Ruben Amorim Speaks Highly of Milan and Solves the Mystery of the Cissé Bet

Milan won its season opener on the road against Torino, despite some difficulty in the closing minutes. Ruben Amorim can certainly consider himself satisfied with his all-time debut on the bench in Serie A, even if not everything his team produced on the field can be described as perfect. On the other hand, his protégé Alphadjo Cissé made a dream debut with the Rossoneri, starting the match at not even twenty years old and already proving decisive with a goal.

“For 75 minutes, we saw one game, but in the final stretch, it was a different story,” Amorim admitted while speaking with the ‘Sky Sport’ studio. “In the final minutes, we were tired; we struggled, and that probably means I need to manage substitutions better. We wanted to win, and I made a lot of substitutions before the 70th minute. I saw a good Milan side on the field, even if we can improve.” Then came the Cissé chapter: “I love all my players equally. In him, however, I’d noticed a few details that immediately struck me. He has a tremendous amount of pride; he’s always extremely attentive even when he’s not training in his position; he’s a very intelligent young man, and he’s also losing weight. I’m absolutely thrilled for him—and not just because he scored.”

Cissé’s story is one of a gamble that has paid off over time. Born in Treviso and raised as a soccer player in Castelfranco Veneto with Giorgione, the 2006-born player had already gotten a taste of Serie A with Verona between 2024 and 2025, though he logged fewer than 20 total minutes across three appearances. His real breakthrough came last season at Catanzaro, where he carved out a starring role in the team’s run to the Serie B playoffs. Signed by Milan back in January for a fee close to eight million euros, a serious adductor injury had derailed his progress, but his recovery over the summer put him in Amorim’s hands at just the right moment. The friendly against Manchester United proved decisive in this regard, as the young forward scored the goal that tied the game at 2-2: “He’ll make life difficult for Rafa Leao,” the Portuguese coach commented immediately after the match.

It’s no coincidence that, in recent weeks, Torino had also tried to snatch him from the Rossoneri on loan, including him as a possible trade chip in a broader deal involving the young Granata winger Alessio Cacciamani, born in 2007, a product of Torino’s youth academy, and fresh off an excellent season on loan at Juve Stabia in Serie B. Amorim, however, decided to keep him, and the league opener has already proven him right.

On the transfer front, meanwhile, Milan has yet to resolve the Rafael Leao situation. The Portuguese player, publicly demoted by Amorim himself on the eve of the match, is on the list of outgoing players but has not yet found a new club: the offers from Galatasaray—which had put 40 million euros plus bonuses and a contract worth 12 million net per season on the table—and from Al-Hilal do not appeal to the player, while no concrete proposal has come from the Premier League. The hottest lead points to Gasperini’s Roma, with the Giallorossi ready to present a loan offer of approximately 4 million with an obligation to buy for 41 million, covering 80% of his salary thanks to the “decreto crescita.” Until the situation is resolved, it is Cissé himself who is stepping up, at least in part, to fill the Portuguese forward’s shoes.

Milan’s transfer activity, however, doesn’t stop there. Another major signing could materialize in the coming days: the Rossoneri have their sights set on Gonçalo Inacio, a center back and captain of Sporting Lisbon. Born in 2001, he’s also being closely watched by Hansi Flick’s Barcelona, and his buyout clause is set at 60 million euros. The Portuguese club, buoyed by a summer transfer window that has already brought in nearly 200 million from sales, is in no hurry to let him go, but Milan has reportedly already expressed its willingness to meet the asking price. This signing would join the defensive acquisitions already completed, including Mario Gila from Lazio for 30 million and the young Sankhoun Diawara from Troyes.