Stefano Pioli would like to see more goals from Rafael Leao as the season goes on and a plan is being concocted to get the Portuguese forward closer to the goal during each game.
As reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport, some of Leao’s play has become predictable and often does not end with a shot on goal, either from him or a teammate.
Is common to see him beat the defender on the wing, reach the byline and then cut back and play a pass, often after some hesitation. Pioli would like to see him direct those runs into the box and, quite simply, get closer to the goal with the ball.
They point out that Kylian Mbappe and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who play in the same position as Leao and will be his next opponents, average 4.9 and 4.2 shots per game respectively. Leao averages 1.9.
Mbappe has 11.4 touches per game in the box, and Kvaratskhelia has 9. Leao has just 7.4. He does put in more crosses than the PSG and Napoli players, but Pioli wants to see him operate more inside the box.
