AC Milan Wonderkid Hailed As 'New Lionel Messi' After Impressive Performance

AC Milan made a brilliant move by signing Jens Petter Hauge, who is now being dubbed by Rossoneri fans as the “new Lionel Messi.”

On Thursday, Milan thumped Celtic in their Europa League match to claim a 4-2 victory over the Scottish side. Topping all Milan players was the club’s £3.5 million ($4.7 million) signing, Hauge.

The 21-year-old put on an all-around performance, contributing to the Rossoneri at both ends of the pitch. Hauge bagged a sensational goal of his own, but the most notable highlight courtesy of the midfielder was a Messi-like, defense-splitting pass that had fans convinced his game resembles that of the Barcelona superstar, HITC reported.

“Hauge (is an) insane player perhaps even the new messi?” a fan wrote.

“We have a Player with a Messi-Level potential on our hands. Hauge is a beast,” another fan commented.

Hauge finished the game with flying colors, recording a staggering 60 touches to go along with three chances created, two shots, one shot on target, an assist and a goal. The remarkable stat was enough for Leeds United legend Brian Deane to wonder why no English club chased the Norwegian in the summer.

According to Deane, Milan may never let go of Hauge, whose value would surely skyrocket in the coming years.

“Hauge for AC Milan is some player isn’t he?” Deane tweeted. “Surprised no club here picked up on him. Will cost a lot more now, but let’s be honest he ain’t leaving Milan soon.”

Veteran Milan forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic is still the club’s highest goal scorer this season, tallying a total of 11 goals. However, Hauge is now at the fourth spot with three Serie A goals, but overall, he has already scored six goals across all 11 games of the Rossoneri.

Milan is set to face Sampdoria next, and Hauge is expected to shine once again with Ibrahimovic, Rafael Leao and Simon Kjaer officially out due to injury.

“This is going to be a difficult game, as Sampdoria have some very good players,” Milan coach Stefano Pioli said in a recent press conference. “We must be sharp and tactically precise.”

“Jens Hauge has strength, quality, is good at one-on-one situations and is very intelligent,” he pointed out. “He is proving himself useful for the team. I have always been convinced of the quality of these players. We haven’t won anything yet, there’s a lot of work to do, but we’re hungry and want to be ambitious.”