Brahim Diaz said it is ‘an honour’ to represent Milan and inherit Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s 21 jersey, while Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane advised him to play in Serie A.
The creative midfielder arrived on loan from Real Madrid, although an option to buy will probably be discussed along with a counter-option later in the season.
“My first impressions of being a Milan player are very positive. You can really tell what kind of club AC Milan is,” the 21-year-old told the official Rossoneri website.
Brahim Diaz said it is ‘an honour’ to represent Milan and inherit Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s 21 jersey, while Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane advised him to play in Serie A.
The creative midfielder arrived on loan from Real Madrid, although an option to buy will probably be discussed along with a counter-option later in the season.
“My first impressions of being a Milan player are very positive. You can really tell what kind of club AC Milan is,” the 21-year-old told the official Rossoneri website.
“It’s a privilege to be playing for such a big club with an incredible history and it’s clear how much the fans love their team.”
Brahim is the second Real Madrid player to join Milan after Theo Hernandez, who made the €20m transfer last year.
“I haven’t had the chance to talk to Theo Hernandez yet, but I expect he’ll give me a warm welcome in our first training session together. He’s played for Real Madrid too, so he knows how it feels and now we’re both in Italy.
“I think that I’ll settle in pretty quickly, because it’s an incredible group of players.”
Although he joined Real Madrid in January 2019 for €17m, Brahim spent most of his career at Manchester City’s youth academy.
“I worked with coaches like Pep Guardiola and Zidane, and I know they both played in Italy, but my last coach at Madrid was Zidane and he was really kind to me. He spoke highly of Italy and Serie A, while he really likes the city of Milan too.”
He’ll wear the 21 jersey, inherited from Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who has now taken on the iconic Nine.
“Wearing the shirt that Ibrahimovic wore last season is an honour and also a lot of pressure, because he is a Milan icon, but I’m happy with that and I’ll wear that shirt with passion.
“Above all, I want to play good football and entertain the Rossoneri fans. I think they’ll most appreciate my hard work, as I don’t believe talent is enough.
“Hopefully, we’ll have fun together with the runs that I make, both on the wings and through the centre. It’s all about balance on the pitch.
“I’m sure we’ll have a great year together.”
Image: @acmilan
"I want to entertain the Rossoneri fans"
Here's what @Brahim Díaz had to say in his first interview in Rossonero #ReadyToUnleash #SempreMilan pic.twitter.com/IrSvKWHG7B— AC Milan (@acmilan) September 5, 2020