Hachim Mastour

Casciavit wrote:Here's what Pete Acquaviva had to say when he watched him last year:

Milan spent a record fee for a player of Mastour’s age making him the most talked-about signing of the Rossoneri’s youth revolution. But that’s just a transfer. The Rossoneri are upgrading the facilities, putting tens of millions of euros into the youth system each year now, hoping to restore the glory of a youth academy that used to churn out world-class talents that need no introduction. Over the last decade or two though, the youth fell down the pecking order, and the most notable graduates of the last several years, Ignazio Abate and Luca Antonini are some of the only ones to hit the first team of Milan. Adriano Galliani says that Milan hope to come out of the Financial Fair Play era with a sustainable Milan, and that means bringing players from the youth ranks to the first team. Mastour is playing with the Allievi I/II Division, a year younger than the side he normally plays with, Pippo’s Allievi Nazionali. Even though he’s still younger than the majority of the players on the field, he towers over many of the others, whom are going through various stages of puberty.

Mastour is incredibly talented, and he knows it. Warmups began with the Brazilian warmup of two lines jogging and stretching, and shortly thereafter the groups break down into fours and these pods warm up with some passing exercises which give way to brief one on one warmups. This shows the technical ability of some of the players – the defenders opting to make a simple feint and cut, while attackers perform stepovers and more complicated moves. None try what Mastour does though, on his second attempt he successfully rainbows the ball over his teammate, cooly brings the ball down, and gets back in line. He tries the move three other times, but none looked as good as his first success.It’s a midweek friendly, and many of the more talented individuals have been called up to the Allievi Nazionali side who have an important match coming up against Chievo, the side four points ahead of third placed Milan in the table.  Nonetheless, this is a match in which the overlooked players get their chance to play, and the motivation is apparent in some. Mastour doesn’t seem particularly invigorated today though, after all, he’s just coming back from an injury. It only takes a minute, maybe two, for the opening goal. Crociata, a young Sicilian player (and probably the most motivated player on the pitch – to the point of over-exhuberance winning the ball back at any cost) is waiting on the edge of the offsides line and breaks forward with a well timed run, dribbling to the byline. He cuts back, and plays a ball right to the feet of Mastour, who from the penalty spot fakes a shot to the right, shifting the two defenders, and then shoots low and left, beating the keeper. It seemed effortless from Mastour, and this goal settled his nerves.Mastour had lost the ball the first two or three times he was in possession, prompting me to think, “Well, maybe he’s just rusty after such a long layoff..” Losing the ball seemed to motivate him though, and after his goal, Mastour began to dance. When he dribbles, he has the ball on a string. I haven’t seen someone with his sort of control since (and I don’t make this comparison lightly, Andrés Iniesta). Mastour rolls the ball, waits for the defender to mentally commit, and then glides, and I mean glides by his man, only inches away from an outstretched leg. Mastour is so confident though that he doesn’t just beat one man at a time, he takes on a defender, steps past him, then takes on another, moving the ball to places that only he can reach while bypassing player after player.

His first touch is immaculate, he always intelligently has the ball close to him, but away from the defender, close enough often so that the defender will bite and try to grab it, and by the time they decide to make their move, they’ve already been beaten. Halftime at the friendly sees the scoreline reading three to nil, and little scent of a comeback from the visitors.

M99 wrote:I think the Milan section is too easy on him, Mexes has declined to a bloody mess. Better than Zapata but still a terrible mess of a defender and player. We are doomed if he continues to be a starter.

Casciavit wrote:Tbf, Balotelli was waiting to come on before Mexes' red card. I don't think Seedorf had any plans to actually play Mastour.

PR stunt.

Forza wrote:

M99 wrote:I think the Milan section is too easy on him, Mexes has declined to a bloody mess. Better than Zapata but still a terrible mess of a defender and player. We are doomed if he continues to be a starter.

Obviously I haven't ranted about him enough lately.

Lord Spencer wrote:Hopefully Mexes gets sold, we need to save money for our Serie B campaign the season after the next.

El Shaarawy wrote:I don't know how he's going to fit in a 4-3-3 (going by the reports), maybe use him in an Iniesta-like role?

El Shaarawy wrote:Yet, why has the decision to promote him to the first team been made? Clearly the club see something in him. He's not benefitting at all on the bench week in week out. I'm not asking him to start games, poverty minutes, thats all

El Shaarawy wrote:Yet, why has the decision to promote him to the first team been made? Clearly the club see something in him. He's not benefitting at all on the bench week in week out. I'm not asking him to start games, poverty minutes, thats all