According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Milan coach Amorim has excluded Nkunku from the first team, with the Frenchman going from key player to clear-out target.

Just think: on the day he returned to Milanello for pre-season training, he was remarkably lean and exceptionally fit. This is undoubtedly the best first impression a player can make on a coach upon returning to the club. However, something unpleasant clearly transpired in the month between his return to training and Amorim’s final decision. It might not have been a single, glaring incident but rather an overall assessment. From an outsider’s perspective, Nkunku’s benching is a huge surprise, regardless of how one looks at it, and it must be a surprise to him, too.

Nkunku had already spent the entire summer dealing with the disappointment of being excluded from the World Cup squad by Deschamps, and he viewed the new season as an opportunity to revive his career, ambition, and fighting spirit. In fact, after an inconsistent first season with the Rossoneri — with more lows than highs, but ultimately promising — Christopher (Nkunku) seemed destined to become one of the cornerstones of the team's rebuilding. He was — though, in this story, all "was" statements are clearly invalid — a perfect fit for Amorim's 3-4-2-1 formation: operating on the right side of the attacking midfield alongside Pulisic and forming an attacking line built around skill and creativity. Indeed, he was even one of the few predictable starters for Milan's first league match away against Torino.

However, the journey ends here. As of yesterday, Nkunku has been asked to train individually for technical reasons, alongside Tomori, Fofana, and Odogu, who are also being cleared out. He was not included in the squad for the friendly against Man United, and if he remains at Milanello, he will not participate in the away league match against Torino. Under these circumstances, it is difficult to give a precise answer unless Amorim is willing to provide a detailed explanation. One can only read between the lines, speculate about external rumors, and piece together snippets of information. Two factors emerge. The first is directly related to his potential contribution in that area, which the coach believes has fallen short of expectations. Throughout the summer, Amorim watched him play one half in each game against Milan Futuro, in the Milan derby, and against Chelsea. Nkunku's technical ability is certainly not the issue; the problem lies in his intensity, off-ball movement, and passing speed (it would be interesting to discuss Ruben Loftus-Cheek's performance in that position). The issue of intensity was also raised in training and apparently led to the coach no longer wanting to work with him.

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