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AC Milan enjoyed one of the best European nights of their recent history last night as they ran out 3-1 winners at the Santiago Bernabeu, and Rafael Leao has drawn praise.

This morning’s edition of La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below) writes how Leao was the ‘star that shone brightest of them all’ during Milan’s rather surprising win against the current European champions Real Madrid.

On the most illustrious stage in the European panorama – the Santiago Bernabeu – against the team for whom the Champions League is their back garden, Leao was able to dance and weave his way through in a brilliant performance during a very difficult moment.

In the temple of the ‘Galacticos’, the only one who was galactic last night was Leao. He may have only got one assist on the scoresheet, but those who saw the game know he was among the best on the field and that he had a hand in the three goals.

He won the corner from which Malick Thiaw’s opener came, he forced Lunin to save a shot that was parried and opened the door for Alvaro Morata to make it 2-1, then he served Tijjani Reijnders after a dribble to seal the win.

Leao last night was everything Paulo Fonseca had asked of him on the eve of the game: decisive. Doing so on such an important night gives even more value to the performance of the Portuguese winger, something that not even his team-mates ever doubted he could do.

In this sense, Morata’s words were beautiful both before and after the match. Before taking to the field, the Spaniard had assured: “He doesn’t have to give himself away, he’s a top-level player.

After the full-time whistle, the Spanish striker said: “We never had any doubts. He too must be aware that he can make football history: he’s clearly stronger than all of us.”

Now it will be up to Leao to be able to exploit the positive wave of this performance to be able to ride it for the rest of the season.

This article first appeared on SempreMilan and was syndicated with permission.

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NBA

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NHL

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