bundesliga in both of his seasons. In 2016 he moved to Juventus, initially on loan, and was later signed permanentaly by the club in 2017.
Born and raised in France, Benatia represents his father's Morocco at international level. He made his international debut for them in 2008 and represented the nation at three Africa Cup of Nations tournaments, totalling over 50 caps. |
