As reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport, in the last previous match at San Siro a year ago against Juventus, Pioli surprised Allegri by moving Brahim Diaz to the right wing, replacing Charles De Ketelaere, and inserting a midfielder (Pobega for the occasion) to play in the attacking midfield behind Giroud. However, the real novelty was to allow Diaz to have "poetic license," to give him 'carte blanche' on how to move: always limited to the right side of the field but with the possibility of cutting inside, coming to pick up the ball low, or dictating the movement in depth. And it was this that threw a very buttoned-up Juventus defense into disarray. And this could be what Stefano Pioli tries again today: to give one of his most imaginative players the opportunity to roam and create plays from their flair.
Last year it was Brahim, this year it can only be Rafael Leao. What do they have in common? The number 10, of course, which, since football has been football, is synonymous with flair. The difference is that the Portuguese's zone is the opposite of where Brahim played a year ago, on the left. But even to him, and it has already been seen in this early season, he is given the freedom to move according to his flair: he can dictate the pass in depth in which nine times out of ten he has the mismatch of speed on the defender; he can cut inside and converge into the field; he can come to pick up the ball low to send the direct marker off balance. In short, the man for big matches must be Leao.
This year, in addition to Giroud, he also has an equivalent on the opposite wing: Pulisic's characteristics are very different, but the possibilities of unraveling the opposing defense with inventive plays are the same.
