David Odogu is heading out on loan to Toulouse after Milan and the Ligue 1 side reached an agreement, according to LesViolets, with Fabrizio Romano also confirming the move.
Milan signed Odogu from Wolfsburg for €7m last summer, betting on the potential he had shown in the German club's youth ranks rather than any senior track record. That gamble has yet to pay off in terms of minutes, and a season in France is now the plan to get him playing regularly.
Odogu is already in Toulouse to complete the switch, having trained away from the rest of the squad at Milanello in recent days. The French club had been searching for a central defender since the start of the summer, pushing ahead even while uncertain over whether Mark McKenzie would depart.
Toulouse want him mainly as competition for Rasmus Nicolaisen on the left of their defence, the role where he stood out as a youngster. They had earlier been close to signing Tobias Guddal, but that deal collapsed and the player joined Sparta Prague for €5.5m instead, leaving the door open for Odogu.
His senior experience remains thin. At Wolfsburg he managed just 3 Bundesliga appearances, and this summer both Anderlecht and Mainz were interested before Toulouse moved. The link between the clubs runs through RedBird Capital, which holds ties to both Milan and Toulouse.
There is talent to work with. Odogu was a World Cup and European Under-17 champion with Germany in 2023, and new national team coach Jurgen Klopp has named him in an expanded group of players being tracked for the future.
For Milan, a loan to a friendly club is the low-risk route to finding out whether the €7m bet on Odogu becomes something more.