Christopher Nkunku was the subject of a lot of speculation in the winter window, but he responded with an excellent display against Bologna.
Calciomercato.com recall that Nkunku left his mark on the game at the Stadio Dall’Ara. The nutmeg on Zortea, the through ball to Ruben Loftus-Cheek, the penalty won and scored that made it 2-0: these are all signs of a player fighting to prove he can be useful to Milan.
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Nkunku now a ‘different player’
It took longer than expected to settle in, but today Nkunku is ‘a completely different player’ compared to the version we saw in the first 15 league games. He attacks the goal, beats his man and shoots with power and precision, showcasing the repertoire of a complete attacker.
He is an atypical centre-forward who can also play behind the striker or on the wing. Igli Tare acquired him from Chelsea last summer, seeing the Frenchman as an opportunity not to be missed when Chelsea decided to offer a discount on their initial €50m asking price.
In the end, €38m plus bonuses was enough, which the director saw as a victoy. It’s also a victory for Massimiliano Allegri, who played him even when all the critics were against it, because the player needed to be protected and supported, as well as the investment.
All the rumours of a possible departure didn’t help things, and Nkunku felt the feeling of being put on the market just four months after his arrival. At the same time, he held firm, rejecting offers from Fenerbahçe, Roma and Napoli. His post-match words were revealing, too.
Nkunku’s mind and heart are now focused solely on the pitch. What about the future? At the end of the season, the former Chelsea man will speak directly with the club to determine whether or not they have faith in his performance and abilities. Based on last night, that faith can grow a lot.
His pass to loftus 1v1 was reallly nice.. he could and should had 2 assist to his name
A pity we have never seen him in his role, which is a second striker next to a physical n9 like Fulkurg. He still has to spend too much time with the back to the goal.
To play devils advocate, I think Bologna were supremely poor and maybe helped RLC and Nkunku play with ease/ make it look like they were good. I do want to see them play against Pisa and Como before deciding if we can rely on them vs the teams outside the top 5. I still think if we were playing Juve, Napoli, and Inter these two would have a worse time…
Bologna defence last noght was among the worst I’ve ever seen in serie A. So many open chances was created very easily by Milan.
Does it mean we only play well against non defensive style team
This. It was the worst “amateur hour” (and a half) I’ve seen in years. Their defense was absolute garbage.
The Rabiot goal was a perfect example. They donated the goal to Milan.
100% So much open space. Even half-injured Leao would have ran riot here.
Ridiculous post.
Not ridiculous at all. Judging our poorly-performing players against the poor display that Bologna put on isn’t a good gauge of progress.
Can Nkunku and RLC play well against the likes of Como or Juve or Inter? That’s when you see how well they perform.
You did say you will never give RLC credit, even if it’s warranted which = no credibility mate. None. RLC was recalled to England team btw, did you know that? But then, what does their coach know. Doesn’t fit your baseless narrative. RLC and Nkunku were very good and it bothers you. How many goals has Nkunku scored…that bothers you too? Get help mate.
You did say that 1899 which does make it seem like you carry grudges against players…
“…the likes of Como or Juve or Inter…”
ACM1899 would it surprise you to know that one of Nkunku’s 6 goals was against….Como? come on dude you’re making too easy for me.
Hopefully Nkunku and RLC aren’t going to the strike partnership for that long. If they have to go again against Pisa, so be it, but by the time we play Como hopefully one or two of the others have recovered.
They had a bad day yesterday not that their were not good, it does happen to us and any other good teams out there… Milan players took advantage of them from their first mistake and since from that moment they lost balance.
“It took longer than expected to settle in, but today Nkunku is ‘a completely different player’ compared to the version we saw in the first 15 league games. He attacks the goal, beats his man and shoots with power and precision, showcasing the repertoire of a complete attacker.”
Ehhh… No.
Shoots with power and precision? When? From the penalty spots? Where else have you seen him shoot with power and/or precision? All I saw yesterday is him dribbling the ball not even getting a shot. He have had plenty of chances but so far I’ve seen zero “shot with power/precision”. Even at point blank range he managed to head the ball directly towards the keeper (with no power nor precision – unless he was aiming at the keeper).
Also. He still falls over from even the slightest of touches and turns around begging the ref to come and rescue the damsel in distress.
“Complete attacker”.
😀 😀 😀 😀 😀
I feel like this is almost at the “Donald J. Trump getting the Nobel Peace prize with someone else’s name on it”.
Let’s not kid ourselves. Scoring 3 penalty goals doesn’t make anyone “a complete attacker”. 🤦♂️
*almost at the same level as…
I’d say the goal against Fiorentina showed power and precision.
People see what they want to see. You have a predetermined opinion that he is crap so that’s what you see.
Is he all of a sudden Milan’s best attacking player? No, obviously not. But he has quality. He’s showing it and his confidence is growing.
Maybe try a little positivity instead of just always complaining. It’s exhausting.
” You have a predetermined opinion that he is crap so that’s what you see. ”
Predetermined? Nope. Based on his actual performances. I’ve yet to see him play a good game as a striker. It’s not my fault he isn’t good enough in that role.
I’m a positive person but I’m also a down-to-earth type who won’t get his pants wet for overhyped performances. Exhausting is when you have to watch pretend-strikers playing as strikers instead of actual strikers.
Nope it’s predetermined…very clearly bb. How about you take it one game at a time? Btw how many goals does Nkunku have this season?
“….Exhausting is when you have to watch pretend-strikers playing as strikers instead of actual strikers.”
All the more reason why his recent performances stand out. He’s been asked to play out of position by his coach and like a solid professional he is doing just that. He’s not a 9. but still scoring goals. Leao and Pulisic are not 9s either. but play there with no complaints. no griping and moaning about not playing the roles that make them more effective. And they are all scoring goals!!! and getting ripped for it by the clown show in here.
” He’s not a 9. but still scoring goals.”
I’ve seen goalkeepers scoring more goals than Nkunku. 3 of his 5 goals are from penalties. Only 2 goals and a dozen MIA-matches as the #9 isn’t good enough for a team fighting for trophies.
But sure if you get your thrills with a C-class wannabe-striker I won’t stop you. I want more from our strikers because we’re not winning any trophies with such players.
It’s predetermined, you do this with players often year after year… I too doubt this mean Nkunku is “unlocked” and will become the goat striker for Milan but his form is undoubtedly up and he played a good game and no amount of “bologna were trash” will change that. Apparently he’s learning the 9. His movement is so much better this last month. If this form continues I could see Nkunku being useful next season
I knew for long that time is what he needed and he is a versatile and effective who can perform in every type of formation
For almost €40 million, 6 goals and 2 assists isn’t good enough. If there are better options in the summer, he will be sold, even for a loss.
There is the rest of the season. Hold off on that judgment.
Good things there’s like 18 games left to play. Btw that’s pace will lead to 20 goal contributions which for a 40 m player is the return you’d expect…
It is clear that there is nothing that Nkunku can do that will please Sempre Milan’s hate brigade. He had a great game and helped Milan secure 3 vital points and added yet another goal to his season tally. Meanwhile players who have done literally nothing like Ricci and Gimenez are praised as ‘very good’ players. Twilight Zone for sure!
“Meanwhile players who have done literally nothing like Ricci and Gimenez are praised as ‘very good’ players.”
LOL. There’s more to football than just scoring goals (especially from penalty spot). 🙂
bb you need some rest, that comment makes me think you are half asleep. What wins games bb?…I’ll give you a hint…begins with ‘G’ and it’s not Gimenez!!
I think a lot of people are getting carried away with Nkunku’s performance. He showed signs of life against poor opposition. Let’s just hope he keeps this trend up against better organized teams …
I know bologna are down but come on everyone is acting like they some Greek league team featuring Calabria. They still are coached by coach of the year italiano and they’ve have the players to finish higher than tenth. I know they looked bad but can we acknowledge that at least half the reason they looked so bad and then overwhelmed was because Milan were playing one of their bast games all season.
Nope, no one is getting carried away. He is playing well and scoring. Period. And still being vilified by the clown show.
Glad that Nkunku is contributing more but for yesterday, at least, Bologna’s Serie B-level defense was as much as contributing factor as Nkunku’s rising confidence.
I’d like to see (while Pulisic and Leao are out) Nkunku and Fullkrug paired together.
He’s got 6 goals this season though…are all those goals against Serie B defenses?…be careful answering…Fiorentina fans probably think they have a Serie A defense.
Nkunku has had several games in which he was a ghost, static and useless, unable to control the ball in first touch and finish well. Sure, he’s been out of position and had better (even brilliant) moments in his career when he was playing in-position and was healthy; then he had a long stretch of being injury-prone, and despite his goal tally (three of which from the spot) with Milan, he hasn’t shown the quality that he once had. He may very well be a player who, due to repeated injuries, will never fulfill the promise that he once held.
OK, he had a very good game against Bologna; on the other hand, Bologna did give him lots of space.
Is it possible that Nkunku will turn things around and become a CONSISTENTLY helpful player for AC Milan? Well, yes, that is not impossible. However, I don’t know yet if this will happen or not, especially, I don’t know it, after ONE good game against opponents who made some bad defensive mistakes. I would say that yes, he’s had signs of life, but even AFTER those signs, he had subsequent games in which he regressed to being a ghost. Sure, yesterday he again showed signs of life, and this time, more so; he had his best game so far, with the Milan jersey. So, that’s encouraging… but it needs to repeat consistently for us to conclude that signing him was a good move.
So, the bottom line is, the jury is still out.
We should give him the benefit of the doubt; it’s not easy to join another league, another club, another head coach, and other companions who speak a language that he doesn’t speak. Players need time to adapt to the Italian Serie A (which is a league with several good defenses, so it is specially hard for attackers coming from a different league) and Nkunku has been with us for only half a season, and when he joined he was far from being in an ideal physical condition.
But can ONE game be seen as proof that Nkunku has already made it and is a “complete attacker”? Obviously, it can’t.
So the jury is still out, and subsequent games (especially against better teams) will bring clarity to whether or not Nkunku will justify the high investment the club has placed on him. To be continued.
Jury is indeed out but let’s not act like those penalties weren’t well taken and aren’t worth the same as an open play goal (which after last year I won’t take for granted anymore 😭). We can no longer act like it’s be more bad than good. His performances have been on an up for over a month and it seems he’s figuring out how to position himself relative to the rest of the team. If he gets above 15 goal contributions which at this point seems likely then I feel like minimum expectations have been met. All that said meet minimum expectations doesn’t mean he’s the striker. Milan still needs a proper 9 and personally I’d like to see Nkunku as a winger in a 3 man front more so than the 9 in a 2 man attack
Why does Nkuku have to be a complete forward? He just needs to score and assist goals…he’s doing that isn’t he? 6 goals so far actually. And surprise surprise not all 6 were against Bologna…including a last minute match saver against Fiorentina. We have one 9 in the team…Gimenez, and he can’t score. What do you think of him then?
Fullkrug is definitely a 9.
Yes, forgot about him.
Gimenez was playing with a chronic ankle injury, until he needed surgery. However played the game knows that ankle issues profoundly affect first touch control, turning and shooting, and shooting accuracy, precisely the areas Santi was struggling with. He’s had good stretches in his career; he hasn’t suddenly unlearned how to play football. I still hope that after he fully recovers from surgery and rehab, once he is no longer hindered by a chronic ankle issue, he will show his true value.
Typo: I meant whoever, not however.
Glad he gas scored some pks but i think everyone can agree that the balloon celebration is annoying…
yes it is, very annoying.