The path to superstardom via Salzburg is a well trodden one. Erling Haaland, Dominik Szoboszlai and Patson Daka all plied their trade for the Austrian side before securing Premier League moves at one stage or another, while Benjamin Sesko and Karim Adeyemi have both made high profile moves to the Bundesliga in the last 12 months.
Salzburg are now set to lose another striker, with AC Milan all but set to wrap up the signing of Swiss youngster Noah Okafor. The 23-year-old netted three times in the Champions League last season, and hit the back of the net seven times in the Austrian Bundesliga as Salzburg eased to yet another title.
While he registered just 996 minutes of league action, with injuries hindering his impact, Okafor still maximised his time on the pitch to play his part in Salzburg's domestic triumph. Arsenal had been credited with an interest in the versatile forward earlier this year, but the addition of Kai Havertz and rumoured pursuit of Ajax man Mohammed Kudus all but ended their chase for the Switzerland international.
As such, that left AC Milan with a free run at Okafor, and it's one they have capitalised upon. The Rossoneri were able to take a much closer look at the Salzburg man in the Champions League last season having faced the Austrian side in the group stages. The pair played out a 1-1 draw in gameweek one, with Okafor getting on the scoresheet midway through the first half.
The goal saw Okafor tie Pierre Kalulu in a knot before tucking an effort under Mike Maignan, having been played in down the left by Fernando. It's in this left channel where Okafor operates best. While the frontman is a versatile performer, even when he does lead the charge, there is a willingness to pull to this flank and run at the right-back at right centre-back. This does, though, pose an issue for AC Milan.
👀 Noah Okafor was dispossessed 2.8 times per game in the Champions League; the fourth most of any player in the competition last season pic.twitter.com/uBz5sL9eVd
— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) July 21, 2023
That starting left wing spot belongs to Rafael Leao and having scored 15 times and provided eight assists for Stefano Pioli's side last season, the Portugal international won't be relinquishing his starting position anytime soon. The addition of Christian Pulisic means AC Milan have ample options on this side, but there is the potential for Okafor and Leao to work well together down that left.
Whereas Okafor has a tendancy to drift wide, Leao's best work comes when he gets on the ball and cuts infield. Of the 24-year-old's 15 league goals last season, 10 of them came with his right foot as he maximised a statistically calculated WhoScored style of play of 'likes to cut inside'.
Combined with Okafor's intelligent off-the-ball movement, which in itself would drag markers out of position, this would free up space for Leao to drive forward into and maximise his wand of a right foot. There is the the additional possibility that Okafor can operate down the right flank, though AC Milan's pursuit of Villarreal's Samuel Chukwueze suggests he will be the man to start from this side.
What this means then is that AC Milan would have an incredibly fluid attackline to help wrestle the Scudetto back from Napoli. Strikers Olivier Giroud and Divock Origi are relatively one-dimensional frontmen by comparison, so the addition of a more flexible frontman promises to add unpredictability to this AC Milan forward line.
Okafor won't hit the heights of former Salzburg hitman Haaland, but he has the potential to become a key man in Milan. His hard work off the ball and desire to press opponents means defences won't get a moment's rest up against Okafor and for an AC Milan side that scored the most counter-attacking goals (8) in Serie A last season, this will help Pioli's side spring forward at lightening speed.
He'll have to tailor his game accordingly - Pioli favours a 4-2-3-1 setup rather than the 4-3-1-2 system Okafor became familiar with at Salzburg - but there's the interchangeability that'll benefit those around at San Siro. For a rumoured £11m fee, he should prove a superb addition to the Serie A powerhouse.
