Manuel Locatelli has said players like him and Gianluigi Donnarumma are the future of AC Milan.
Milan president Silvio Berlusconi, set to complete the sale of the club next month, said he wanted to see home-grown players making a mark at the club.
Locatelli, 18, is preparing for his first derby against Inter Milan at the weekend and told La Gazzetta dello Sport: "We have a beautiful project here of young Italians and we've got to thank Berlusconi and [general manager Adriano] Galliani for it.
"The secret to our youth system is in the people we have there. They are the main directors, and then there are the likes of Filippo Galli and [Walter] De Vecchi, a coach who has taught me a lot."
Locatelli, Donnarumma, Davide Calabria, and Mattia De Sciglio have all made their way through to the first team ranks, and he said: "With us, Milan have a great project for the next 10 years. Something big is emerging."
He said the club's convent accommodation for young players, where he still lives, can act as an inspiration.
"The convent is in a fantastic position because of the view of San Siro," he added. "So they just need to look out of the window to see the place where they could end up playing one day, because San Siro is the stadium of dreams."
Donnarumma has been another key figure this season, and said injury to Riccardo Montolivo had given him his chance.
"[Milan coach] Vincenzo Montella could see that I was really pushing in training and I can say, without sounding big-headed, that even I would have gambled on myself," he said.
"Riccardo is a guide -- he's an example. He's one of my models, like [Andrea] Pirlo."
He said he was looking forward to the derby, adding: "I scored against Inter before, when I was in the youth team. We have to impose ourselves on the game and I trust in Montella, who is great at preparing games like this."