Santiago Gimenez’s 30-minute stint off the bench against Roma was only meant to be a teaser of what he can do, but it would be safe to say AC Milan fans are excited.
Calciomercato.com have written a piece titled: ‘How did Gimenez’s debut go? In 31 minutes he was already everything that Morata couldn’t be’. Against Empoli, barring any surprises, he will be a starter, so last night was a sort of dress rehearsal for what is to come.
The 31 minutes that Sergio Conceiçao gave him in his baptism at San Siro, as a substitute for Tammy Abraham against Roma, were enough to understand what Gimenez can be. He did not score, but the numbers say it all.
The Mexican had one assist, one key pass, 14 touches of the ball, four successful passes and three attempted dribbles. However, he only one duel out of six on the ground and one aerial duel, losing the ball seven times.
Having shaken off the natural emotion of making his debut, waiting for a better athletic condition and a deeper understanding with his team-mates, he gave the impression of being everything that has been missing in the last six months.
He attacked the space in behind regularly, he looked for openings between the opposing central defenders, he showed boldness in his individual plays and the desire to make things happen. Paradoxically, in half an hour of Gimenez we saw a lot of what Alvaro Morata never showed.
A bigger sample size will be needed and there will be more challenging tests ahead, though the signs are good. Above all, the through balls he provided for Alex Jimenez’s offside goal and Joao Felix’s debut goal demonstrate a good starting platform.
