Speaking exclusively with BOYLE Sports , Italy and AC Milan icon Massimo Ambrosini has given his thoughts on his compatriots, what could be next for Tonali , if Chelsea should've signed Donnarumma and on Rafael Leao’s outburst .
Ambrosini has also spoken on the future of Giovanni Leoni at Liverpool and if Bastoni could also join him at Anfield come the summer and if Chiesa has a future at Liverpool or if he's destined or a return to the Serie A.
Elsewhere he assesses if Martinez could move to Chelsea , whether Hojlund as a future at Man Utd and if Yildz could be an option for Arsenal .
Premier League
Tonali's Next Step
Moving from Italy to England is not easy; you have to change your whole mentality. Newcastle has been the perfect place. He needed to get used to the league, the defence, the stadiums, the atmosphere, and maybe even the different way of training. Right now, he's ready to take a step further. With all respect to Newcastle .
I don't think Arsenal need him. They have Martin Zubimendi , Declan Rice , and Martin Odegaard ; they're fine in midfield. I could see him at Manchester City or Manchester United , both steps up from Newcastle , and I think he’d be loved at Old Trafford. We talk about his heart, about his energy; he brings everything on the pitch. His heart, his soul, his way of playing. So United would be, of course, a good choice. I’d like to see him back at Milan , but I don’t think they’d have that kind of money.
Chelsea's Donnarumma Mistake?
In Italy , we don't have a lot of top-level players. Of course, the only one maybe is Gianluigi Donnarumma . The problem is, I think Pep Guardiola made the right phone call at the right time to convince him. I'm sure Chelsea tried to pick him up, and they would have made a great pick because they would need a goalkeeper like him.
He's very ambitious right now. Donnarumma knows that if you play for City , you have more opportunities to win, and the opportunity to be trained by Pep would have been very important for his decision as well.
Rafael Leao’s Outburst
This is normal. He was in a moment of the game where he could feel that something was going to come. But the problem for Rafa is that he's playing not in the right role for me. In this case, you waste a lot of his talent. If I were Massimiliano Allegri , I would put him in the right positions just to threaten the opponent.
Playing in the middle and dropping deep is not his way of playing. So he's a little bit frustrated, and that's why he was angry when he came off.
Liverpool FC
Giovanni Leoni
He is a great friend of mine, Giovanni Leoni . The problem for Liverpool is about when he is going to be fit. Of course, he is going to be fit at the beginning of the new season.
However, I had the same injury twice, both knees. You need a period where you re-adapt your body to the pitch. Of course, right now you cannot think he will be ready for the first day, the first game of the season. Having said that, Liverpool have a diamond there. I mean, he has everything, he has the skill, he has the personality, he has the body language. I watched his first two games, and he seemed to be ready, even if he is only 19 years old.
He looked ready for the Premier League , but Liverpool fans need to give him time because he is young. He needs time to become a strong player, as the Premier League demands. But of course, he is going to be the future of Liverpool . One thing I question is why didn't Inter, AC Milan , or Juventus sign Giovanni ? This is the question in Italy . Why do you let somebody take such a good young player?
Alessandro Bastoni?
For Alessandro Bastoni , a transfer to Barcelona would be better, because in the Premier League , you need to have a big physical impact. He's a technical player; he always loves playing with the ball, touching the ball as many times as he can.
But in England , you need to be very good in physical duels. In this kind of situation, he needs to improve. Of course, if he arrives at Liverpool or wherever, he will learn. But right now, a style of play like Barcelona is better for him.
Federico Chiesa
Federico Chiesa
I don't know Federico very well, but I have the feeling that he's a very sensitive guy. He had a bad injury some years ago, and after that, he is yet to find the right feeling again. In his last year at Juventus , he was playing two games and then feeling something was wrong.
He's very sensitive. I spoke with Rino (Gennaro) Gattuso , the coach of the national team, and I know that he has spoken many times with Federico . Sometimes Federico didn't feel ready to come back to the national team. Maybe that suggests that he isn’t ready to replace someone like Mo Salah . But as a player, if he finds his tranquillity, he's going to be an important player, of course, and as Italians, we need him a lot.
Should Chiesa Leave Back To Italy?
When a player hasn’t been playing, they need to regain confidence in their ability. Sometimes, if you don't play, you start to question if you're still a good player. Maybe it's better to take a step back. Moving from a club like Juventus to Liverpool means staying at the same level. But for him, if he hasn't played for a long time, he might need to take a step back and start playing again, start feeling like an important player.
So the answer is, of course, yes, it could be a good move. We've talked about this sometimes, even with AC Milan last year. Why not? The problem for AC Milan right now is that Massimiliano Allegri likes to take wingers and put them in the middle. He did the same with Chiesa. Chiesa loves playing on the wing, and Allegri put him in the centre of the attack. He's doing the same with Rafael Leao. But I don't like this kind of decision. Of course, wingers should play close to the touchline.
Transfer Talk
Lautaro Martinez
Lautaro Martinez is a top player, one of the best, but I don't think he will leave Inter because he feels the club is deep inside him. He's the captain, everyone loves him, and he loves being here.
I don't think he would want to go to Chelsea if Inter were looking to sell someone in the summer transfer window. Marcus Thuram might be their choice if they get a good opportunity to sell him; perhaps they would make that decision.
Rasmus Hojlund
Rasmus Hojlund is a good player. Napoli were very prepared, because in one day they lost Romelu Lukaku to a bad injury and they got Hojlund . Man Utd signed Hojlund for 70 million pounds from Atalanta . Napoli could have had the opportunity to get him for around 40 million pounds, maybe without a sell-on percentage. He is perfect for Antonio Conte's way of playing, and right now, he's improving day by day. He's played every game, all 90 minutes. He's very good. He loves sitting in front of the midfield, playing, and attacking the goal.
I like him very much, and he’s the reason why Lukaku is not playing, even though he is fit right now. Could I see him back at Man Utd ? No. They have Benjamin Sesko , Bryan Mbeumo , and they’ve got Matheus Cunha . Sometimes the right decision is to go. He didn’t find his confidence at Man Utd , and he has at Napoli , so he should stay.
Kenan Yildiz?
Arsenal are looking at him, but everybody is looking at Kenan Yildiz . Everybody. But Juventus have given him a huge contract, so he's going to be the face of Juventus for the next five years, of course. Juventus cannot let somebody take a Yildiz away from them, from
He's very humble. He wants to improve every game. If you talk with the people who know him, they describe him as a very good guy, very ambitious. So, of course, Juventus will not let him go at all. For any price.
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