Milan legend slams Leao’s exclusions: Fonseca should avoid ‘masochism’ | OneFootball

Rafael Leao’s exclusion from Milan’s staring XI in their 2-0 home defeat to Napoli marked yet another controversial episode in his relationship with Paulo Fonseca, and former defender and club legend Mauro Tassotti urged the Portuguese manager to ‘recover’ him, as the Rossoneri ‘can’t do without’ their number 10.

Despite Pulisic last-minute absence further weakening an already depleted team, Fonseca stood by his decision to bench Leao again as he only came on in the second half, with the visitors 2-0 ahead, and struggled to make any impact on the game as Napoli already looked in full control.

While Tassotti admits that the Portuguese forward has an ‘annoying’ attitude at times, he believes Leao remains the ‘strongest’ player in the team, and there is ‘something wrong’ if Fonseca keeps him out for a technical choice.

Tassotti: Milan ‘can’t do without Leao’, Fonseca shouldn’t get to ‘masochism’

“Milan can’t do it without him, he’s too important for the team,” Tassotti claimed in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport.

“I don’t know the situation inside, but keeping him on the bench as a punishment is one thing, but if Leao stays out due to a technical choice then there’s something wrong.

“If you have a great player in your squad you should put it in a condition to express to his best. It’s okay to make rotations at times to spur him to do better, but without getting to masochism.”

It’s still uncertain whether Leao will get his place back in the starting line-up at Monza, but Tassotti thinks he should be on the pitch ‘as long as possible’.

“To be fair, I would’ve expected to see him start against Napoli too,” the former defender admitted.

“He would’ve certainly created dangers on the left, maybe someone else could’ve been asked a sacrifice to cover up.

“There’s Morata already running like a desperate. Leao always played great games against Napoli, if he feels good, you should keep him on the pitch as long as possible.

“If he’s not fit, it’s a different thing. But he’s the strongest player in the team, if he can, he must play.

“He could’ve taken advantage of his speed [against Napoli]. In my opinion, he should do it even more, especially when he doesn’t have the ball.

“He wants the ball on his feet too often. He can easily run past his opponents; he should run without the ball and then shoot with a single touch, avoiding all those dribblings. He must get more complete: in this way, he would scare his opponents even more.

“The manager should fully recover him. From here until the end of the season, he should spend his time on the pitch, not on the bench.

“He has his own features, we’ll never see Leao killing himself by making defensive tackles. Behaviours are a different thing, and it’s right that Leao must have a proper attitude.

“However, he won’t ever be a generous player; it’s a matter of character. Morata has always been like that, he’s not.

“There are players, that often share his same characteristics, that have a similar attitude – Cassano comes to my mind, you have to be on his back all the time.”

MILAN, ITALY – OCTOBER 22: Rafael Leao of AC Milan leaves the field after substitution during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD3 match between AC Milan and Club Brugge KV at Stadio San Siro on October 22, 2024 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

Tassotti also conceded that Leao still has several aspects to work on but that his manager plays a key role in ‘persuading’ him to improve his game.

“Rafa exaggerates at times, he plays the ball back very slowly with his head dangling: it’s annoying for the fans,” he said.

“You can make that pass more quickly and with a different attitude, but persuading him to do things in a certain way is within the manager’s tasks.

“The teammates can also push him and he’ll understand sooner or later, as he’s not stupid.

“I would’ve expected more harmony between the two [Leao and Fonseca], I thought the relationship would be easier as they speak the same language.”