The impact Adrien Rabiot has had so far has been remarkable, although it comes as no surprise. Last season, the French midfielder was already one of the key figures and pillars of Milan’s midfield, alongside Luka Modrić.
Under Massimiliano Allegri, Adrien was the engine and driving force of the team, both at Milan and Juventus. His pace, physical strength and one particular quality that can always make a difference: his ability to make late runs into the penalty area behind the defenders. That is exactly how, against Torino, after returning from holiday and with only a few days of training under his belt, Rabiot scored his first goal of the season under Amorim and for his new Milan side.
Rabiot will be Milan’s new offensive engine. Not a striker, but rather a link between midfield and the attacking third. This is how Amorim sees him: a towering player with a powerful stride, capable of driving forward, shooting and scoring from virtually any position. We saw him strike at the far post, almost like a centre-forward, against Torino on the opening matchday.
Against his former club Juventus, we will see Rabiot in his complete form.
His defensive contribution will also be necessary, but it remains particularly interesting to see how the new Rossoneri coach views Rabiot in this area of the pitch. It is a role that ‘The Duke’ had already played at Marseille under De Zerbi. There, the experiment was constructive, although not exceptional. With this new Milan side, however, we have never seen Rabiot quite like this before. The curiosity is growing, and the match against Juventus will be the first real test of the season to assess Rabiot’s characteristics in this role.
A record for Adrien Rabiot?
Indeed, according to Opta Facts, Adrien Rabiot, who both scored and provided an assist in Milan’s previous away match in this league campaign (against Torino), could become the first player of non-Italian sporting nationality in Serie A history to score in a Juventus-Milan fixture while wearing both clubs’ shirts. Overall, in the last 10 years, Manuel Locatelli and Leonardo Bonucci have achieved this feat.
