Scouting AC Milan's Next Potential Superstar Signing Franck Kessie
While they may not be giants of Serie A, Atalanta have a wonderful record when it comes to producing footballing talent. Located just over 50 kilometres north-east of Milan within the region of Lombardy, La Dea have historically been responsible for the development of some of calcio’s finest players.
Iconic Juventus libero Gaetano Scirea came through the club’s youth academy, as did winger Angelo Domenghini, who was integral to the great Inter Milan side of the 1960s.
AC Milan have also benefited from Atalanta’s nurturing qualities.
Roberto Donadoni, a legendary winger within Arrigo Sacchi and Fabio Capello’s dominant Milan sides of the late-1980s and early-1990s, began his professional career in Bergamo, and more recently Riccardo Montolivo and Giacomo Bonaventura did the same.
This season has seen the emergence of another young star to graduate from Atalanta’s primavera in Ivorian midfielder Franck Kessie. With four goals and one assist in six league appearances so far this term, he has quickly established himself as one of Serie A’s most exciting rising stars.
And, at just 19 years of age, it isn’t hard to imagine that he could be the next player to successfully move on to bigger things having come off his current club’s illustrious production line.
From Ivory Coast to Atalanta
Having emerged in his home country with Stella Club in Abidjan, Kessie was already a full Ivory Coast international by the time he joined Atalanta on loan in January 2015, having made his debut for the national team against Sierra Leone in 2014 as a 17-year-old.
Six months after arriving in Italy, he was signed permanently for the relatively small fee of £255,000, per Transfermarkt.co.uk. However, he was loaned to Serie B outfit Cesena for the 2015-16 campaign. It was there, far away from the spotlight of Italian football’s top tier, where he would solidify his status as a budding star under the watchful eye of Massimo Drago.
Drago has a fine reputation for moulding Serie A youths into first-team players. During his three-year spell as Crotone coach, he oversaw the development of AS Roma’s Alessandro Florenzi, Fiorentina’s Federico Bernardeschi, Villarreal’s Nicola Sansone and Lazio’s Danilo Cataldi. Since playing for Drago, the former three have all been capped by the Italy national team, while the latter has become a regular for the under-21s.
The coach’s first decision regarding Kessie was an important one. The Ivorian teenager arrived as a central defender, but Drago saw him as being better suited to central midfield. The youngster would thrive in his new position, forming a strong partnership with 21-year-old playmaker Stefano Sensi, who has since signed for Sassuolo.
After making 37 league appearances for Cesena, scoring four goals and setting up two, he returned to Atalanta over the summer fully prepared for the challenge of regular action in Serie A. And thus far, his form has exploded since stepping up divisions.
He scored twice in his side’s opening-day 4-3 defeat at home to Lazio before adding to his tally with one strike in each of the following two games, a 2-1 loss to Sampdoria and a win by the same scoreline over Torino.
In his most recent outing, he set up the third goal as Atalanta beat Crotone 3-1. His individual displays have earned him an average rating of 7.20, making him La Dea’s second-best player so far, according to WhoScored.com.
Perhaps inevitably, Kessie’s performances have led to ongoing speculation about his future, something only fuelled by the words of his agent, who told Goal's Chris Wheatley: “They [Arsenal] were here in Italy to watch him. Arsenal are a good team but there are a lot of teams interested in him so they’re not the only possible destination.”
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t Football Italia), Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City and Italian champions Juventus are among the other parties believed to be interested in signing the player, with the latter reportedly willing to pay €10 million (£8.6 million) to secure his signature.
In their hunt to add quality to their midfield, Milan may wish to pursue Kessie in future. However, if this does turn out to be the case, it seems that they had better be prepared to join an ever-lengthening queue.
The Gasperini influence
Milan may only be further encouraged by the fact that the midfielder will spend this season training under Gian Piero Gasperini. While in charge at Genoa, the Atalanta manager put the finishing touches on a number of players who went on to feature heavily for the Rossoneri, including 21-year-old forward M’Baye Niang and 22-year-old winger Suso.
Gasperini’s unique tactical demands are not easily understood, with his fluid 3-4-3 shape and rigorous man-marking approach testing each player’s decision-making and endurance, though he thinks highly of Kessie.
Speaking to the press (h/t Football Italia) after Atalanta’s win over Torino, Gasperini said: “He [Kessie] is a boy who last year in Serie B had an important season. This year when he joined up with us, we saw immediately that he had quality.”
Kessie’s ability to transition seamlessly into Gasperini’s setup has been aided by his good football brain, imposing physique and technical assuredness. In the below image, his defensive positioning is shown, as he tracks his man in order to prevent Palermo’s left-back from building safe possession.
The Ivorian is also aware of when to move up to apply pressure. As depicted in the graphic below, he pushes up to ensure that when Crotone’s No. 8 receives the ball from his central-defensive team-mate, he is immediately under duress. In this situation, Kessie would go on to win the ball and start a counter-attack in a dangerous area for his team.
He also uses his power and athleticism effectively in the attacking phase. Below, he encourages pressure from his marker before using his body positioning and strength to resist. He then plays a one-two with his defensive team-mate to create space for himself.
In addition, Kessie is an astute passer, something highlighted in the following image. Here, he spots the position of an Atalanta attacker and, anticipating his team-mate's run, plays a penetrative through ball into the penalty box, creating a scoring opportunity in the process.
Would he fit Milan?
Currently, the centre of midfield is an area of concern for Milan. While Bonaventura’s repurposing in a deeper role has brought added creativity to this compartment of the team, doubts remain over the quality of his colleagues.
Juraj Kucka, while strong, is not particularly good on the ball; his best method for advancement is simply to take players on in one-on-one duels where his physicality and energy can win out. And his possible replacements, namely Andrea Poli and Andrea Bertolacci, are far from inspiring.
Jose Sosa, signed from Besiktas over the summer, could have the desired finesse, though at 31 and having been deployed in a more advanced role throughout much of his career, he doesn’t offer certainty. He also lacks the sheer athleticism necessary to perform a box-to-box role.
Kessie possesses the intelligence and athletic traits to play for Milan in this particular position within Vincenzo Montella’s 4-3-3 system. An attentive marker with sound positioning in the defensive phase, he also brings pace, directness and penetrative passing to attacks.
Potent in the final third, composed in possession and willing to work, he is—for all intents and purposes—a younger and technically sounder Kucka.
Come the January transfer window, Milan will likely be looking to bolster their midfield ranks. When that time comes, Kessie could be just the man they need to take up their box-to-box role.
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