AC Milan fully intend to continue with their line of investing in young talent that can grow and become part of a future core, with Assan Ouédraogo on their list of targets.
La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below) writes that the victory against PSG in which Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Rafa Leao, Malick Thiaw, Fikayo Tomori and Tijjani Reijnders all shone is an affirmation that Milan’s vision can work on the biggest stage.
They are all young talents (some more than others) chosen from around Europe after extensive scouting, forming an international team which has an Italian captain but a global soul.
Both Milan and their rivals Inter are keen on Assan Ouédraogo who is 17 years of age and currently plays for Schalke 04 in the 2. Bundesliga. Geoffrey Moncada has been following Ouédraogo since he was 15 and believes he is a complete, physical midfielder, capable of doing various things on the pitch.
Inter have been following Ouédraogo for less time but have the same idea: there are few 2006-born players with his ability to be effective already now and with such a high potential. RB Leipzig, Bayern Munich and clubs in England are also monitoring his growth.
Ouédraogo will soon leave for the Under 17 World Cup in Indonesia with Germany’s first match on Sunday. He has missed the last few games due to an injury and Schalke has warned the federation to take it easy.
His story is reminiscent of that of Malick Thiaw, who played for Schalke in the second tier and at Milan proved that he belonged to this level of football. Assan is younger, he would like to finish the season (and his education) in Germany and doesn’t want to leave Schalke anytime soon.
So, a move in June with Milan and Inter in the front row is possible because he will be available for purchase simply by paying the €12m release clause, but Schalke could offer him a pro contract.
What position does he play in?
Does Inter ever have their own targets or do they simply go after the players that other clubs pursue?
A player in demand by inter most possessed physicality and must be good. Likely Inter will get him