2 hours ago
2
Massimiliano Allegri has decided to call up the youngster Cheveyo Balentien for tonight’s game between AC Milan and Lecce, adding numbers to the defence.
Seeing as Milan are lacking some squad depth at the moment, due to injuries and signings that still need to be made, Allegri decided to call up the 18-year-old Balentien for tonight’s game. Indeed, the manager has already taken a liking to him.
As highlighted by Gazzetta dello Sport, it has been a roller-coaster month for Balentien: he first had a trial with PSG, moved to Milan Futuro, made his Serie D (Coppa Italia) debut, and then spent a week training with the first team. Finally, he has received his first call-up for a Serie A game.
Balentien is a right-back who combines pace with physicality, exactly the type of player that Allegri likes. At 1.90 meters tall, Milan announced his arrival just eight days, signing him from the youth academy of ADO Den Haag.
It’s a Dutch club that has previously developed talents such as Eljero Elia (formerly of Juventus) and Jerdy Schouten (formerly of Bologna). In Balentien’s debut in the Coppa Italia Serie D, he played 25 minutes as a substitute and nearly provided an assist for Andrea Magrassi.
Allegri clearly noticed him and decided to add him to the squad for the week leading up to the Lecce match. Milan will be without Rafael Leao, Alex Jimenez and Ardon Jashari, while Christian Pulisic isn’t at his best. Clearly not ideal, but at least it has given Balentien a lot of joy.
English (US) ·