Rafael Leao was the undisputed man of the match against Inter yesterday, but La Gazzetta dello Sport suggests he should be even more consistent: ‘If he had Ronaldo’s hunger…’
The Portuguese star scored two goals and delivered an assist in the Rossoneri’s 3-2 over their city rivals Inter yesterday.
Italian sports papers crowned him as the best player in the match, rating him 9/10 (Tuttosport and Corriere dello Sport) and 8.5/10 (Gazzetta).
However, Sebastiano Vernazza, one of La Gazzetta dello Sport’s correspondents at the Stadio Meazza, wrote that it is still hard to ‘trust’ Leao due to his inconsistency.
“This time, he scored two goals and assisted Olivier Giroud,” he wrote in this morning’s Pagelle.
“His second goal is something that only a few players can do. It requires speed, ball control and the ability to dribble many opponents, not just one. If he had Ronaldo’s hunger…”
Leao was named Serie A Player Of The Season in 2021-22 following Milan’s first title in 11 years.
However, he had struggled in the first four games of the current campaign scoring just one goal and offering disappointing performances, especially against Atalanta and Sassuolo.
As per Tuttosport, Leao is “illegal” for Serie A, but the Turin-based paper also pointed out that the Portuguese star doesn’t always show the same commitment. Il Corriere dello Sport commented on Leao’s performance saying that he has now become Simone Inzaghi’s nightmare.