Diego Morena, signed by Milan for a substantial transfer fee in this summer's transfer window, has yet to secure a regular starting position, but has already demonstrated explosive performances and leads the team in scoring with 3 goals. Gazzetta dello Sport journalist Marco Guidi has written an analysis piece on this Belgian prospect's performances.

Below is Marco Guidi's article:

Morena is proving his quality at a remarkable pace. Despite appearing in only 66 minutes of Serie A action so far, all as a substitute, he has already scored 3 goals, demonstrating the pressing need for Milan to deploy the winger signed from Strasbourg more actively. The person most satisfied with this €50 million deal (options excluded) is undoubtedly Redbird Capital owner Gerry Cardinale. He clearly has taken a liking to this young Belgian player.

Just last Sunday evening, Cardinale came down to the touchline during the pre-match warm-up to embrace Morena, the player he favors. Diego responded enthusiastically, and after being brought on in the 74th minute as a substitute for Saelemakers, rewarded the owner's affection by scoring his first goal at San Siro. Following the goal, he rushed enthusiastically toward the Curva Sud to celebrate with supporters.

Giving his all

In Milan's first 6 matches of the season, the former Strasbourg player made just one start—against Juventus in his debut. Yet despite this, Morena has risen to the top of the Rossoneri's scoring charts in the early season with 3 goals. As a result, there is much speculation about what more this Belgian player must do to earn a starting spot.

"If it were up to me, I would want to start every match... but it's up to the coach to decide the best eleven. After the international break, we'll see if I can return to the starting lineup, but for now, I'm fine with this." In short, the decision rests with coach Ruben Amorim. In the match against Lecce, Amorim chose to continue using Morena in the second half as a "secret weapon" to change the flow of the game. But beyond "when to bring him on," there is another question: where should Cardinale's new favorite player be positioned?

A versatile all-rounder

In his Serie A debut against Juventus (his only start), the Belgian player was deployed as a right-wing-back. This was no accident. Morena replaced Samuel Chukwueze, who has been transformed by Amorim into a dangerous attacking winger. When the Portuguese coach starts the Nigerian player, it is often difficult to deploy the former Strasbourg player on the opposite flank. This "two-winger attack" combination has appeared only in the second half of two matches, and in both cases, Milan was trailing.

In the match against Lazio, this tactical adjustment proved highly successful, and with Morena positioned on the left, his two goals miraculously turned what seemed like a certain defeat into a draw for the Rossoneri. In the Europa League match against Benfica, despite an extremely active performance over 33 minutes, he failed to score again and could not lead the team to a comeback.

In the recent match against Lecce, Amorim attempted an interesting new variation. He moved Morena higher up the pitch, deploying him as one of two attacking midfielders behind Gonçalo Inácio. However, strictly speaking, last Sunday evening Milan primarily played in a 4-4-2 formation, and the talented Benfica youth academy player actually operated as a left midfielder.

Amorim's experiment was very interesting. Morena played alongside another left-footed winger (first Estupiñán, then Valtieri), who covered behind him. This maintained good balance between the team's attack and defense. So what is Diego's preferred position? "Anywhere is fine. I like playing on the right or left, higher or lower. I'm very happy playing in any position and always give my best." The Belgian player gave a perfectly diplomatic answer.

Morena will join the Belgian national team during this three-week international break (he has been called up alongside De Winter for this UEFA Nations League period, while Saelemakers was not included; their first match is against Italy). But after the break, with a congested fixture list ahead, he will have more opportunities to convince Amorim to finally earn a spot in the starting lineup, and fans are already eagerly anticipating this.

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