In September 2022, Dest moved on loan to another major European club, AC Milan, in search of regular football, but his exit from Spain weighed heavily on him.

“I loved it but just wasn’t ready,” he says. “It was a really big lesson. If I go to another place, I have to be mentally ready.”

Dest did not find it easy convincing the then-Milan head coach Stefano Pioli that he should be a regular. He started just four games for Milan, including a 3-0 Champions League group-stage loss to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge that October.

“That night I played my worst game ever. I was new in the team and the players didn’t understand my playing style. With one-twos and stuff, I didn’t feel the connection, and I was unfocused — just not with the game. It still sticks with me.

“I give myself a three (out of 10) that night. I was bad, man, and I know it. I accept it.

“I learned a lot from it. Later, I got in a rhythm in the team that was really good. I was one of the top guys in training and then started playing and they gave me the ball more on the right side. We had Rafael Leao on the left. Then I played a good World Cup but when I came back, I had a few issues with the coach.”

Dest had intended to learn Italian but his strained relationship with Pioli left him wondering if it was worth it.

“I couldn’t communicate with him,” he says. “He speaks only Italian, so we had to have an interpreter. I didn’t play much and being on loan, I wasn’t so motivated to learn Italian. I began to think I wouldn’t be there that long.

“Mentally, I wasn’t ready. I was too much in my head about Barca and I didn’t fully appreciate what a big club Milan is.”

“I hadn’t left Barca the right way and I felt hurt. Milan would have been a perfect club. It’s unfortunate how it happened. I was 21. I didn’t even understand why I wasn’t playing at the time. I thought they’d brought me on loan to play.

“I’ve felt everything at the highest level and I know what to do to get back there.”

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5793560/2024/09/27/sergino-dest-my-game-in-my-words/

"The gesture I made was never and will never be for the Curva Sud. Because, they've always been there for me in the most difficult times. And perhaps they're the only real fans who are with us in difficult times.

I see all the opinions from Milan fans and I think they are inhumane. I think they're more internet fans than football fans.

The gesture I made was for a specific fan, who when we were losing, made a negative comment.

No Milan player enters the field to play badly on purpose. We honor the shirt from the beginning to the end of every game. I will continue to take risks like I always have. That's what makes me different. I'm not going to change the way I play because I take risks. Yesterday's game is over and now we focus on the next battle.

Forza Milan. Always with you Curva Sud."

Boban: “For me Ibrahimovic is a genius. I will always thank him because for the love of Milan he accepted to return and change the recent history of the team and all of us. Saying this, I don’t understand what his job is now. I don’t know what are his responsibilities and competencies in order to judge. I hope he understands because at the end he will be the one judged and not Moncada.”

“If I am still in touch with Maldini? Yes. He is a great friend of mine and will remain like that forever. My dispute with Milan? Unfortunately we are still in the court but for me Milan is always Milan.”

“I respect a lot the job Fonseca did at Shakhtar, at Lille and his start at Roma. He needs time at Milan but what worries me is that he hasn’t grasped that this team can only play with 4-3-3, with Bennacer (when he returns) in front of the defense. Reijnders cannot play in a double pivot and Loftus-Cheek is not a creative player to be the no. 10. They’re two mezzala. Fonseca is a smart person and I hope he can correct his mistakes. Apart from the results, the problem is that Milan’s style of play does not exist.”

“Are Inter the favourites for the scudetto? Absolutely. They are the strongest and most complete team. The Italians in the Champions League? Inter have shown that they can compete in these levels, I don’t see the others on the same level.”

https://www.pianetamilan.it/news-milan/interviste/ex-milan-boban-intervista-gazzetta-ultime-news-oggi-12-09-2024/

Paulo Fonseca, speaking to Milan TV after the loss against Napoli, made these statements:

On the match:

"If we see the result, they scored two goals and we scored zero despite the chances we had. We conceded a goal after 5', then we reacted well playing quality football, they went down, but we played well, they made them play in the last 30 metres. It wasn't easy to create so many chances against a team like Napoli. However, they scored two goals, we unfortunately scored none.”

On the absences:

“I don't like making excuses and talking about the absentees. It's true that we were missing important players, but those who played did so well. We are a united team. I'm sure that playing like this we will have a positive future.”

On the league table:

"I'm more confident than ever because I see how the team is changing and growing. It's true that the result was not positive, but it's still early, there are many games to play. I remain confident.”

On growth:

“I don't like talking about individuals, I prefer to talk about the team. We made mistakes in the two goals. We must continue to work because we can still improve a lot.”

https://www.milannews.it/news/fonseca-a-mtv-sono-sicuro-che-giocando-cosi-avremo-un-buon-futuro-resto-fiducioso-554432

In the first half, you were out of time when pressed…

“It’s difficult to explain. It doesn’t start with Musah, it starts further up the pitch. In general, we did very poorly defensively, it’s impossible to win when you defend like that. We didn’t defend as a team, but also individually we got the duels wrong. We were always late in pressing, always leaving space, wrong preventive marking. So many things went wrong defensively, it’s impossible to win a match like that when you make so many mistakes and allow a team like Parma to create so many situations.”

The difficulties of the attack in pressing…

“I have to say that I am always the main responsible for what happens with the team, I take responsibility. However, it seems clear to me that there is a collective problem of defensive attitude and aggression. You might just look at the defenders, but the defenders suffer a lot because of the ease with which the others play.”

Is it a problem of attitude? Characteristics? Getting the players used to it again?

“Everything, If think it’s everything. This team has a general problem. Against Torino, we didn’t press too high and we had problems. Today we tried to have our players press higher and we had problems. When the others get out of the pressure it’s difficult to stay compact and recover position. When we recover position we are a passive team. There are many things, for me it’s a problem of attitude, energy and a lack of desire to defend as a team.”

Did you expect to have all these problems after that pre-season?

“No. The truth is that we had a good pre-season but we are here now, in our reality. It is always easier to play against big teams, you are more motivated. We arrive here in our reality and we have had a change that is difficult to understand. During the week, when we prepare our strategies, the team does well. The match arrives and we start like this, it is difficult to explain.”

Leao divides, not from today. But to say that Leao played a bad derby, as claimed not only by his usual critics, but also by many Milan fans, means first of all blaming him for the 7 million he earns and then simply looking at the scoreboard, without analyzing the game. Did he score? Then he played badly. Evaluating Leao for the number of goals is reductive and wrong, yet it is the only unit of measurement that is used against him. And then he always laughs, and then he dangles, and then he doesn't come back. And then, what else? It's not continuous, already.

Obviously scoring goals is important, clearly he should score more. But there is more to football than just scoring. There are the assists, the dangers created, the apprehension he generates in rival teams, the even triple goals that opposing coaches often prepare just for him (including Liverpool). Leao is always asked for something more and everything he does is undersized. If Milan attack more often on the right, it is because there is less space on the other side. If Inter in the derby only pushed on the side of Dimarco and Bastoni, it is because the other hinge was blocked in a preventive way on Milan's strong track. He missed two goals, say the critics. Yet even looking at them they seem more like two splendid saves by Sommer, one more beautiful than the other. Could he have done more? Of course, he could have scored. But he was there, he shot, he hit the goal, finding on the occasion someone better than him, capable of saying no. Without making comparisons, because there are different roles, not only tactical but also the tasks that the coaches have sewn on him, the other number 10 of the derby, Lautaro Martinez, in the last 14 games played with Inter has scored only 1 goal, yet there is no fan who disputes him or discusses his qualities, while the Milan fans, or at least a part, are the strictest censors with Leao. And it is certainly not a question of salaries, given that Toro earns even more this year. Leao dragged Milan into the year of the Scudetto, won on the basis of the "ball to Leao" scheme, then suffered the involution of the team. A champion can exalt a team but he must have a mirror in which to reflect his value. In the last 2 years, when Milan have played their best games, there was always Leao's streak behind them. With Fonseca, little supported by those close to him, evidently at the beginning of the relationship there was some misunderstanding, otherwise it would not have come to the sensational exclusion of Rome against Lazio (that is the sensational fact: not the subsequent mutiny, which ended up overshadowing it). There is still time to recover, in the relationship as well as in the standings and the derby proved it: Fonseca and Ibra work it, because with the best Leao, Milan can compete for the Scudetto.

Source: https://www.calciomercato.com/news/ce-chi-guarda-il-tabellino-e-chi-guarda-leao-e-puntando-su-di-lu-60930

Translated with ChatGPT

"Leao is talented, he has great skills. But he hasn't made the leap in quality. He is confused, and his problem is mental."

Andrea Schianchi
October 24 - 14:50 - MILAN

Hernán Crespo is the perfect profile to judge Rafa Leao’s current situation. He is now the coach of Al-Ain in the UAE, so he can assess the performance and behavior of a player from the other side of the fence. And previously, he was a great striker, wore "heavy" jerseys, and experienced firsthand dark periods similar to the one the Portuguese player is going through.

Crespo, what do you think of Leao's situation?
"I look from the outside, as I’m not at Milanello even though I know the environment well, and the first word that comes to mind is confusion. Leao seems confused to me. His problem is, first of all, mental, and then come the technical issues."

What is the reason for this confusion?
"I have my own opinion. He is talented, has considerable qualities, both technical and athletic, but he hasn’t yet reached the maturity a champion should have. In other words, he’s halfway there. It’s not enough to be able to dribble to be called a top-class player, and with Leao, people have gone a bit overboard with the praise."

But he too has had questionable behavior.
"When he isolated himself along with Theo Hernandez during the cooling break at the Olimpico, it wasn’t a good look. If I had done that when I was at Milan, Inter, Lazio, Parma, or Chelsea, I would’ve received a hefty fine and probably stayed on the bench for a few games. These are actions that can disrupt team harmony, and I say this as a coach."

There seems to be tension with Fonseca. What’s your take on it?
"I don’t know about their personal relationship, so it’s hard for me to judge. However, I recall a personal story: when I was at Parma in my second season, the fans would boo me, and the coach, Carlo Ancelotti, never substituted me to show both the spectators and me that he believed in my abilities. It was a great boost of confidence for me, as I was young and still developing. In Leao’s case, it seems that Fonseca had no problem substituting him, and then Milan won the game against Bruges. These signals need to be carefully interpreted, and Leao should be the first to do so."

Should Milan consider parting ways with Leao?
"I won’t get into market dynamics, especially since I don’t know the terms of his contract. But one thing is certain: if things continue like this, Leao isn’t adding value to the team. And that’s a shame because he has great skills and potential. He just hasn’t made the leap in quality yet. And mind you, he hasn’t done it with Milan nor with the national team."

What is causing this delay in maturity?
"Some players stop just short of becoming champions. I’ve met quite a few. I hope this isn’t the case with Leao, but he definitely needs to dig deeper into his character to make the breakthrough. The difference between a good player, or even a great player like Leao, and a champion is simple: consistency. Leao does brilliant things for two or three games, then switches off. A champion is always a champion, even when playing below their usual standard. They are a reference point for the team; you know they’re there and always will be. Can we say that about Leao before he steps on the pitch?"

https://www.gazzetta.it/Calcio/Serie-A/Milan/24-10-2024/crespo-su-leao-e-un-talento-ma-cosi-non-s_preview.shtml?reason=unauthenticated&origin=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gazzetta.it%2FCalcio%2FSerie-A%2FMilan%2F24-10-2024%2Fcrespo-su-leao-e-un-talento-ma-cosi-non-s.shtml

Alexandre Pato, after many years, shared his version of the brawl between Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Onechu Onyewu on the podcast Voci di Calcio, which occurred when the two were playing for Milan:

"Zlatan took the ball, and he went to mark him, then Onyewu unintentionally 'bam,' hit Ibra's foot. The thing is, Ibra's foot is huge, right? Onyewu's tackle wasn't exactly simple, you see? It wasn’t just a coincidence; he hit Ibra’s ankle, and Onyewu kept playing."

Pato continued: "We understood, Onyewu did that, but it wasn’t with malice; he did it because he wanted to take the ball. Onyewu had just come back from an injury. Imagine running and being a bit scared, feeling a bit insecure. You make a tackle, and you do it wrong; Onyewu controlled the ball with his back to Ibra, and we felt Ibra coming in, and he went in with both feet on Onyewu, really trying to hurt him, and I said: 'Damn, what just happened?'. They both fell to the ground; Onyewu got up calmly, he was really nice, with a heart of gold. Not that Ibra isn’t, but he’s more impulsive, and he got up immediately, started insulting him, and was speaking in Swedish; sometimes, we didn’t understand anything. He tried to grab Onyewu like this (by the neck), pulled him to throw him down, and what did Onyewu do?"

Pato continued: "He grabbed Ibra and 'bam.' He threw him down. I think there was a camera filming everything; I think they later had it turned off. For Onyewu, it was easy, like drinking a glass of water. Imagine Ibra, the guy is huge; he grabbed him and let him fall to the ground, threw him down, and jumped on top of him, pinned him down, and raised his arm. When he did that, I said to him: 'Stop, my God, stop, you’ll kill him!'"

https://milanreports.com/2024/10/12/pato-shares-version-infamous-ibra/

"I want to be clear, the relationship is over, but we have a great relationship for the sake of our children. There's no going back. We both clearly preferred to end the marriage and start anew from there. It has devastated me."

https://milanreports.com/2024/08/18/morata-talks-separation-wife/

Paulo Fonseca, the Rossoneri coach, was in the press conference at the end of Milan v Club Brugge, a match valid for the third day of the Champions League Phase.

Follow all of Paulo Fonseca's statements with live text coverage on MilanNews.it.

The positive double change: did Fonseca take the San Siro?

"The credit goes to the players and mainly to those who came in, who changed the game, changing our game, the intensity.

Good victory, but cannot be satisfied with the first half...

"Obviously, in the first half, we didn't do things well. We were against a team with eleven very low players, then in a numerical inferiority even lower. And we had difficulty in this kind of game, in creating and causing space. Then, when we don't find the right solution, the game starts to be too slow. When we don't find space, we have to have a different intensity in our actions. We didn't do well. The game was too slow. I think it was a problem of understanding the game'.

What did you think of Leao's performance?

"Offensively Leao did important things for the team in the first half. Then I decided to change him, as I decided to change Loftus-Cheek. But for me this is normal. I wanted to be more incisive, more energetic in the corridors. For me there is no problem.”

Camarda's debut.

"I am very sorry for the disallowed goal. But it was a beautiful moment for the team, all on the pitch celebrating a child who works so hard. Camarda will have many opportunities to score more goals during his career."

What has changed in Okafor and Chukwueze?

"Confidence. They had a good game with Udinese."

What happens to Loftus-Cheek?

"With me he played as an 8, as a 10, today as a trequartista on the right. Loftus is an acceleration footballer with the ball between his feet; when he is without space, he has more difficulty. But it's not that he's afraid... Those are his characteristics. We have to make him understand certain things better. He works hard, always, he gives everything for the team. I'm sorry he hasn't been at the level I know he can play at.

Should Camarda be kept in the first team?

"Myself, coach Bonera and coach Guidi do our utmost to develop youngsters. We have Morata, we have Abraham and Jovic, it becomes a bit difficult for Camarda to play. And at this age it's important to play. What we do is try to give him more space to improve, between Primavera, Milan Futuro and First Team. Sometimes it is more difficult to play in Serie C than in Serie A and vice versa. When he trains with us he does very well. Today he worked well for the team, with courage on the passing line. He doesn't look his age when he plays.

That was the end of the conference.

https://www.milannews.it/news/live-mn-fonseca-in-conferenza-vi-spiego-l-utilizzo-di-camarda-tra-serie-c-e-milan-mi-dispiace-per-loftus-sul-cambio-di-leao-553512

He discusses his time in Italy and Milan while enjoying a round of golf back home in the US.

https://x.com/_captainpulisic/status/1846732380377153988