The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Pars fans ready to savour forward El Bakhtaoui’s qualities all over again
Allan Johnston is convinced Faissal El Bakhtaoui will become a firm fans’ favourite all over again at Dunfermline this season.
The striker rejoined the Pars on a season-long loan from Dundee after leaving two years ago to move to Dens Park.
The Frenchman shot to prominence after being plucked from the obscurity of futsal football in his home country and played nearly 100 games for the club before leaving in 2016.
He netted twice on his second debut for the Fifers in last week’s 7-1 thrashing of Brechin City in the Betfred Cup and will be expected to spearhead the attack in Saturday’s Championship opener away to Dundee United.
Johnston is thrilled to have been able to add the 25-year-old to his squad for the coming campaign.
He said: “You can see the quality he’s got.
“He has looked electric – some of his touches, his workrate, everything.
“That’s the type of quality we were trying to bring in and that’s why we were delighted to get him on board.
“He is a fans’ favourite.
“He is playing as a striker, that is where he wants to play. You can see that he is a goal threat, he’s looking to get shots away continually.”
El Bakhtaoui is one of 10 players signed by Dunfermline this summer.
They have begun the competitive action in impressive form, defeating Dundee on their way to a 100% record in the Betfred Cup group stage.
They now face a difficult proposition this weekend as they head for Tannadice to take on a Dundee United squad boasting even more summer arrivals.
However, Johnston is hopeful his new recruits can gel the quickest as he seeks a positive start in the league.
He added: “It’s always going to take time, but you know they’re good players. You wouldn’t sign them in the first place if you didn’t think they were good players.
“It does take a wee bit of time to get to know each other, but they’ve bonded really well and I think there’s a really good atmosphere in the dressing room amongst the players.
“So, we’ve just got to make sure we continue the standards we’ve set already this season.”