Samuele Ricci is a new AC Milan player.
The Italian midfielder is set to inherit a significant legacy: that of restoring continuity to an Italian-flavored midfield that Milan has somewhat lacked in recent years. His arrival aligns with a strategy that has recently seen the likes of Sandro Tonali take center stage.
The most immediate and inevitable comparison is indeed with Tonali, who at Milan embodied the role of the modern holding midfielder—capable of playing in front of the defense with quality, stamina, and a leadership spirit. Ricci, however, is not a carbon copy of the midfielder now at Newcastle. Less physical and more technically refined, Ricci is a deep-lying playmaker who favors ball control and clean build-up from the back over the combative intensity and box presence that Tonali used to offer, as relayed by those at Milannews.it.
Milan, a club with a long-standing tradition of valuing Italian talent, once again shows its intent to invest in a homegrown player who can grow under the lights of San Siro and under the guidance of a coach capable of enhancing his vision of the game. In recent years, Milan has let several Italian prospects slip away—most notably Locatelli, now a key figure at Juventus—but with Ricci, the club could regain that technical continuity and Italian identity in the heart of the pitch.
