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FBL-ITA-SERIEA-LAZIO-MILANAFP

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Milan: anger over Leao’s substitution. Tare is baffled: “What on earth? Look at what he’s doing…”

A defeat that has taken its toll on Milan’s morale and league position, with their Scudetto hopes now seemingly dashed for good following the loss at the Stadio Olimpico against Lazio. But beyond the result itself, there is another issue that is likely to be the subject of much debate: the timing of Rafael Leão’s substitution.

Let’s rewind for a moment and return to what happened in the 67th minute of the match at the Stadio Olimpico, on matchday 29 of the Serie A season.

  • LEAO'S ANGER

    In the 67th minute of the match, Rossoneri manager Massimiliano Allegri – with Milan trailing by a goal scored by Gustav Isaksen – decided to reshuffle his attacking line-up. The Livorno-born coach opted for a substitution: Rafael Leão came off, with both Christopher Nkunku and Niclas Fullkrug coming on (the latter replacing Fofana).

    And the Rossoneri number 10 did not take his manager’s decision very well – to put it mildly: after seeing the board, Leao walked towards the bench, protesting loudly at the choice: Rossoneri captain Mike Maignan ran towards his teammate to console and calm him down, but Leao would have none of it, shaking his head and almost refusing Allegri’s embrace.

    As reported by DAZN, Leao appears to say to Allegri: “Coach, leave me on, there are 20 minutes left,” before kicking a few water bottles on the bench.

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  • LOOK PERPLEXED

    And as shown in the DAZN footage – as also reported by *La Gazzetta dello Sport* and our colleagues at *MilanNews*Milan’s sporting director Igli Tare was also captured in the stands last night, looking visibly perplexed, whilst Allegri tried to console Leao by hugging him at the touchline.

    The cameras captured the reaction of the sporting director of the club based in Via Aldo Rossi to what was unfolding on the pitch: “What on earth, how can he…”, the Rossoneri executive appears to be mouthing. It is difficult to tell who he was referring to, but all suspicions point to the Portuguese number 10.

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