SEVEN FOR RAFA | OneFootball

In total, Rafael Leão has scored seven goals in competitive matches against Cagliari (six in Serie A and one in the Coppa Italia), making the Sardinian side, together with Fiorentina, the team he has scored against most often in the Italian top flight. The first of his goals against the Rossoblù came on 11 January 2020. It was a crucial match, with Zlatan Ibrahimović making his first start of his new Rossoneri spell and Cagliari sitting above AC Milan in the table at the time. In that match, Rafa opened the scoring in the 46th minute, latching onto a pass from Castillejo before seeing his deflected effort loop over the goalkeeper. Then, when Ibra added a second, Leão ran over to embrace the man he described as his “big brother”. More than a year and a half later, it finished AC Milan 4-1 Cagliari on 29 August 2021. Leão restored the Rossoneri’s lead after Tonali’s opener and Deiola’s equaliser, scoring with a shot that wrong-footed Radunović thanks to a deflection off Brahim Díaz. 

A long time passed before 2 January 2024, when AC Milan and Cagliari met in the Coppa Italia, with the match ending 4-1 once again. Rafa came off the bench and scored the Rossoneri’s fourth in the 91st minute, embarking on a solo run before finding the far corner with a clinical finish. A few months later, on 11 May 2024, in another emphatic win over Cagliari - this time 5-1 at San Siro - the Portugal international, who has been named in his country’s 2026 World Cup squad, took centre stage again. Leão made it 4-1 in the 83rd minute, timing his run to perfection to beat the offside trap. Then came his brace on 9 November 2024 in Cagliari 3-3 AC Milan. Leão scored twice in the first half: the first with a delicate lob over the goalkeeper from a Reijnders assist, and the second after expertly rounding the goalkeeper.

Match kits, clothing, accessories, gift ideas and much more: visit the AC Milan online Store!