YOUSSOUF FOFANA: FOCUS AND FUN FACTS | OneFootball

And on the sixth day, God created Fofana. The fourth reinforcement of the Rossoneri summer window has arrived, French midfielder Youssouf Fofana joins the squad. Born in Paris in 1999, he came to us from Monaco in League 1. The squad is a historic source of talent and, in the case of Youssouf, finished off the work started in the previous season with Strasbourg. Aside from his technical and physical skills, the footballing and personal story of Fofana is something to be told.

He began to play football in the youth sector of two different Paris sides, Espérance Paris and Red Star, before drawing the attention of the Clairefontaine National Football Centre, the French National team academy. Whilst all the young talents from there would go on to be chosen by top clubs in France and Europe, he ended his time at Clairefontaine in 2014 with no contract. What could have been the end of his career became a jumping off point. Youssouf started again on the outskirts of Paris, at Drancy, and after two years he caught the eye of the Strasbourg youth sector, who offered him a contract. After making five appearances for Racing Strasbourg B, he made a move to the senior side and debuted in Ligue 1 on 24 August 2018 against Lyon. His first goal came against Monaco, the side he would then join in January 2020.

He became a cornerstone of the Monaco side, totalling 175 appearances and seven goals, and earned himself a call-up to Deschamps' French National team in September 2022. He was called up for the World Cup in Qatar, making six appearances in the seven games, and for Euro 2024. The characteristics that he has shown so far in his career show him to be a tireless, intense and very physically strong player (185 cm tall and weighing in at 75 kg), capable of covering the defence and surprising in build-up play. This versatility is confirmed by the statistics: last season, he was the best Monaco player for defensive recoveries (230), attempted passes (1149) and completed passes (894) in the opposition half.

DRANCY AND THE PIZZERIA When he had to leave Clairefontaine in 2014, he returned to Paris and kept playing football for fun. In the meantime, to pay for his studies, he worked in a pizzeria in the French capital in the evenings after training with Drancy in the afternoons.

CHOOSING A NATIONAL TEAM Fofana, as mentioned, was born in Paris in 1999 and chose to represent France rather than his parents' native countries, Mali and Ivory Coast.

OF THE SAME NAME Youssouf joins AC Milan from Monaco where Youssouf Falikou Fofana also played, they share a name but are of no relation. Born in 1966, he also played for Cannes, Bordeaux and Karşıyaka, and differnet to our Fofana, chose to represent Ivory Coast on an international level.

THE NUMBER 29 From Monaco to Les Blues, he has most often wore the 19 or 22 shirts, occupied by Theo and Emerson Royal at AC Milan. So he chose the 29, a new number for him but one with great heritage: Alessandro Costacurta (1995/96), Pietro Vierchowod (1996/97). The last players to wear this number were Gabriel Paletta and Lorenzo Colombo.

THOSE BORN IN '99 Youssouf expands the number of players in the Rossoneri squad who were born in 1999: the others are Matteo Gabbia, Tommaso Pobega, Alexis Saelemaekers, Samuel Chukwueze, Rafael Leão and Emerson Royal, who was born on 14 January 1999, just four days after Fofana, 10 January 1999.

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