There is an indispensable leader at Milan, and it is not Luka Modric with his extraordinary aura. Nor is it Maignan, the captain who was decisive in the victory against Atalanta. The protagonist in question is a record-breaker, and it is not Gonçalo Ramos, despite the record fee spent to bring him in from PSG during the summer, nor is it the youngster Cisse, the surprise top scorer at the start of the Rossoneri's season. The indispensable one is Adrien Rabiot, who runs, fights, scores and makes his voice heard even after the 90th minute.
Impressive Numbers
Let's start on the pitch: with three goals and two assists in his latest appearances, Adrien has contributed to at least one goal in four consecutive matches for the first time in his career in Europe's top five leagues. He had never done so with Juventus, nor previously with PSG.
He has managed it at Milan, becoming the first midfielder to achieve this in Serie A wearing the Rossoneri shirt since Hakan Calhanoglu, back in December 2020.
And there is more: Rabiot is both the midfielder with the most goals scored in Serie A this season (four) and the one with the most goal contributions in the current league campaign (seven, with 4 goals and 3 assists). More generally, no midfielder has been involved in more goals across Europe's major leagues.
Adrien started on his debut in Turin: an assist and a goal. Another assist against Lazio, followed by goals in consecutive matches against Lecce, Sassuolo and Atalanta (including an assist against the latter); he also provided the touch that sent Cisse through on goal in the latest Europa League match in Salzburg, as pointed out via La Gazzetta dello Sport in this morning's print edition.
Rabiot delivers everywhere
Consistent performances while everything around him changes: Adrien delivers whether he is deployed further forward or as a central midfielder, as an attacking midfielder supporting Ramos or deeper to link the different departments of the team.
Two nights ago, he did everything, including directing strong words towards his teammates:
"With a second half like that, the first half, which was beautiful, means nothing. Fortunately, we won, but I don't know if we deserved it that much. We cannot collapse like that. It is not a physical issue but a mental one. We lowered our concentration. We need to improve our mentality. Those who come on must also give more."
The substitutes who came on Sunday were Estupinan, Jashari, Loftus-Cheek, Hutchinson and Tomori.
Competitive Fire
An eagerness that Rabiot had also shown, indeed especially, during the match, and which had led to him being booked for protesting.
This was followed by the goal that doubled Milan's lead, with a celebration dedicated... to the referee: before allowing himself to be embraced by his teammates, he passed close to Chiffi with a defiant expression.
Adrien did not, however, go unpunished, as Sarri, the coach of Milan's latest opponents Atalanta, had suggested:
"I discovered here that there are players who can tell the referee to f\*\*\* off..." he had said.
In reality, Rabiot was shown a yellow card and almost received a second one: he avoided being sent off thanks to the pressing intervention of his teammates, who moved him away from the danger zone.
Rossoneri Future
Gerry Cardinale, watching on television, obviously appreciated his performance. Now, the next commitment off the pitch will concern negotiations over a contract renewal.
His current contract is set to expire in the summer of 2028, with an option for an additional year.
An extension would push back the end of his time at Milan by a couple of seasons, with the usual possibility of extending the agreement for a further year.
