Mezian Mesloub Soares shines in Champions League, but Portugal edges out France

Mezian Mesloub Soares delivered a standout performance during Lens’s victory away at Slavia Prague in the Champions League, providing the decisive cross for Florian Thauvin’s equalizer. The attacking midfielder is just 16 years old.

The player’s trajectory is already striking. Last season, Pierre Sage gave him his Ligue 1 debut against Nantes on matchday 33: just seconds after coming on, he scored the goal that mathematically secured Lens’s qualification for the Champions League, condemning FC Nantes to relegation in the process. This season, after a brief appearance at Strasbourg in late August, he has now made his Champions League debut in Prague, where he looked perfectly at ease.

Born in Martigues, Mezian Mesloub Soares is eligible for three national teams. He holds French nationality and could join the Blues, for whom Zinédine Zidane is set to announce his first squad list in a week. He can also opt for Algeria, the country whose shirt his father Walid Mesloub wore seven times. But Portugal, his mother’s nationality, appears to be the favorite: the left-footer has already represented the Seleçao in U16 and U17 categories.

No definitive choice has yet been made — players can change their national team selection as long as they have not played an official match for the senior team. The question of his club future will also arise sooner or later: at barely 16 years old, Mesloub Soares is already attracting attention well beyond Ligue 1.