Kamara has been a cornerstone of Jorge Sampaoli's Marseille, who have been Paris Saint-Germain's nearest challengers for most of the current Ligue 1 Uber Eats campaign.

A 22-year-old defensive midfielder who can also line up at centre-back, Kamara has long been attracting admiring glances from some of Europe's biggest clubs, and an international tug-of-war is now underway for his services.

Back story:

Born in Marseille to a Corsican mother and Senegalese father in November 1999, Kamara began attending the Orange Vélodrome as a fan in his infancy and joined OM's fabled youth academy at the tender age of five.

He raced through les Phocéens' age group teams, captaining their Under-19s to the Coupe Gambardella final in 2017, and four months later he became the club's youngest ever European debutant, helping the senior team to a 1-0 win over Konyaspor in the UEFA Europa League at the age of 17 years, nine months and 23 days.

Five seasons on and Kamara has already racked up 162 appearances in all competitions for Marseille whilst still being eligible for under-21 football. He has also turned out 48 times for France up to that level...

Style of play:

A physically robust 6'-tall midfielder, Kamara doesn't have to rely on his physical attributes to snuff out opposition attacks, his reading of the game and anticipation helping him make most tackles look like interceptions.

In possession, his pass completion of 91 percent puts him in the 94th percentile of players league-wide, making it little wonder that his move from centre-back to defensive midfielder has become all but a full-time one under Sampaoli.

Current campaign:

Kamara started Marseille's opening day 3-2 win at Montpellier Hérault SC and has remained a Sampaoli favourite throughout the campaign, which is no mean feat given the Argentine's predilection for changing his starting XI, and indeed formations, from one game to the next.

Only club captain Dimitri Payet and Arsenal loanees William Saliba and Mattéo Guendouzi have played more minutes among outfield players, and Kamara is a huge part of the reason that Marseille are the last French team in Europe this season and will be finding themselves playing UEFA Champions League football next.

Watch: Kamara scores in Marseille's 4-1 win over Lorient in Round 10

What they said:

"He has an excellent heading game, great positional intelligence and a very developed sense of anticipation. Boubacar knows how to read and anticipate opposing runs and balls in behind. Then, technically, he knows how to do everything with the ball. The calm he displays is extraordinary. It's beneficial to him but also gives confidence to his teammates. He has the ability to create gaps and break the lines through the pass."

- Kamara's former academy coach Jacques Abardonado waxing lyrical.

"It's true that the rumours could send me left and right everyday, but I'm lucky to be well-surrounded, to have my family by my side, my friends, my wife and now a second child. So as soon as I come home I'm able to disconnect from football. It's up to me to stay focused on the pitch, not to think about the rumours to be able to give my all to the team to help it achieve its objectives of qualifying for the Champions League."

- Kamara on recent links to Manchester United among others.