The news first emerged yesterday evening and it is being confirmed this morning by various sources: Rafael Leao will start tonight’s game against Udinese from the bench.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below), the decision has nothing to do with the fact that Leao’s words with Portugal attracted a lot of attention, given he spoke about feeling trust from the head coach Roberto Martinez.
Nonetheless, Fonseca’s choice remains very strong because the winger will not be a starter tonight at San Siro against Udinese. No punishment is behind the decision, but simple management of resources in view of weeks in which Milan will play seven games in 21 days.
Club Brugge arrive on Tuesday evening then a few days later there is a tricky trip to last season’s surprise package Bologna, so it really is a case of selective rotation from Fonseca, but everyone at the club is now expecting a significant reaction.
They hope it will be bit like what happened after he was benched against Lazio and then came on in the second half and scored the equaliser (his only goal of the season so far). In his place tonight it will be Noah Okafor on the left wing, who has a new chance to impress.
We will see how tonight’s game goes, but it is clear that the coach’s choice to leave out the strongest and most representative player of his Milan is a very strong one. The club stands by him and are convinced that this decision will not lead to any definitive rift between player and coach.
Leao must react and if he does, everything will return to normal in a few days, when Brugge will arrive. Barring any sensational surprises, Rafa will return to the starting line-up for that game, which is a must-win in the scheme of the Champions League campaign.
