Putting the focus on those players who have had long and well-travelled careers in the game, but only made a brief stop off at Molineux.
This week, we reflect on the career of a midfielder who was expected to help keep Wolves in the Premier League back at the start of the Millennium – Hassan Kachloul.
Before Wolves
Born in Agadir, Morocco, Kachloul was raised in France and spent his early career in French football with Nimes. Having progressed out of the club’s youth set-up, the midfielder’s first season in the professional game came in the 1992/93 campaign, as he featured 17 times in the top flight.
Battling for a place in the senior side, Kachloul made his debut in a 1-1 draw with Nantes in the August, but he had to wait until the November for his second appearance. A goal in a 6-1 defeat on the road against Marseille came in the middle of a run of nice consecutive outings for his boyhood club, but with Nimes winning just three times that season, he was unable to help the team to safety.
Having dropped into the second tier, a then 20-year-old Kachloul found his footing in his second senior season, scoring 17 times in 37 games, as Nimes fell just three points short of promotion back to Ligue 1, finishing narrowly outside the top three. Another eight goals followed the subsequent season, one which will be remembered more by the midfielder for making his international debut for Morocco.
Kachloul was called up for the first time in the March of 1994 and featured for his country in their 2-1 win over Luxembourg, in which he played for the opening 45 minutes before being replaced at half-time. Two further caps would follow in 1994, as he played for Morocco in a loss to Argentina and a 1-1 draw with Canada.
After these friendlies, Kachloul was selected to be part of the Morocco squad for the 1994 World Cup in the USA, but his country were unable to get out of the group stages after defeats to Belgium, Saudi Arabia and the Netherlands, with the midfielder not getting off the bench in any of the three group stage games.
His club form earning Kachloul a move to top flight outfit Metz, however, he soon found himself back in the second tier following loan spells with Dunkerque and Saint-Etienne, either side of his one and only campaign of game time with Metz, which saw him play seven times in the 1996/97 season.
Missing out on a place in the Morocco squad for the 1998 due to a lack of playing time with Metz, Kachloul went searching for a new challenge, switching to England the following October as he was signed by Dave Jones for Southampton.
Kachloul quickly took to Premier League, with the midfielder taking just five games to make an impact on the Saints, thanks to his wining goal in a victory over Wimbledon in what was just his third start in red and white.
Wearing the number 30 shirt, the Moroccan played a key role in helping the club to Premier League survival during the festive period of 1998, scoring in successive match as Southampton claimed four points from Nottingham Forest and Charlton Athletic, before netting in a 3-0 win at home to Leeds United.
With Southampton sitting in the relegation spots for most of the season, it was up to Kachloul to find another match winner in March, as the midfielder scored to earn a vital three points at the Dell against West Ham United with the fifth goal of his debut campaign in England – which saw him finish behind Saints great Matt LeTissier in the team’s goalscoring charts.
He remained at Southampton for another two seasons where he played under Jones and Glenn Hoddle as he helped the club to 15th and 10th place finishes. Kachloul scored nine times across those two campaigns, including his first brace in a 4-2 home win against Newcastle United before starting the 2000/01 season in similar fashion by netting twice in a 2-2 draw away at Derby County on the opening day.
The midfielder notched another brace in what was to be the final game of his Saints career when he put his side back on level terms with Arsenal on the last game of the season, before Le Tissier netted an added time winner.
In the summer of 2001, following the conclusion of his Southampton contract, Kachloul moved north to join Aston Villa, despite having made a verbal agreement to join Ipswich Town before changing his mind at the last minute. Having featured in almost all of the games under John Gregory before the manager resigned in January 2002, Kachloul was frozen out of the Villa side, firstly by Graham Taylor and then by David O’Leary.
Wolves career
Having flourished under Dave Jones in his first season at the Dell, he was reunited with his former manager at Molineux in the September of 2003, joining newly promoted Wolves on an initial four-month loan, with an option to be extended, which saw the Moroccan move across the West Midlands.
On his signing, Jones said: “Hassan can play on the left or right, or in the middle. I'm really pleased to be able to strengthen the squad with a player who has plenty of Premier League experience. I know all about him from my Southampton days and am looking forward to working with him again.”
Although Jones had high hopes he could recapture Kachloul’s previous heroics which helped Saints survive in the top flight, it was not to be in the gold and black.
A mixture of injury and illness saw the then-30-year-old feature just four times for the Old Gold, however, one of those appearances happened to come in one of the most memorable games of Wolves’ first Premier League season. After making his debut late on in the 1-1 draw against Bolton Wanderers – Alex Rae’s stunning thunderbolt earning a point – and then coming off the bench against in a 1-0 home win over Manchester City, Kachloul’s first start was at Molineux against Leicester City.
Finding themselves 3-0 down at half-time, Jones needed to make a change, and it was Kachloul who was the man to make way for Kenny Miller, and the rest is history. Wolves fought back to claim a stunning victory, although the Moroccan didn’t feature again in gold and black until an eight-minute cameo in the 3-1 win over Leeds at the end of December.
🗣️ "I forgot he played for them!"
— The Premiership Years (@PremiershipYrs) February 9, 2024
#53
Hassan Kachloul played four times in the Premiership for @Wolves in 2003.#WWFC #Wolves #WolvesFC pic.twitter.com/skxfV4bUha
After Wolves
With his loan deal not extended, Kachloul returned to Aston Villa and was released at the end of his contract. After a spell as a free agent, the midfielder moved north of the border to join Livingston, where he helped the club avoid relegation thanks to his two goals in eight outings in the Scottish top flight.
Kachloul left Livingston at the end of the 2004/05 season, and after trying to get signed by Derby County following a trial later that year, he was not taken on by another club, bringing an end to his playing career.
This article originally featured in Wolves' official 2023/24 matchday programme. Last season's programmes are still available to purchase online through retailers Curtis Sports.
