da imperador bet： The 18-year-old Dane has only just made his professional bow, but he's already being linked with some of Europe's top clubs

da bwin： Pantaleo Corvino looks to have done it again. The Lecce sporting director is renowned in Italy for his ability to unearth hidden gyms and, during the transfer window just gone, he sold Morten Hjulmand to Sporting CP for €18 million (£15.7m/$19m) – only two years after signing the defensive midfielder for €170,000 (£148,000/$180,000).

That impressive capital gain could soon be eclipsed, though, by another Dane, Patrick Dorgu, who is already being tipped to make a big-money move to one of Europe's elite clubs – even though he only made his professional debut at the start of the season.

So, who is the 18-year-old being linked with the likes of Liverpool, Barcelona and Manchester CIty? And how has he managed to make such an instantaneous impact in Italy? Luckily, GOAL is on hand to tell you everything you need to know about a very modern full-back…

Where it all began

The son of Nigerian parents but born and raised in Denmark, Dorgu is a product of the excellent work being done at under-age level by FC Nordsjaelland, who were formally taken over by a group led by Right to Dream academy owner Tom Vernon in 2016.

Under Vernon's leadership, the Superliga side have become synonymous with developing young talent. In the last five years alone, FCN have made more than €50m (£44m/$53m) by selling homegrown players.

However, Dorgu was snapped up by Lecce for just €200,000 (£175,000/$210,000) – and it quickly became clear that Corvino had pulled off another bargain buy. In his very first season in Italy, Dorgu played a pivotal role in his new club winning a first Primavera (Under-19s) league title for 19 years, scoring four times in 33 appearances.

Realising that they had a real gem on their hands, Lecce promptly extended Dorgu's contract until 2027 amid reports that he was already receiving admiring glances from elsewhere in Europe.

Senior team coach Roberto D'Aversa also added the teenager to his first-team squad during the summer and Dorgu impressed in a number of pre-season friendlies.

AdvertisementGetty The big break

Dorgu effectively began the 2023-24 campaign as understudy to first-choice left-back Antonino Gallo. However, the latter was forced off just 15 minutes into Lecce's season-opener, a Coppa Italia first-round clash with Como at the Stadio Via del mare.

Dorgu took his unexpected chance to shine with aplomb, not only defending diligently throughout but also teeing up Pontus Almqvist for the game's only goal. The following week, he made his first start in Serie A, against Lazio, and impressed again as Lecce pulled off a shock 2-1 win.

Getty How it's going

The more experienced Gallo has since reclaimed his spot in D'Aversa's starting line-up but Dorgu has featured in all eight of Lecce's league games, and even played all 90 minutes of their 1-0 loss to Juventus at the tail end of September.

D'Aversa is in no doubt that Dorgu has the talent to excel at the very highest level, but is wisely reluctant to ask too much of him at this fledgling stage of his career.

"If I picked him against Lazio, it means that I believe in him. His qualities are evident," D'Aversa told reporters. "But now we must give him time to grow and to make mistakes."

GettyBiggest strengths

As well as Dorgu, Jeppe Corfitzen was added to the Lecce squad during the summer but he is not seeing anything like the same game time as his compatriot and flat-mate, because he is just not as physically well-developed. Dorgu already has the strength and build of a senior player.

However, he's also more advanced, technically, than many of his peers. He reads the game well, has good vision and is highly adept at using his dribbling skills and crossing ability to hurt opponents.

With that in mind, it won't come as a shocker to learn that Dorgu has occasionally been used as a winger during his young career. In fact, he scored a sensational solo goal against Cesena last year that any attacker would have been proud of, with Dorgu skipping past four players before firing low into the net with his trusty left foot.