When the first clouds appeared over AC Milan at the beginning of the season, Zlatan Ibrahimović was bullish: “I am in command, I am the boss and all the rest works for me. I am in charge, I am the boss and they all work for me. We work in silence” he said in September. Now, the issue is not only the team’s performance, the issue is Rossoneri’s star player Rafael Leao. His bad displays and broken relationship with his countryman Paulo Fonseca are visible to everyone, so ’the boss’ has to intervene and remedy things. La Gazzetta dello Sport reports that Zlatan Ibrahimovic had individual meetings with Milan players, including Rafael Leao, on Thursday.Leao’s subtle dig at Fonseca and MilanAC Milan could face a crowd less game with Bologna over the weekend, due to extreme weather conditions in the Emilia Romagna region but bigger problem is in the locker room. Leao is the highest paid player and is not producing is best form. He was also benched against Udinese and was subbed during the Champions League win over Brugge. His reaction? Straight to the tunnel without greeting the supporters after the game. 15 minutes after the game, he was already out of the stadium. So, Ibra had to visit the players at yesterday’s training along with chief scout Geoffrey Moncada. Arrogant Ibra: ‘I am the lion‘It is believed that he had a private conversation with Leao, since he is not expected to start against Bologna. According to Gazzetta, Ibrahimovic reassured the Portuguese winger that overcoming challenging moments is part of any player’s development, so he urged Leao to remain calm and work hard. Leao was urged to ‘react as a champion’, accept the coach’s decisions and transform his disappointment into ‘positive anger’ on the pitch. If this situation continues and the player and the coach don’t find the common language, or Fonseca doesn’t get fired by January, even a possible sale of Leao could become an option, but that would also be a defeat for the Swede. Since becoming the advisor, Ibrahimović has brought in Fonseca and acted like a boss, so any failure is his failure too. SERIE A – MATCHDAY 9Friday 19.30: (2.25) Udinese (3.45) Cagliari (3.45)21.45: (2.60) Torino (3.25) Como (3.00)Saturday 16.00: (1.30) Napoli (5.20) Lecce (11.0)19.00: (3.60) Bologna (3.50) Milan (2.15)21.45: (1.40) Atalanta (4.80) Verona (7.75)Sunday 13.30: (2.25) Parma (3.50) Empoli (3.40)16.00: (1.53) Lazio (4.10) Genoa (6.50)16.00: (2.15) Monza (3.30) Venezia (3.50)19.00: (1.80) Inter (3.65) Juventus (5.00)21.45: (2.50) Fiorentina (3.30) Roma (2.85)***odds are subject to change***
