Torino defender Rafik Belghali scored in a 3-2 Serie A victory at home against Monza on October 24, joining Kian Fitz-Jim and Nikola Vlašić on the scoresheet as Ignazio Abate's side secured a third consecutive league win — and did so against a Monza side managed by their former coach Ivan Juric.
The result lifts Torino to seventh in Serie A with 13 points from eight matches, a record of four wins, one draw and three defeats. Three straight victories represent a meaningful shift in the granata's season, and Belghali's contribution to that run is no longer incidental. At 24, the defender has registered one goal and three assists across six Serie A appearances this campaign, carrying an average match rating of 6.89 — numbers that place him among the more productive defenders in Abate's system.
What makes Belghali's profile interesting is the gap between his current AI overall of 65 out of 100 and a potential rated at 72. That margin suggests a player still in the process of converting raw capacity into consistent output, and the early weeks of 2026-27 offer evidence that the conversion is underway. A goal and three assists from six league starts is a return that most midfielders would accept; from a defender, it signals either an unusually advanced role in Abate's structure or an exceptional ability to arrive in dangerous positions at the right moment.
Torino's attacking numbers tell a complementary story. Thirteen goals scored in eight matches — an average of more than one and a half per game — point to a team that generates chances with regularity, and Belghali's assist tally suggests he is a recurring source of that supply. The defensive side of the ledger, eleven goals conceded, is less comfortable, but three straight wins indicate the team is currently producing more than it leaks.
The subplot of facing Juric added texture to a result that was already significant on its own terms. Torino won 3-2, and Belghali's goal was part of a performance that kept the granata moving up the table rather than consolidating in mid-table anonymity.
With Torino in form and Belghali accumulating both goals and assists at a rate that outpaces most defenders in the division, the question for Abate is how to sustain the balance — keeping Belghali's attacking influence without exposing the defensive structure that still concedes with some regularity. The next weeks will test whether this run reflects a genuine shift in the team's ceiling or a favorable run of fixtures. Belghali's numbers, at least, are pointing in one direction.