Manchester United have completed the signing of Sekou Kone in a deal reported to be worth around £1 million plus add-ons.
The 18-year-old joins The Red Devils from Malian side Guidars FC and has been widely regarded as one of the most exciting African talents emerging from the continent.
The 2006-born talent is a defensive midfielder who has been linked with a handful of Premier League clubs in the last year, including Liverpool and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
He burst into the spotlight when he starred in Mali’s run to the semi-finals of the Under-17 World Cup in November 2023 and was deployed in midfield in each of the team’s seven games.
Despite his defensive prowess, he also highlighted his attacking flair to produce two assists as Mali went on to seal third place.
The youngster has 12 caps overall for Mali at youth level following his U17 debut in May last year when he featured in the Africa U17 Cup of Nations.
Kone is the fifth player to join United this summer, following the arrivals of Leny Yoro, Joshua Zirkzee, Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui.