Name: Antef Tsoungui
Club: Brighton & Hove Albion
Date of Birth: 30 December 2002
Position: Centre-back/Full-back/Defensive midfielder
Antef Tsoungui - his career so far
Antef Tsoungui is one of the most talented youngsters Brighton & Hove Albion have in their academy at the very moment. The 17-year-old defender is still very much developing and gaining experience before he can make a big step up but despite his young age, he’s already managed to turn some heads with his talent and potential.
But he is not a Brighton born and bred, however, as the now 17-year-old lad was born over in Brussels and then moved to England at the age of four, soon stepping into the world of football and playing for the Chelsea youth until 2018 when he was scouted and scooped up by his current club.
He spent six years playing for the Blues and managed to rise through the ranks, eventually playing for the U14s before swapping shirts and donning another shade of blue and white after he was released from Chelsea’s academy.
Now, he can boast with appearances both for Brighton’s U18 and U23 squads, featuring mostly for the former one as he recorded 19 games to date, obviously with no goals or assists since he is primarily a defensive player.
But his skill and rapid development also gave him a chance to feature for the older team seven times, netting one assist to his name in the process as well.
As of yet, however, he hasn’t been given a chance to compete or make his debut with the senior team under Graham Potter but the upper hierarchy has seemingly been impressed with his development and that could boast well for the 17-year-old who is still very much on the path to stardom. If he can keep progressing in the same manner, that is.
We’ll have to wait and see what the future holds for the young defender.
Transfer latest
At the moment, there are no transfer news or transfer rumours connecting the young defender with a move away from the club and while that may be a relief for Brighton, there are also no indications he may be given a new contract.
There hasn’t been any Brighton news on that front since Tsoungui was signed back in the summer of 2018 and it will be interesting to see how his immediate future shapes up. Currently, he’s still registered in the youth ranks for their U18 squad but has the potential to eventually move up in the world.
Of course, once that happens and once the youngster actually gets the opportunity to further impress Potter, either through training or playing for the seniors, we can then start expecting more transfer rumours to pile up.
Until that moment, he’s definitely one to keep a close eye on.
Player profile
As is the case with most U18 players with limited exposure to any kind of first-team action, be it with their parent club or while on loan, there’s not much data available on their young careers so far.
But Tsoungui is already well known for his versatility as the 17-year-old can slot into various different positions on the pitch. Of course, he is most comfortable playing at centre-back but can also be deployed wider, as a defensive full-back, and also has the ability to slot further up the pitch and be the team’s defensive midfielder.
He’s also known for his stylish way of playing, often driving forward with the ball glued to his feet and then sending it to his teammates in the more advanced zones on the pitch, making him perfect for a pivot role in the future.
Not to mention that he made 2.57 dribbles per 90 minutes in 2019/20 with a 50% success rate and sent out 6.63 passes into the final third with 64.5% accuracy.
The future definitely looks bright but it will be up to him to continue developing so he can slot right into the first-team in the near future.