Rafael Leao: Ibrahimovic ‘too demanding’, I ‘don’t go out’ before Milan derby
Milan star Rafael Leao admits he avoids going out the week before the derby against Inter and says Zlatan Ibrahimovic put ‘good pressure’ on him, even if the ex-striker was ‘too demanding.’
Milan star striker Leao spoke about his time with the Rossoneri and the upcoming derby against Inter in an interview with CBS Sports.
One of the first questions was about his relationship with Ibrahimovic, a RedBird advisor and a former teammate of the Portuguese at San Siro.
“One training, young boys from the youth squad came to training,” Leao said.
“There was a game before the end of training. Some of them were in the Zlatan team, and they lost the game. He was…on another planet. He went straight to the coach and said: ‘This is the last time they come to training.’ They didn’t come back.
“It’s a good pressure, for me it was a good pressure. With these guys, you have to learn. When they talk to you, it’s because they care about you, maybe so you have something to help him and the team. In my head, it was good pressure, even if he’s demanding, maybe too much.
“We have a good relationship,” Leao continued.
“When he comes, he asks about my family, and we have a good relationship. I think we spent three years together, so it’s someone who’s helped me a lot. It’s someone Iwant to keep in my life, also off the pitch. I know that if I need something, I can call him, and he can help me for sure.”
Ibra and Rafael Leao won the Serie A title with Milan in 2021-22, when the Portuguese was also named the league’s best player.
“I didn’t expect,” the Portuguese admitted.
“We got the trophy after the game, and we started taking photos. One of the staff guys said, ‘Rafa, maybe you’ve been the best player in the league; they are talking about you.’ Ten minutes later, they confirmed I had won the award.
“To win the Scudetto and be the best player in the league in the same year, I never expected it.
“For sure, it was one of the best seasons individually, but it’s about the team and the collective. If the team does well, you’ll do well too. I think we are also doing very well this season. I play in a new position and score goals.”
With Massimiliano Allegri taking over in 2025-26, Leao has changed his position on the pitch, now deployed as a centre-forward.
“I was ready. Before the season started, I was prepared for everything,” he said.
“When the coach said I could play in that position, I was prepared to be there and help the team. When you play as a striker, you have more chances to score goals. Football now is about numbers; if you want to be with the best players, it’s about the numbers.
“I used to play on the wing, more one-v-one, doing more assists than scoring goals, so if you score more goals and make some assists, you are close to the top and the best players. I don’t mind playing as a striker because if I score, I can be there.
“It was a process, the first year wasn’t easy for my family and me. New league, a difficult league, until now. It was a process, so I’m glad to be here and be like a role model in the squad and the club. I can feel the love from the outside, also from the fans.”
Leao’s body language and smiles on the pitch have made some wonder whether the Portuguese always has the maximum commitment during the games.
“I can’t change myself; even when I was a little boy, I was like this,” he noted.
“Always with a smile on my face. It’s like this. It’s a way I can express my football, it’s my passion, and also how I live. I can’t change it. If I change it, it’s not Rafael Leao. It’s not a player who can help the team and bring something new to the games.”
Leao’s Milan sit second in the table, seven points below Inter. The Rossoneri and Nerazzurri will meet in the Milan derby on the weekend of March 8.
How does Leao usually prepare for the derby?
“Don’t go out. I mean, go out, have dinner with your family, but then you have to be at home,” he said.
“I used to say its a crazy week. Everyone tries to get tickets, you see red, blue, people, and newspapers talking. It’s just too much in that week, so you’ve got to stay at home, be focused, save your energy.
“It’s the best game of the season, it’s about the energy, it’s a fight. It’s about die or live. After the game, everyone will be talking for two or three weeks, so die or live. And I wanna live.
“It’s a game I used to watch before coming to Milan, so now playing…I don’t know how to express. The stadium is full, and fans sing from the start to the end of the game. Every single tackle, everything, duel, you have to be there like it was the last one.”
Leao and Pulisic are Milan’s stars in attack, but, due to injuries, they’ve rarely played together this term.
“Now we know each other on the pitch. Unfortunately, this season we are having some injuries,” Leao admitted.
“We couldn’t link up on the pitch as we wanted, but he’s a good, good player. He’s helped Milan for the last two or three seasons. I expect a lot. When he plays, and I’m on the pitch, I’m like: ‘Yeah, Christian will do something.’
“When he arrived, he understood the league fast. He speaks Italian almost perfectly, even with an American accent.”