GdS: Özek could bring club-first mentality to Milan after ‘learning from the best’

Devin Özek is one of the latest names to be put forward for AC Milan and a little insight into him has been given this morning. 

With the number of names linked to the different Milan jobs, it is easy to get lost in the background of each. After all, there are so many profiles linked to so many jobs.

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Özek is one of the newer names thrown into the mixer and it seems that he could join alongside Markus Krösche. However, reports suggest that the German would prefer to bring Timmo Hardung.

Ozek learnt from the best

Nevertheless, Özek remains a strong option. At 31 years old, he is one of the more interesting names linked to the club, having most recently worked with Fenerbahce as their technical director, as Gazzetta dello Sport writes.

However, his role in this world began with Bayer Leverkusen in 2015, when he sent an email stating there were a few players of interest in the youth academy. The now-CEO of the club, Simon Rolfes, was impressed by that and that is where the story began. Hence, the suggestions that he has ‘learned from the best’.

From there, he rose to working as an analyst with the first team before eventually stepping into a more senior role. Like Rolfes, he is of the belief that the club decide the identity, not the manager.

Indeed, it should be them that highlights players for a system they want to build, rather than managers leading in the mercato. With a fantastic record with negotiations, too, he could bring high-level players to the Rossoneri if appointed; look at Alex Grimaldo and Ederson, who he brought to Leverkusen and Fenerbahce, respectively.