This evening, at 8:45 PM, Milan will take the field against Bologna in the opening match of the 36th round of Serie A. Both teams will meet again on May 14, in Rome, to play the Coppa Italia final.
As reported by Corriere dello Sport, this evening Joao Felix is expected to start. With Leao suspended, the Portuguese will take his place in the front three: he hasn’t started since March 30 against Napoli. Since then, many appearances on the bench, 0 assists and 0 goals (not even as a substitute).
However, Conceicao wants to give the boy one last chance: even before the season ends, in fact, there is already talk about his future, with rumors from Brazil suggesting he is close to Flamengo.
In any case, today’s match represents a true last resort for the class of ’99: at San Siro, on home turf, he can leave everything behind and play with the right carefree attitude to excite the fans in attendance.
The boy’s technical quality is unquestionable: pace, dribbling, and vision of play are just some of his best traits. During his debut at San Siro against Roma, he delivered a more than convincing performance, topped off with a beautiful goal. It could have been a turning point for both the Portuguese player and the Milan environment in general. It was January, and the season could still have been turned around (just think of Roma themselves, who after a disastrous start are now fighting for a place in the next Champions League).
Unfortunately, though, neither Joao nor Milan have been revived: the Portuguese has repeatedly started but has failed to make an impact. Two matches remain vivid in memory, which probably led Conceicao to doubt the boy’s ability to handle the pressure of certain games, as pointed out by MilanPress.it.
Champions League, Feyenoord-Milan and Milan-Feyenoord: in both the first leg and the return leg, Joao Felix started. Milan was playing for its season, in February, and advancing to the next round was a must: in the end, unfortunately, Milan was eliminated. Watching the game, especially the return leg, it was clear how the Portuguese is not capable of managing certain matches and stages. Already before, with Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, and Chelsea, this flaw had emerged — and if the Milan adventure was supposed to reignite the talent glimpsed during his Benfica days, in the end it only confirmed what many thought about the class of ’99: "he is technically brilliant, a talent, but fades too quickly."
In short, Joao Felix will be yet another crystal-clear talent who passed through Milan but was unable to make an impact on the pitch and in the hearts of the Rossoneri fans.
