Made to wait months on the sidelines for permission to make his debut for a club holding a purchase clause, and since limited to mere minutes on the field, will AC Milan regret gambling on the future of one of their brightest talents?
Just as AC Milan were grinding out a goalless draw against Atalanta in Serie A, kick off was fast approaching between La Liga sides Malaga and Real Betis. The result for the Italians would see them hold onto sixth in the league standings, while in Spain the newly-promoted Real Betis would create a six point difference over their Andalusian opponents with a win.
In excess of 23,000 supporters were in attendance at La Rosaleda, with the home crowd hoping to see a change in fortune after a dismal start to the campaign. They would have no such luck. Shortly after the hour, Ruben Castro found himself through on goal and placed his shot past Carlos Kameni. It was nothing short of a disaster for the hosts, who had had numerous chances to take the lead.
Coach Javi Garcia had to find a response. He threw on Duje Cop, who’d impressed with Cagliari last season, and the talented Portuguese youngster Ricardo Horta but neither could fashion a response. With five minutes to go, Garcia made his final roll of the dice, replacing Adnane Tighadouini with his compatriot, Hachim Mastour.
It was a competitive debut for the AC Milan loanee, who had battled with FIFA to be permitted to take to the field. Age constraints meant the transfer had not been recognised by the governing body, with Mastour still only 17 years-old. Already an immensely popular figure among video gamers and Milan supporters, his debut had been long awaited and greatly anticipated. Disappointing then that it culminated in little more than a minute-long highlight clip, where Mastour is viewed to have fouled Xavi Torres and little else.
The former Italian Under-16 international is due to spend two seasons with Malaga, with the deal involving a purchase clause but also a buyback option for the Rossoneri. It was a deal that infuriated sections of Milan supporters, who had already seen the club let go of youth product Bryan Cristante and more recently Stephan El Shaarawy. In truth, neither have set the world alight since leaving the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, which is very much the case with Mastour.
Fortunately, the career of young Mastour is still very much in its infancy. His five minutes of competitive football have not allowed us to draw any conclusions, but it’s telling that Malaga fought tooth and nail to hand the kid his senior debut so early. The owner of the La Liga side, Abdullah al-Thani, requested Mastour be signed which drew minor controversy for his interference. His senior debut for Morocco was also fast-tracked, making him their youngest ever international.
Now that Mastour has clocked some minutes for Malaga, it remains to be seen whether he’ll be integrated into the starting-eleven. Adjusting to a different country often takes some time, but the ambiguity surrounding the midfielder’s future has confused the situation. There’s nothing to suggest Mastour won’t return to Milan at some point, but the sell-on fee perhaps disguises what is effectively a delayed sale.
So have Milan ended their association with the youngster from Reggio Emilia? If so, why? There were concerns over Mastour early in his career, mostly surrounding injury bouts. Many of these periods of rehabilitation were brought on when opponents resorted to hacking Mastour in an effort to stop him, which were further compounded by a lack of physical strength. Milan spent much of the 2013-14 season trying to condition Mastour for senior football, which has certainly had an effect, as he appears bulkier and capable of holding his own.
Further concerns have arisen regarding the player’s mentality. Primavera coach Cristian Brocchi was handed the services of the teenager by Filippo Inzaghi, having not featured for the first team under the Italian. He identified key areas of improvement which mostly revolved around mental attributes, namely playing for the team and tracking back. This isn’t necessarily uncommon in players with similar traits to Mastour, but they can inhibit growth and more importantly involvement on a regular basis.
Very few players can thrive on this ‘diva’ tag, with notable exceptions being Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Cristiano Ronaldo. However, there needs to be a product to such individual brilliance, and thus far Mastour has only replicated these occasions once every blue moon. This is something that needs to change if Milan are to reinvest in the player’s future. As it stands, the career of Hachim Mastour hangs in the balance. It is vital that he makes his time with Malaga, or risk being plunged into obscurity like so many before him.
