He is a new addition to the latest list concocted by GĂ©rald Baticle. At 20 years old, Sankhoun Diawara has just been called up for the very first time in his career for the France Espoirs team. A form of reward for those who have asserted themselves for several weeks on the side of AC Milan. Nothing was promised to the Parisian by birth when he arrived from Troyes this summer, but his qualities and his daily investment ended up convincing Ruben Amorim to rely on his profile (he started three times in the last five AC Milan matches).
A new stage of an express apprenticeship after making his debut in Ligue 2 only in January. At the end of a successful second part of the season (14 L2 matches) and marked by promotion to Ligue 1, Diawara had been the subject of numerous requests. Udinese, FC Basel, Glasgow Rangers, Eintracht Frankfurt and Leipzig were thus positioned to attract him, but the choice of the Franco-Senegalese defender quickly fell on AC Milan. In the player’s entourage, this choice is justified by the prestige of the club and the opportunity to progress there faster than elsewhere alongside references.
A locker room with French accents
The presence of French-speaking executives, like Adrien Rabiot or captain Mike Maignan, also constitutes a valuable daily point of support for the 1.90 m left-hander. Rabiot, for example, was one of the first to congratulate him on his account Instagram Friday, after learning of his call-up to the Bleuets: “congratulations Sankhoun, work always pays off”wrote the former OM midfielder.
The taste for effort, a value which takes on its full meaning for someone whose progress had been slowed down by some physical problems as a youngster. It was truly with the U19s that he reached a milestone, to the point of inheriting the captain’s armband of Gambardella’s semi-finalist team against Nancy in 2024 (1-1, 5-4 at TAB), before winning with the reserve team. During this period, his change in dimension was also reflected in his first call-ups for the French U19 team (he had 2 selections). In reality, that in Hopes is none other than the natural extension of his progress which he now intends to maintain.
