CorSport: A long way from Riyadh – De Winter’s journey sees him become Milan’s bedrock

In recent weeks, Koni De Winter has gone from being a summer regret to perhaps arguably the most consistent player in the entire AC Milan squad.

Corriere dello Sport (via MilanPress) rewind to the summer when De Winter joined from Genoa for €20m after the sale of Malick Thiaw for double. The deal sparked doubts from many, who were expecting a more high-profile and experienced signing to steady the defence.

A dip and a climb

His initial performances didn’t help, and the Supercoppa Italiana match in Riyadh against Napoli – in which he had a very difficult night against Rasmus Hojlund – almost seemed like the final straw in terms of the Belgian being a regular starter.

The former Genoa player, however, didn’t give up. Massimiliano Allegri (also due to various injuries) continued to play him, and he’s now a key member of the best defence in Europe and a starter that seemingly cannot be moved.

Since that night in Riyadh, De Winter has started 12 of the Rossoneri’s 14 matches, coming on as a substitute in the remaining two. In those, the team kept seven clean sheets, all while he played across all three centre-back positions.

While it is a team effort of course, the individual numbers are also excellent from De Winter, 1 goal and 1 assist, 3.8 defensive tackles per game, 2.9 recovered balls, just over 3 tackles won and almost 2 aerial duels won per match.