Milan’s Rafael Leao reveals rejecting Inter | OneFootball

Sometimes, there are intriguing ‘sliding doors’ moments in Serie A heritage, when a player joins one club after a bitter rival has missed out. Milan’s Rafael Leao has emerged as one recent instance, after revealing his failed switch from Lille to Inter.

As reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport, the Rossoneri’s Portuguese international, who is currently sidelined with a right calf injury, has been spending his downtime looking back at his career.

As a guest on the Say Less podcast, the AC Milan forward revealed a behind-the-scenes story that could have radically changed his career path: his failed move to the Nerazzurri.

In the summer of 2019, Leao had already been lighting up Ligue 1. His eight goals and two assists in 24 league outings had the big clubs circling, and it seemed that his next move was set if it wasn’t for some careful consideration.

He explained on the podcast, “The sporting director (Luis Campos) told me they were about to sell me to Inter. I said no, I wanted to stay another year to grow and consolidate my position. He insisted: he talked about money, about opportunities. But I didn’t change my mind.”

Clearly focused on the football and his ever-improving all-round game, Leao was determined to stay at Lille. However, these plans quickly changed when a club close to his heart came calling with a living legend in tow.

“After a few weeks, the director came back to me: ‘Milan is here.’ I immediately said yes. Two days later, he told me he had a concrete offer and that someone wanted to call me. It was Paolo Maldini, on video. He told me: ‘You have to come, we’re ready to take you.’ I couldn’t refuse.”

“As a child, I watched Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Kakà, Seedorf: they were history. And then the seven Champions League titles, second only to Real Madrid. Between Milan and Inter, I’d choose Milan a hundred times over.”

Since that moment, Leao and Milan have proved to be a fine combination, with the Almada-born talent scoring 71 goals in 261 all-competition games. His absence is certainly one that fans won’t want to continue for too long, as he looks to try and better his 2024-25 numbers of eight goals and eight assists in 34 Serie A outings.

GIFN | Max Bradfield