The sad story of forgotten wonderkid Hachim Mastour shows how quickly things can change in football

Former AC Milan wonderkid Hachim Mastour's career has not gone as planned, with the forward now finding himself playing in the Moroccan second tier.

Mastour was signed by Milan as a 14-year-old from Reggiana for a reported fee of €500,000 (£408,000) in 2012.

Helped by the seal of approval from legendary Milan and Italy manager Arrigo Sacchi, the Rossoneri beat the likes of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Manchester City to draft him in.

Mastour had scored five goals at the Ielasi Memorial tournament and there was serious hype surrounding him after YouTube compilations of him garnered five million views.

But Mastour, the youngest player to turn out for the Moroccan national team in 2015, failed to make a single appearance for Milan.

He made the bench under Clarence Seedorf in 2013/14 and was on the verge of breaking Paolo Maldini's record for the club's youngest ever player - although he was not brought on in the 2-1 win against Sassuolo.

In fact, his only notable action at Milan was that former manager Gennaro Gattuso threatened to "knock his teeth out" if he didn't buckle down.

It seems he wasn't quite able to do that as Milan was loaned out to both Malaga and PEC Zwolle in an attempt to get extra game-time. Yet across the two stints, Mastour played just seven times.

In 2018, after his Milan contract had expired, Mastour's next career move took him to Greece, signing for Superleague side Lamia.

It was hoped that this change of scenery could get Mastour back on track and he was said to be earning €200,000-per-year.

But it was deja vu all over again. He played just six times in a seven-month period and failed to find the net, leading to his contract being terminated by mutual consent.

Then came a return to Italy with Serie C side Reginna, who he signed for on a three-year deal, but a second mutual termination arrived.

As previously speculated, Reggina has announced a mutual contract termination with Moroccan playmaker Hachim Mastour #Reggina #serieB pic.twitter.com/0qLM50ztxm

— Reggina Fans (@regginafans) July 26, 2021

He spent the second half of the 2020/21 season on loan at Carpi, where he played 10 times and scored his first ever professional goal.

Now, though, the 24-year-old plays for Renaissance Zemamra in his ancestral country of Morocco. He made a total of 10 appearances for the club last season, scoring twice.

RCA play in the second division and here's hoping this move will help Mastour rediscover his love for football.