MN: From €31m man to physical ordeal – Pellegri back in Italy with a point to prove

Pietro Pellegri probably didn’t want his opportunity for playing time to come about because Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Olivier Giroud aren’t fit.

However, the decision to sign Pellegri from Monaco as one of the last additions of the summer has already begun to pay dividends from the point of view that the 20-year-old will fill the numerical gaps in the squad I

MilanNews takes a look at what Pellegri should bring to the team, recalling how he made his debut at 15 years and 280 days in Serie A, equaling the precocity record in the Italian top flight. He also scored on the day of Totti’s farewell to football and then netted a brace against – all as a teenager.

Monaco paid €31m plus bonuses to land him from Genoa and from there his physical ordeal began, as he has racked up just 23 appearances and 2 goals in two and a half years.

He is described as an old-fashioned first striker with modern features, one who can play with him back to goal but at the same time knows the right timing to attack in behind. He is 188cm in height which means he wins aerial duels, and can operate both inside and outside the box.

In the hierarchy he starts behind Ibrahimovic and Giroud – from whom he can learn a lot both mentally and tactically – but his chances might come soon.

READ MORE: Gullit explains how Milan have transformed their style of play to bring ‘spirit and identity’