The “twelfth man” has arrived in town. Adrien Rabiot chose the number 12, almost as if to underline that he is the extra man, the player who was strongly wanted by Massimiliano Allegri to complete his midfield department.
"When what happened in Marseille happened (the fight with teammate Rowe that led Olympique to sideline him), Max called me right away to talk about his project at Milan." A lightning-fast deal, and here is Rabiot in Milan, after the international break where he got minutes in his legs with France. “I’m here to win the Scudetto,” said Adrien.
Priorities
For Milan and Allegri, Rabiot gave up playing in the Champions League for the third season in a row. A rare choice for a player of his level. Just think of Akanji, who “snubbed” Milan’s approach and instead joined Inter precisely to take part in Europe’s richest competition. "This year it’s more important to play for Milan than to play the Champions League somewhere else just for the sake of it. I had the chance to join a club already in Europe, but I chose to come here because next year, when we are in the Champions League, we will be able to achieve something important. Winning the Cup might be difficult, but doing something great is possible." Adrien believes in it, also because he is convinced he can bring leadership to the midfield. "My favorite role is mezzala (central midfielder who pushes forward), but I can play anywhere in midfield or even further up, as I did at Marseille with De Zerbi." At OM he reached 9 goals in 29 appearances in Ligue 1 2024–25, his record in a single league season. "Yes, but now I want to score at least as much as last year," the Frenchman made clear.
Adrien Rabiot focuses on the pitch:
The Velodrome chapter ended abruptly with that locker-room incident in Rennes on August 15. "A pub-style brawl," OM coach Roberto De Zerbi called it. Yet Rabiot holds no grudge against Rowe: "He’s a good guy. We wished each other well when I signed for Milan and he signed for Bologna." By irony of fate, the two will face each other tomorrow night at San Siro. "What happened was a locker-room thing that can happen anywhere. It didn’t change the relationship I have with him. I’ll be happy to see him and he’ll be happy to see me." Rowe has already landed in Italy and was on the bench in the second matchday against Como, without coming on. Rabiot, instead, hopes to go straight into Milan’s starting XI. "I have a big desire to play, I’m ready, I’m trained, I’m here to give a hand," said Adrien. "If the coach puts me on right away, I’ll do everything to help the team win on Sunday (tomorrow). Yes, I hope to start…” In yesterday afternoon’s training, the Frenchman’s chances grew. Allegri found him in good shape, confirming Thursday’s test impressions. On top of that, Max is considering using Christian Pulisic only as a substitute, like in Lecce before the break. Captain America is not at his best and returned from national duty with a sore hand. Nothing serious, but enough for Allegri to think about pushing Loftus-Cheek up in support of Gimenez, opening a spot in midfield for his protégé Rabiot.
Allegri and Rabiot...
The two spent three years together at Juventus. "With Allegri I shared a lot, I felt good with him right away. He has ambition and the desire to win, the right mentality, passion for football. All things I also have. There was an immediate understanding. When he left Juventus we kept in touch, we even met up. For me, before being a great coach, he is a great person, and I’m very happy to find him again here," said Rabiot in a message of affection for the coach nicknamed Cavallo Pazzo (Crazy Horse) in Turin. In Milan, they are waiting only to see him run like in the good old days.
Source: La Gazzetta dello Sport newspaper in this morning's print edition
