On the eve of the big match with Napoli, Massimiliano Allegri sent a warning to his entire bench. “A team reaches its goals or not depending on the impact of the substitutes who come on during the match.” In short, changes will be decisive for his Milan’s ambitions too. Looking at the bench for tomorrow at the Allianz Stadium against Juventus, things do not look too bad for Max on paper. Who else in Italy can bring on players like Rafa Leao and Christopher Nkunku? We are talking about the best player in Serie A 2021-22 and the Bundesliga MVP of that same season. Not two random names.
The new Rafael Leao
In Turin, Leao will show off a new afro look. Milan fans, though, will care more about his physical progress. Against Napoli, the Portuguese forward returned to the pitch after 42 days, without shining and even annoying Allegri a bit for his passive attitude when out of possession. Leao himself admitted on Twitch that he needs to do more. The calf injury he suffered in the season opener against Bari in the Coppa Italia kept him out for the first part of the campaign and affected his condition. It was natural that he would not be at full speed right away, and after the Napoli game, Allegri admitted that Leao was behind schedule. Another week of training should help him look sharper at the Stadium. Max’s hope is that the number 10 can change the game coming off the bench with his trademark accelerations, something that was not possible against Napoli due to Milan’s numerical disadvantage after Estupiñán’s red card. Leao also has a personal barrier to break: he has never scored or provided an assist at Juventus’ stadium. Six appearances between Serie A and Coppa Italia, with Milan winning only once, in 2023, 1-0 with a Giroud header. In 2021’s 3-0 win, Leao sat on the bench for the full 90 minutes, as pointed out by La Gazzetta dello Sport.
Trust...
For Nkunku, it will be his first time against Juventus. The former Chelsea striker did not feature in the win over Napoli, but Allegri has seen progress in training and, barring new setbacks like Estupiñán’s dismissal last week, his entry during the match is almost certain. Nkunku scored his first goal for Milan in the Coppa Italia against Lecce at San Siro, with his trademark balloon celebration, but he has yet to score in Serie A, where he has played only 33 minutes so far. Against Bologna, it took him only two minutes to win a penalty that was wrongly canceled by VAR. He had already taken the ball to shoot, and without that major mistake, we might not be speaking about his wait for a first league goal. No big issue, those who know him are aware it is only a matter of time. In the meantime, he got good news this week: Didier Deschamps called him back to the French national team after almost a year, his last call-up being in November of last season. Another sign of growing confidence around him, from the national coach as well as Allegri.
Leao and Nkunku together?
It is impossible to predict whether Leao or Nkunku will come on first in Turin, as it will depend on the match itself. Easier to picture, though, is Milan at some point lining up with both Rafa and Christo leading the attack. A new and explosive partnership, since they have not yet played a single minute together, that could trouble a tired Juve side, also drained by Champions League duty. Leao’s speed combined with Nkunku’s intelligence in reading and exploiting spaces could make the difference. Matches are often decided in the last half hour, with the freshness and quality of substitutions. Exactly as Max explained, a coach who built his reputation on the right changes at the right time.
