Rafael Leao has not looked like his usual self in recent weeks, and there are physical factors behind this.
As Tuttosport (via MilanNews) report this morning, Leao has accustomed Milan fans to his incredible acceleration and bursts of speed that have split opposing defence in two ever since he arrived at the club back in the 2019 summer window.
Read SempreMilan ad-free and get access to exclusive news. Click here for a free trial!
The premise is simple: when he gets going, no one can keep up with him, and his speed is certainly one of his strengths. Yet, he seems to be stuck in first gear, having been severely affected by a problem with his upper adductor muscle/pubalgia, which he hasn’t yet recovered from.
Playing with the handbrake on
This muscle strain has been plaguing him for weeks. Milan’s medical staff are managing it to prevent it from developing into a bad case of pubalgia (a hernia common in athletes), and yet he continues to play because Milan needs him right now.
It’s clear that Leao isn’t in top form. In particular, this physical issue isn’t allowing him to sprint as fast as he’d like, and so he’s struggling to make the difference like he has in the past. He even admitted before Sunday’s game that he is not at 100%.
Massimiliano Allegri continues to field him because he’s convinced that his quality can still be decisive, as was the case in Como with Adrien Rabiot’s first goal in the comeback win.
However, the calendar has come to Leao and Milan’s aid: after Sunday’s draw against Roma, the Rossoneri will have a break until February 3 when they play Bologna away, so Leao can do specific work to get rid of the inflammation.
After the trip to the Dall’Ara, the Rossoneri will not play on February 8th against Como due to the unavailability of San Siro for the Winter Olympics and will only return to the field on the weekend of February 15th in Pisa.
Therefore, Rafa will have a few more days to finally resolve this discomfort that is preventing him from performing as he would like. From there, Allegri hopes to have a big tactical weapon back at his best.
Am I the only one who has a hard time believing this injury thing? Seems to me like Rafa is just out of form / less explosive due to his new role and build. Feels like this is just a story to shield him from negative publicity (which would be fair, don’t get me wrong). Because if he was truly half-injured, it would just be irresponsible and borderline stupid to start him over Pulisic.
Unless we have any evidence for doubt, I don’t see the relevance speculating otherwise.
At the moment, I think Pulisic+Fulkrug is the best combo we have upfront to deliver results.
I also think its a little BS. Leao is out of form, he’s 95% predictable when he has the ball and what he does…lost his spark.
I have never been a fan of him
Do you need new glasses to see that Leao has been barely running this season?
STOP WATCHING HIGHLIGHTS AND WATCH GAMES
Pulisic isn’t 100% either bro. Neither is Fullkrug who is playing with a busted toe. People need to pay attention. All of our forwards except Nkunku are knackered.
I’m not aware of any Pulisic injury? Füllkrug is evident.
There have been articles here and there that mentioned that Pulisic is managing his hamstring and also has something wrong with an ankle.
“Pulisic isn’t 100% either bro. Neither is Fullkrug who is playing with a busted toe. People need to pay attention. All of our forwards except Nkunku are knackered.”
Which highlights one thing: Everyone but Nkunku is injured. Yet Nkunku fails to perform any better than the injured ones. That really tells you everything you need to know about the Flop Of The Season.
And the article says Leao isn’t 100%. I’d say he’s closer to 10% than 100% based on the last two matches. He has nothing a primavera striker couldn’t have done in those matches. 🤷♂️
*He has done nothing…
Just send him to the bench.
Playing him in this condition/form is counter productive.
INJURED and still playing before Pulisic ,bullsh*t ! LAZY LAZY LEAO….
The guy has been lazy since the start, bench him and sell him I would say.
Unless Pulisic is also injured ( perhaps the hamstring is still not fully recovered ) then starting Leao to play 60 to 65 minutes and then bringing in Pulisic for 25 to 30 minutes seems irresponsible. Start Pulisic then bring in Leao at the 60 minute mark so that he has less time to play and can therefore up his effort because he doesn’t have to save himself for a longer time on the field.
Lack of forward depth is also a problem. It seems to me that the ideal lineup would be Fullkrug between Leao and Pulisic, like it was Giroud between Leao and Pulisic. This would require two of the the three to play the full 90 minutes with the current roster. Given each’s injury history that seems like a big risk.
If Leao is still dealing with an injury then there’s ZERO reason to start him. 45mn cameo’s don’t help when he can’t get out of first fear nor can he contribute to actual attack.
I don’t understand.
He’s Allegri’s favorite. Allegri has spent the year building him up as Leao needs to feel important. If he doesn’t, you get a distruptive Leao like last year.
I’ve also stopped judging the forwards because they get nothing from Allegri’s system. Teams are on to how he plays. The only thing saving this year is Mike. Last year, Mike was terrible (many on this site wanted him gone) and so were Theo and Emerson. I don’t believe the defense is much better this year when you look at expected goals. I think Mike is so much better and you have two competent wingbacks. But the offense is certainly in the toilet.
So, let’s assume Leao is injured. Has he done ANYTHING during the last two matches that warrant risking him to be sidelined for a month or two? Does everyone agree that he has done things no one else is capable of doing in the last two matches? Ignore the fact that he was a MVP half a decade ago – that is irrelevant. I’m talking about NOW.
Does. He. Perform. On the level that we absolutely need to start him EVERY match in this condition and risk losing him for longer time? IMO there is only one correct answer. 🤷♂️