AC Milan must believe in their ability to produce a comeback in the Scudetto race, but they need the best version of Rafael Leao in order to have a chance.
According to what Tuttosport (via MilanNews) are reporting today, the fixtures for the next few weeks could be Milan’s friend. Due to the Supercoppa Italia, Inter will be behind in games and they will play Atalanta later, who they were meant to face this weekend.
With a victory tonight, therefore, Stefano Pioli’s team would move within six points of Inter with the match between the Nerazzurri and Juventus on the horizon on 4 February which will inevitably take points away from one of the two teams, if not both.
Furthermore, at the end of April Milan will challenge both Simone Inzaghi’s and Max Allegri’s men in quick succession. In short, great consistency, a lot of consistency and even a pinch of luck are needed but the Rossoneri, on paper, can still hope for a comeback.
It will also be necessary for Milan’s best players to perform like that, starting with Rafael Leao who is certainly not having a great moment. Pioli yesterday was keen to defend the performances of the winger in his press conference.
“He is playing much more for the team, his key passes and his assists have increased,” he said. But it is obvious – as the coach himself later clarified – that for a forward, goals are everything.
The No.10 has not scored a goal in the league since last September 23rd, which is far too long, and he has also had few shots on target. The hope is that Zlatan Ibrahimovic can also play an important role as a motivator as already happened in the past.
