With just over 15 minutes left, the players gathered around their manager, Paulo Fonseca, to hydrate and receive instructions. All except for Leão and Theo Hernández, who instead met on the far side of the pitch.
Later, we were told this was a non-issue. Hernández, who was part of the same quadruple substitution that included Leão and Abraham, and who also contributed to Milan’s equalizer, said: “We had been on for two minutes, we didn’t need a cooling break. It wasn’t about the team or the manager.” Fonseca supported this, saying, “We don’t need to create problems where there aren’t any.”
However, Hernández’s explanation seemed questionable since he still walked to the far side of the pitch to get a drink during the pause. Former Milan captain Massimo Ambrosini voiced the doubts of many during his analysis for Dazn, calling the scene “not a good look” and “a visible sign of some discomfort, something you don’t want to see or have to justify.”
Fonseca’s decision to leave Leão and Hernández out of the starting XI was a bold move. Leão, Milan’s highest-paid and biggest star, contributed 15 goals and 14 assists last season from the left wing. Hernández is his ideal partner, the adventurous full-back whose deep runs create overloads and open up space for both. The Frenchman had 16 goal contributions of his own in 2023-24.
Yet, both had underperformed as Milan started this season with a 2-2 draw at home against Torino and a loss away to newly promoted Parma. Hernández was at fault for both goals Milan conceded in the latter match, allowing opponents to get behind him on each occasion.
