A.C. Milan has struggled to find quality defensive help for quite some time and have been relying mostly on free transfers and buy-low options. However, the emergence of 21-year old Brazilian Rodrigo Ely through the pre-season provides some optimism that maybe they have found a solid man to fill the void
In this current era of football, quality defenders are scarce and the teams that have either the sufficient funds or the proper scouting emerge as the ones to find the premium talent. We have witnessed players like David Luiz make record transfers to elite clubs due to heavy demand from European giants to find the best, while others go the route of recognizing upside and value in prospects in order to fulfill the void many clubs have. Take former Roma youngster and current PSG man Marquinhos for example. The Parisian side were willing to shell out over €30m to get him into their squad because of what was just mentioned. Now, it seems Milan and Napoli could continue the trend as both rate promising Italian center half Alessio Romagnoli highly but seem hesitant on matching the Giallorossi’s €30m price tag. So naturally, if one does not want to pay this much for a prospect, they must find the “diamond in the rough.” The value in the market that seems to be hidden behind all of the lucrative sums of money being thrown around this summer.
One player that seems to have provided a spark for a club who covets a massive upgrade in the back is the unlikely 21-year old Rodrigo Ely. The rossoneri had brought in the likes of Alex, Gabriel Paletta, Salvatore Bocchetti (returned to Spartak Moskow) and others who have failed to hammer down one of the two center back slots. Cristian Zapata and Philippe Mexes are streaky defenders who can’t be trusted to provide consistency which has forced Sinisa Mihajlovic to explore all options while Romagnoli’s transfer remains in limbo.
Ely, a former Gremio youth product, arrived to the Milan organization back in 2010 as a member of the Primavera side. A few loan spells at Reggina Calcio, Varese and Avellino, the Brazilian finds himself in the mix as a solid candidate for Mihajlovic’s squad for the upcoming season. The player returned to Milan this summer as nothing more than another body who would perhaps be loaned out once again. However, the former Sampdoria manager has seen something in this kid through the extensive training sessions which has opened up an opportunity for the youngster to make a statement this season.
Rodrigo Ely started in the club’s previous two matches in the International Champions Cup against Inter and Real Madrid in which he showed maturity, confidence and quality in the back. What made his performances more impressive is the fact that he has been immediately thrown into a starting role this summer to prove himself and he has not disappointed. In fact, the Brazil U-23 and ex-Italian international has upped his play to the point that he is observed as someone who could be a key man moving forward. Sure, many can argue that these matches don’t test the player and his mentality to overcome the struggles that typically occur during the season but we can only judge him based on the performances he turns in.
Defensive performances are awfully tough to critique which is why one must watch the matches in order to observe the positioning, awareness, intelligence and composure. The Raiola-represented player was looked at as nothing more than a bottom-of-the-depth chart player upon returning but Mihajlovic sees something more in this kid that perhaps flew under the radar with past Milan coaches.
Rodrigo Ely has performed his way into being an option for the club this season and there is reason to believe that perhaps Mihajlovic has a distinct plan to integrate youth into the system which is what has been lacking for quite some time. Ely, Milan’s “diamond in the rough” for 2015-16?
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