Who is Assan Ouédraogo?

Data correct as of 18 November 2025

Age: 19 (born 9 May 2006)
Club: RB Leipzig
Position: Central midfielder
Country: Germany (one cap, one goal)

Key stats 

Ouédraogo's journey started at Schalke, where he spent nine years in the youth academy. He shone brightly as early as 2021/22, when he registered seven goals and eight assists in 15 outings for the Schalke's U17s as they were crowned German champions, and he continued that form at U19 level. As a result, he broke into the first team at the start of 2023/24 at the age of just 17, starting seven of their first 11 Bundesliga 2 games before heading off to the FIFA U-17 World Cup.

Watch: Assan Ouédraogo on the road to stardom

The teenager made an immediate impact on his Schalke debut. Even though the Royal Blues lost 5-3 to Hamburg on the opening day of the season, Ouédraogo was on the scoresheet, overtaking Julian Draxler's record as the club's youngest-ever goalscorer on the same day he became the youngest player in their history.

Having already played four of Germany's six matches as they clinched the European U17 Championships, Ouédraogo helped the team lift the World Cup in November 2023. With the 2023 bronze Fritz Walter Award medal already under his belt too, it seemed there would be no stopping the precocious talent.

However, injuries had already prevented Ouédraogo from playing a bigger role in the U17s' global success, and they would soon curtail his development even further. He made just six further Bundesliga 2 appearances in 2023/24 and, while that didn't stop Leipzig from securing his services that summer, knee and thigh problems meant he was able to make just five substitute appearances in all competitions in 2024/25.

Watch: The best of Ouédraogo

Fortunately for him, though, Leipzig never lost faith in their exciting signing, and under Ole Werner, he as flourished in 2025/26. After apearing off the bench in Leipzig's first four Bundesliga games, Ouédraogo was awarded his first start on Matchday 4 against Cologne.

He grabbed that opportunity with both hands, scoring in the 3-1 triumph, and has been named in the starting XI for every Bundesliga match since. As such, after Nadiem Amiri was forced to drop out of the Germany squad for the November 2025 qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Ouédraogo was chosen as his replacement.

An unused substitute in a 2-0 win in Luxembourg, he was handed his senior international debut in Germany's crucial 6-0 victory over Slovakia, replacing Florian Wirtz in the 77th minute. Less than two minutes after entering the fray, Ouédraogo found the net from Leroy Sané's pass to become the youngest debutant to score for Germany since Klaus Stürmer in October 1954. 

1) Jamal Musiala, Bayern Munich (18 years, 227 days)
2) Mario Götze, Borussia Dortmund (19 years, 68 days)
3) Marko Marin, Borussia Mönchengladbach (19 years, 160 days)
4) Assan Ouédraogo, RB Leipzig (19 years, 192 days)
5) Lukas Podolski, Cologne (19 years, 200 days)
6) Karim Adeyemi, Borussia Dortmund (19 years, 230 days)
7) Julian Draxler, Schalke (19 years, 255 days)
8) Uli Hoeneß, Bayern Munich (20 years, 84 days)
9) Kai Havertz, Bayer Leverkusen (20 years, 120 days)
10) Aleksandar Pavlović, Bayern Munich (20 years, 127 days)

Plays a bit like: Malik Tillman

Ouédraogo may still be at the start of his career, but he plays the game with experience and composure that belie his age, and he has already shown he has plenty of strings to his bow.

With remarkable technical ability, a superb eye for a pass and a keen nose for goal, Ouédraogo's style is reminiscent of Leverkusen's US international star Tillman, who is proving a vital cog in Kasper Hjulmand's Werkself machine this season.

Like Tillman, Ouédraogo likes to collect the ball in deeper areas of the pitch before using his pace and power to feed his team-mates or have a shot himself. His latest efforts for club and country suggest he is more than capable of adding further goals to his game this season.

Did you know?

Assan is the son of former professional Alassane, who earned 62 caps for Burkina Faso during a career that spanned two decades.

After starting his career at Sporting Charleroi in Belgium, the right midfielder moved to Cologne, where he made three Bundesliga appearances before embarking on a lower-league career that included spells with Rot-Weiß Oberhausen, TuS Koblenz and Rot-Weiss Essen, not to mention 70 appearances in Bundesliga 2.

What they're saying

"Assan is intelligent, athletic and has excellent technical training. In addition, his dynamism means he has a lot of forward momentum, meaning he can often create dangerous goal-scoring situations or even score a goal himself.” - Ex-Leipzig sporting director Rouven Schröder

"He has everything, game intelligence, speed, teamwork, goal threat and he can play the final pass.” - Schalke legend Olaf Thon

"He is a wonderfull footballer with a lot of talent. He was integrated immediately because he is completely convincing in terms of his sporting ability." - Former Schalke sporting director André Hechelmann

"What he's been through since he joined us is really tough – mentally as well. Huge praise for the lad. Assan has always been positive. He deserved to start today. And he rewarded himself." - Leipzig captain David Raum following Ouédraogo's first start against Cologne