Stefano De Grandis, Sky journalist, spoke about Milan’s performance against Juventus, focusing in particular on Gimenez and Rafael Leao, the most debated player at the moment. Here are his words.
“In my opinion Gimenez didn’t even play badly, the problem is that Milan were not dominant in the game. They were the more solid side, who when they won the ball back, countered quickly. If we look at the move that led to Gimenez hitting the crossbar, it comes from Milan winning the ball fast, switching play, and Gimenez breaking through alone. In that moment Juve’s defense looked lost, they cannot allow Gimenez to cut all the way through, he practically slalomed past them. Gimenez yesterday did not even play badly. Modric is without question Milan’s best player, he has the ability to create. He gives Leao the ball to score, and he is important also because playing as a regista allows Fofana to play in his true role, as a mezzala. Fofana is physically strong and makes good runs. Last year he had to act as a playmaker and was wasted, much less effective. So Modric is vital, both for his personality and for setting everyone else into their natural role.”
On Rafael Leao:
"For me, Leao is talented, he gets more goal chances. He had one where he tried to chip the keeper from distance and two more where he missed. On Modric’s second pass, he makes the run, Modric gives him the ball in front of goal, but he is not a finisher. Immobile, who was technically less skilled than Leao, always scored those goals. If Leao gets those chances, he is not the type to score loads. He makes the right runs, but the finishing is average. Where he is decisive is when he starts wide, has 50 meters of space to show his physical strength, beats his man with a trick, pushes past, and then decides what to do. But that is in speed, not with simple finishing. For me, this is Milan’s limit. In this sense, Juve and Milan are good teams, but I think the one that has to chase Napoli is the one in black and blue stripes."
