AC Milan attacker Rafael Leao was one of the first names in our Team of the Week and also named Serie A Player of the Week for Matchday 5, after a stunning display against bitter rivals Inter 3-2 in the Serie A season’s first Milan Derby. With the first of his two goals in the game, he curiously became the first Portuguese player to score in the Derby della Madonnina.
After falling behind to a Marcelo Brozovic strike at the Stadio San Siro on Saturday night, the 23-year-old equalised to take the sides into the break level and he would go on to score the winning goal after further strikes from teammate Olivier Giroud and Inter striker Edin Dzeko.
It was the first time since January 2016 that the Rossoneri had hit three or more goals against their city cousins and, as they continue to position themselves as the dominant force in Milan, it was also the first time they recorded consecutive victories over the Nerazzurri for over a decade.
Rafael Leao the first Portuguese player to score in the Milan Derby
When Leao fired a powerful left-footed shot past goalkeeper Samir Handanovic on 28 minutes, the former Lille winger took his recent contributions in a Milan shirt to six goals and six assists in his last 11 Serie A games, as he continues to cement himself as a big-game player for Milan.
The ex-Sporting Clube de Portugal prodigy certainly feels at home at the San Siro, scoring his last 10 Serie A goals at the stadium and, after Giroud had nudged the Rossoneri ahead with a scuffed finish, the Portugal international surfed through several Inter defenders to slot home the winner on 60 minutes.
While the Nerazzurri responded shortly afterwards, it was little more than a consolation goal, and it left Leao to soak up the adulation of the home supporters, on his 100th top flight appearance in for the Milanese giants when the final whistle sounded.
