Shirt sales, goals, leadership – the new Milan is more Leao-centric than ever

AC Milan’s plans for the present and future revolve around Rafael Leao, and it is not just limited to his performances on the field either.

La Gazzetta dello Sport begin a report on Leao by confirming that Leao asked for the No.10 shirt which has been vacated by Brahim Diaz as part of the negotiations over the new contract he signed earlier in the month.

Leao adopting such an iconic number is a sort of completion of a path, accelerated exponentially since last season and which has led Milan to be a ‘Leao-centric’ club.

On social media, which is always give a first gauge of the situation, the fact that Leao will play with the No.10 has sparked the enthusiasm of the Rossoneri fans.

Last season Sandro Tonali was the most in-demand player when it came to shirt printing as 23% of all printing on Milan jerseys had his name and number on, but after the renewal and the change to the 10, it is reasonable to assume that Rafa will overtake him in 2023-24.

After Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s retirement Milan are in need of leaders on the field and that is why they agreed to pay Leao €5m net per season, a figure destined to rise over time and which makes him the highest-paid player in the squad.

There was a sort of symbolic passing of the baton during the final game of the season when the Portuguese winger scored and went to go and hug Ibrahimovic, the paper adds.

Looking at his performances, Leao’s growth is clear. In the 2019-20 season he had 6 goals and 3 assists, in 2020-21 it was 7 goals and 6 assists, in 2021-22 season 14 goals and 12 assists and 2022-23 season 16 goals and 15 assists.

The projection for the next season – presuming he maintains the level of improvement – is something Milan can smile about. Leao turned 24 on 10 June, and the feeling is that he is the future of the club moving forward.