He got his big break only five years ago when Amiens snapped him up from the depths of French football.
In February 2015 he moved to Maritimo and scored seven goals in the second half of his first season in Portugal.
After another six months there, he was transferred to Porto and sent on loan to Vitoria, before retaining his place in the Porto first team this campaign.
Marega made his Mali debut in 2015 but has scored just one goal in 13 appearances so far.
He boasts 14 league goals for Porto this term, with three assists, and is averaging a goal every 95 minutes of action.
Why do Chelsea want Marega?
Chelsea are reportedly in for Marega - and it is clear why.
Antonio Conte has lost confidence in Michy Batshuayi providing an adequate back-up for Alvaro Morata.
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Moussa Marega impressed at Maritimo to get his move to Porto
And the manager is therefore chasing a new striking option.
Marega would supposedly act as suitable cover for Morata, who has blown hot and cold at Chelsea since his £60m move from Real Madrid in the summer.
Ditching Batshuayi, who cost £32m two years ago, would be a pricey blow for the Blues.
But Conte appears happy to start the Belgian in cup games and nothing more.
Why do Man Utd want Marega?
Manchester United’s link may seem a little less obvious - but Jose Mourinho may be sweating over his forward reserves.
In the summer Mourinho insisted he didn’t need a new forward as Zlatan Ibrahimovic would be returning to compete with Romelu Lukaku for a place up front.
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Moussa Marega (left) got his big break at Amiens
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Porto star Moussa Marega demonstrates skills on pitch
But Ibrahimovic’s recovery from a knee injury has been fraught by setbacks and the striker is yet to look back to his best.
He is also out of contract at the end of the season.
Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford are not trusted to lead the line every week.
And that means Marega could be parachuted in to provide a greater threat up front.