One of the most talked about narratives in AC Milan’s 2025-26 season has been the use of Rafael Leao as a striker in a front two.
Read SempreMilan ad-free and get access to exclusive news. Click here for a free trial!
Ever since the early part of preseason, it became apparently that Massimiliano Allegri not only wanted to use a 3-5-2 system, but that he saw Leao as the spearhead for it. He foresaw a deadly pairing in transition with Christian Pulisic, notwithstanding the arrival of a natural centre-forward.
As of March 18 we are still in the dark as to whether Leao and Pulisic can work together in a front two, but the evidence thus far points towards it not getting the best out of both. A post-Lazio storm has engulfed the Portuguese, but some context to his numbers has arrived.
Opta have provided a comparison between Leao’s present campaign and Olivier Giroud in his most prolific Serie A season at Milan, which was in 2023-24 when he scored 15 goals in the league for the Rossoneri.
So far in 2025-26, Leao (who is on nine goals, with nine games to go) has more touches in the opposition box (4.5 vs 3.7), more lay-offs (2.2 vs 1.3) and more recoveries (1.4 vs 0.9). Interestingly, they have the exact same number for shots per game (2.2) and goals per game (0.4).
Want bonus content including exclusive information, deep-dive analysis pieces, podcasts and news round-ups? Subscribe to our Substack and try a week for free.