Hernan Crespo has given his thoughts on the struggles that Rafael Leao is currently having, suggesting that he is currently playing a bit ‘confused’.
Leao is in the headlines at the moment despite the fact that his performance against Club Brugge on Tuesday night was far from terrible, given he completed nine dribbles which is a season high for any player in any Champions League game this season.
The fact that he was left on the bench for the full 90 minutes against Udinese last weekend prompted questions about Paulo Fonseca choosing not to rely on him, while a report from La Gazzetta dello Sport this morning strongly suggested the winger is not in a great headspace.
Part of that double page spread from the paper featured an interview with the former Milan striker Hernan Crespo who gave his thoughts on the situation surrounding Leao, who he believes still has to mature.
“Im watching from the outside because I’m not at Milanello, even though I know the club well. The first word that comes to mind is confusion. It appears as though Leao is confused. There is a mentality problem first and foremost, before the technical issues,” he said.
“I have my opinion. He’s a talent, he has great qualities, both technical and athletic, but he hasn’t reached a level of maturity that a champion has to have. It’s like we’re halfway there. Knowing how to dribble isn’t enough to call yourself a champion and instead with Leao they exaggerated a bit with the compliments.
“When he isolated himself at the Olimpico, together with Theo Hernandez, during the cooling-break, it wasn’t a nice incident. If I had done it, when I was at Milan or Inter or Lazio or Parma or Chelsea, I would have received a very heavy fine and, probably, I would have remained on the bench for a few games. These are gestures that risk compromising the harmony of a group, and I say this as a coach.”