Off the back of a strong showing against Inter in the Coppa Italia, Saturday's fixture away to Bologna saw Milan newcomer Fikayo Tomori make his full debut where he put forth a tremendous effort in a 2-1 victory that fully embodied all the Englishman is capable of providing in aid to an ailing defence.
Baptized in the fire of a heated Milan Derby last week, Tomori entered at the 20th minute in relief of the injured Dane Simon Kjær.
Fully embracing of the opportunity to impose himself in Stefano Pioli's system, the 23-year old made an impression on a fanbase clamouring to see him shine.
Tomori, who arrived roughly a week ago on loan from Chelsea with an option to buy, pulled off a few key challenges to hold Inter's attacking assault in check and showed comfort in the four-man backline alongside Alessio Romagnoli.
Though the curtains were drawn on Milan's cup hopes as they succumbed to Christian Eriksen's last-gasp free-kick effort, there was plenty of buzz surrounding Tomori ahead of his full debut this weekend at Bologna in the league where it matters most.
After the opening whistle, the Canada-born defender was immediately called into action, quickly intervening on Nicolás Domínguez front post run that provided a bit of early trouble for Milan. Tomori's strong anticipation and reading of the game continued as he cleared his lines of any danger that could potentially come as a result of a weakly executed backpass from Davide Calabria. From that point forward, there was hardly ever a moment where Tomori seemed out of place or in an unfavorable position to deal with pressure.
The England international handled business in the air with 4 aerial battles won, closed down potentially exposed passing lines with 3 interceptions and executed multiple calculated tackles in some danger zones in and around the final third. But perhaps where Tomori stood out the most was his confidence coming off the line to both disrupt and administer play a bit further up the pitch, freeing Romagnoli to hold it down in a deeper area to avoid being exposed on the runs in behind.
Completing 61 passes at 90% success rate, Tomori played with the desire to penetrate Bologna's first line of pressure, breaking lines on several occasions that eventually saw numerous attacking sequences start in the midfield as a result.
Fully-adept as a ball-carrying centre-half, his speed and agility allow for more risk-taking to plunge forward on his end, while also offering himself to goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma as a wonderful outlet to play when building out the back.
A firm appraisal of his full performance over 90 minutes lends credence to a defensive talent who possesses many qualities in his locker.
Fikayo Tomori vs. Bologna:
90% pass accuracy
3 successful long balls
7 duels won
4 clearances
2 successful tackles
4 aerials won
3 interceptions
7 recoveriesEarning those stripes 🔴⚫️🏴 pic.twitter.com/joxLSucNgN
— Matt Santangelo 🤌🏼 (@Matt_Santangelo) January 30, 2021
Saturday's 2-1 win at the Stadio Renato Dall'Ara showcased Tomori to the Milan faithful who have sung his praises at every opportunity since the final whistle sounded. His pace, athleticism and technical quality are refreshing elements to add to Pioli's defensive depth chart, with each on display throughout an impressive exhibition that fully encapsulated all Milan have gained in their newest signing - and all Chelsea could potentially lose should his €28 million option be exercised in the summer.
Another in a long line of shrewd signings by Paolo Maldini and company.
