Milan won the Scudetto last Sunday after beating Sassuolo and went out again champion in Italy eleven years later. During that period, one of the giants of world football has gone through gray times in which it has barely been able to win a Super Cup in 2016. The great work of Stefano Pioli has led the rossoneri to compete for the title in recent years with a very talented young player base. And one of them has been Rafael Leao, essential piece to understand the triumph of the team.
The Portuguese attacker was very protagonist throughout the championshipbut especially in the final stretch he threw the team on his back. He was named best player of the season in Serie A. In his third campaign at Milan he has reached a very high peak of performance and found the regularity that he had previously lacked to become an elite-level player. Leao has finished the season with 14 goals and 11 assists in all competitions.
Especially outstanding has been his role in the A leagueas their figures show. He has scored 11 goals and distributed 9 assists in the 34 league games he has played. He started the season well, then had a stretch of irregularity (1 goal in 3 months), but He finished the championship being the main architect of the team’s successes. In the last 6 games, Leao scored 3 goals and gave 6 assists. It was vital for Milan won against Fiorentina on day 35, come back to Hellas Verona at 36 (2 assists) and beat Sassuolo on the last date (3 assists).
The confirmation of a talent without limits
Since he stood out in the quarry of the Sporting de PortugalRafa Leao had not been able to maintain a line of constant performance based on the high expectations he had generated. Now, at just 22 years old, he has found his place in Milan and it is one of the foundations on which the Series A champion’s project is based. His arrival at the milanista team coincided with a convulsive period and of instability in which Marco Giampaolo was not able to survive. In October 2019, three months after Leao’s landing in the city of fashion, Stefano Pioli took over the reins of the team. Under your technical guidancethe Portuguese has acquired the confidence that for moments he did not have and has definitely exploded.
This season has averaged 0.7 goals+assists per game and, thanks to his participation in attack, he has given Milan 15 points. Leao is a very talented player, almost unstoppable in one on one and one of the few players left in the current scene with an amazing overflow ability. Gives off an amazing exuberance in each of his movements and he has a physical force that helps him to generate imbalance. To all this we must add an exquisite technique y better and better top speed.
He has become one of the brightest talents on the European scene. Rafael Leao was the Serie A player who attempted the most dribbles (163) and made the most (98) during the season, 33 more than the second. Amazing numbers. 24 of those dribbles ended in an immediate shooting action. She performs brilliantly in all the situations he has to face and has improved her ability to associate with the rest of her classmates. Especially with Theo Hernández, with whom he has formed a luxury left wing.
MATTEO BAZZI (EFE)
Leao was named MVP of Serie A 21/22 after winning the title and the league revealed some of its amazing data. According to a ranking drawn up by the championship itself with Stats Performthe milanista attacker was the best in the physical efficiency section (96%), in one against one (95.7% success rate) and he covered 366 meters at very high speed per match.
His contract ends in 2024 and there are several clubs very aware of their situation, but Milan has been working on the renovation for some time. Similarly, as revealed Daniele Longo (journalist from Calciomercato.com), Leao has a termination clause of 150 million euros. Meanwhile, the Rossoneri continue to negotiate his renewal with his agent, Jorge Mendesuntil 2026.