AC Milan face the first of four crunch encounters with a trip to Juventus this weekend as the Champions League qualification battle continues.
Before a ball is even kicked in anger, the most important thing for Stefano Pioli at this stage is to select the right starting XI and to deploy the correct tactics which result in three points.
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MilanNews report, via Sky Sport Italia, that there are two areas in which he isn’t yet decided. One is in defence, the other is who starts on the left wing out of Ante Rebic and Rafael Leao.
The simple answer without any hesitation is, Rebic. However, there is clear and obvious reasoning to back up that argument too.
The Croatian international hasn’t been in top form this season, but he’s still managed seven goals and eight assists in 30 appearances.
He’s scored two of those goals in the last five Serie A games, and when combined with his work ethic, hunger, commitment, ability to apply pressure on opponents and the knack of scoring great goals out of nothing, the all-round package that comes with the 27-year-old makes him a key cog in this side.
In comparison, Leao has seven goals and five assists in 37 outings.
That’s a fairly decent return, but he hasn’t got a single assist to his name in his last 11 league appearances, while his one goal in that same timeframe came as a late substitute in the win over Parma.
The numbers don’t lie and the work-rate is going to be a crucial factor in these games as ultimately as cliche as it is, it could come down to who wants it most.
Leao’s attitude and lack of effort in tracking back while having to be constantly encouraged and reminded of his duties by Pioli from the sidelines is surely something that the Milan boss could do without for such an important run of games.
Especially as we have the odds stacked against us given our dire form in Turin in recent years, we need a player like Rebic who will give it his all for 90 minutes and has the quality to make a decisive impact at any moment in the game.
If Pioli goes for Leao, then the pair will hope that he makes a telling contribution at some stage otherwise that particular decision leaves them both open to more fierce criticism.
