3 hours ago
22
Some more information has emerged regarding the post-match discussion that took place between Rafael Leao and Massimiliano Allegri.
According to Sky, Allegri’s ‘therapy’ with Leao has begun and he ‘intends to wake up the Portuguese’. Last Sunday, it was already clear on the pitch – or rather, from what phones in the stands captured on the benches, so close to the fans at the Stadium – how much Allegri wanted to put pressure on Leao.
The Allegri treatment
As he was getting ready to come on, Allegri shouted to him: “Please, don’t p*ss me off.” The performance didn’t live up to the coach’s expectations, and so at the end of the match ‘a rather heated exchange took place in the dressing room’.
The coach ‘reprimanded’ the player for his attitude when he went on. Allegri wants the Portuguese to focus more on the match, not only in front of goal, but also in terms of the tasks and movements he is asked to perform as a centre-forward.
In general, Allegri is demanding more commitment from Leao , a theme that has been repeated several times in recent years at Milan, even under other coaches like Pioli, Fonseca and Conceicao.
Allegri even tried to motivate Rafa in the press conference preceding Juventus-Milan. When asked if he was the right coach to bring out the best in Leao, Allegri passed the buck to the striker: “Leao has to help himself, help yourself and God will help you, they say … He knows this must be a crucial season for him.”
Allegri doesn’t want to give the player any excuses, but he knows full well that Leao isn’t yet 100% fit. He has had a calf problem that kept him out for 40 days, an injury that risks affecting him on the pitch for fear of a possible relapse.
However, what’s being criticised in Rafa isn’t his condition (which will gradually improve), but his way of playing the game, knowing full well that sometimes the way he is on the field frustrates fans. Allegri will try to correct that, and what happened on Sunday was not an argument or a rift.
English (US) ·