Tonight will see Krzysztof Piatek face off against his former side AC Milan for Salernitana at a stadium he knows well in San Siro.
La Gazzetta dello Sport writes how the ‘Pistolero’ returns to San Siro tonight three years after his farewell to the Rossoneri. His time at Milan lasted a year and a week starting with the flurry of goals with Gattuso but then the return of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and his gradual decline in playing time.
Piatek was brought to Serie A by Enrico Preziosi’s Genoa after a prolific spell with Cracovia in his native Poland. He cost €5m and scored 9 goals in the first 8 games of the league season, with Milan moving quickly to sign him for €35m.
He announced himself in front of the Rossoneri fans with a brace in the Coppa Italia against Napoli, and he recalled the story of his squad number: “When I arrived I wanted to take the 9 immediately, but Gattuso and the club told me to choose the 19 or another number. Not the 9, I had to earn that one.”
He became the first player since the 1925-26 season to score 6 goals in his first 5 official games with the Rossoneri, surpassing legends such as Van Basten, Weah and Bierhoff, and he ended the season with 30 goals (19 with Genoa and 11 with Milan).
Then, Gattuso’s farewell changed everything. Marco Giampaolo arrived in the summer and the Pole got the No.9, but he was replaced in October by Stefano Pioli who had his own ideas. After 3 goals in 13 games the return of Ibrahimovic saw Piatek relegated to a role mostly on the bench.
In January 2020, Piatek moved to Hertha Berlin for €24m and said goodbye to the Rossoneri with a long message: “The transfer to Milan was the realisation of my childhood dreams. I never thought I could score goals and fight for the club’s return to the Champions League until the last minutes of the season. But football is also blood, sweat and tears. I can say with my head held high that I gave my all.”
He scored 13 goals in two seasons in Germany before returning to Italy in January last year on loan to Fiorentina. With La Viola he scored 6 goals in 18 appearances and returned to San Siro in May, watching from the bench as Rafael Leao scored the winner.
During the summer he was sent on a new loan to Salernitana where he has so far scored just three times in 21 games. At San Siro, he will return to the field against his old club hoping for a goal to spark a brighter future.
just one of many blunders of the mirabulli&fa$$one era
Well, this one is actually Leonardo & Maldini era blunder
Ehhh Piatek wasn’t signed by Maldini bro
Leonardo & Maldini era
Piatek, Paqueta, Baka, Conti, Samu, Mandzukic, Caldara, Silva plenty to think about 😉
Nikola Kalinic 27buy, 14 sold, Bonucci 42buy, Higuain 11 loan.
What we call “the chinese horror era”
I feel very bad for Piatek☹️ I don’t know what’s happening to him. I really pity him. Now he misses chances he used to score for fun….. I wish he gets back to being that Hitman❤️🖤
Get Mateo Retegui from tigre in Argentina. He the type of deadly player Milan for the modern football