How Alphadjo Cissé convinced AC Milan and Amorim: he could have joined Torino

Torino have emerged in recent weeks as one of the clubs most keen to prise Cissé away from AC Milan. On loan, that is, certainly not on a permanent deal.

A move like that would have given him the classic chance to learn the ropes in a side with different ambitions, clearly lower than AC Milan's. It would also have put him in a squad where, at least on paper, there was room for Cissé to develop and get proper playing time.

In the end, though, nothing came of it. And judging by the way things are shaping up, nothing will. Not for Torino, who will face Cissé as an opponent on Sunday, nor for Sassuolo, another club who would not have minded taking the former Catanzaro player under their wing.

Cissé, the gem AC Milan signed from Verona in January before leaving him on loan at Catanzaro, is also coming off a second half of the season that he effectively lost completely: a serious adductor injury hit him in January and only eased once the league campaign had ended.

What's more, young Alphadjo has never really played in Serie A in his still short career. Or rather, he has done so three times in a Verona shirt, but for barely 15 minutes in total. In short, you get the picture. The experience at the very highest level is not there and cannot be there.

Still, Amorim has already shown several times that he likes to go against the grain. He did it, for example, by carving out a wing-back role for Chukwueze. Or by vetoing the sale of Loftus-Cheek and Estupinan. Or by letting Tomori, Nkunku and Fofana go.

He has done the same with Cissé, giving space, attention and trust to a player who is not yet 20, he will celebrate his birthday at the end of October. For his part, he has repaid that trust in training and in friendlies with quality, flashes and personality. Then came the outstanding display against Manchester United, capped by the goal for the temporary 2-2.

"For the way he played, Cissé will make life difficult for Leao": that is what Amorim said after the match with United. It was a clear manifesto of his intentions, which are just as clear: to keep Alphadjo in the squad, despite his age, despite his inexperience.

At the press conference previewing Torino v AC Milan early this afternoon, a journalist in the press room asked Amorim which player had surprised him most. The Portuguese manager had his answer.

"Difficult to say. I love Cissè. I love Cissè. I hope he doesn't hear it, he might get carried away," he said with a laugh.

With just over 24 hours to go before their league debut, it was the latest sign Amorim is ready to give Cissé a starting shirt. And it is not just the youngster's quality that is tipping the balance, the wider situation in AC Milan's attacking midfield department matters too.

Cisse has also emerged as a genuine alternative for this reason: that role has been in complete chaos for some time now.

To recap: Leao has one foot in Milanello and the other out, Pulisic has only just returned to training with the group after an injury, Nkunku will leave, Loftus-Cheek looked set for a sale but has stayed. And Diego Moreira, who arrived a few days ago, will not start in Turin.

That takes us to Cisse. He could easily have played this match in a Torino shirt, but instead he did it in a Milan one. The first of many. Because the youngster Amorim "adores" has talent to burn.