Trouble brewing at Milan? Paulo Fonseca opens up on difficult Rafael Leao relationship following 2-0 loss to Napoli

Rafael Leao came off the bench against Napoli during Milan's recent 2-0 loss in the Serie A, but failed to prevent his side from falling to their third league loss of the season. The result leaves the Rossoneri in eighth place, with reports of a rift between Leao and manager Paulo Fonseca.

Fonseca has suffered a difficult start to life as Milan manager. In their opening nine games in Serie A, they have bagged just 14 points and find themselves in eighth place, outside European contention.

The poor run of form has coincided with Fonseca's decision to bench Leao in important games, drawing attention from the media. The former Roma boss, however, denied the rumours when asked about his relationship with the Portuguese international following the Napoli game.

"I don't want to go into details. I manage things with the players differently. There's no conflict between us, it's just the coach's decision. We try to motivate the players in different ways, then it's up to the players to put in the right amount of dedication: I don't have to beg them," Fonseca told DAZN (h/t Calciomercato).

When the reporter asked if he was talking about Leao, Fonseca provided a rather ambiguous answer: "I wasn't referring to Leao when I spoke of commitment. It's difficult to play with three wingers. [Christian] Pulisic doesn't play in Leao's position, [Noah] Okafor does. Today Leao came in well, he gave good answers, then if we're honest we look at Okafor's game and he played well. It's difficult for me to decide at the moment. Leao is working to get back into the lineup, for me this is the most positive thing."

Milan will visit Monza on Saturday, November 2, to revive their Serie A campaign. Next week, they'll face a stern test in the Champions League as defending champions Real Madrid will host them on November 5.