Christian Pulisic is listed on the Milan website as weighing 73kg or 161lb, but Rafael Leão lifted him off the floor like a dad with his kid at school sports day, hugging him right up into the air. When you have been carrying a team’s attack for as long as the Portuguese has, anything else feels light by comparison.
Leão has been Milan’s top scorer and assist-provider in Serie A for two seasons running – though he did share the first of those titles with Olivier Giroud in 2021-22 – a blessing and a curse for his team. He seemed to win games on his own at times, but the Rossoneri also became predictable, forcing play through him. When injury forced Leão to miss the Champions League semi-final first leg against Inter, there was no one else able to provide a spark.
