Tuttosport: Several players ‘reborn’ under Amorim – the list of his wild cards

Ruben Amorim continues to try and make the most out of the resources at his disposal, sometimes using players in multiple roles.

Tuttosport write that Amorim has ‘promoted’ some players who seemed out of the club’s plans to fairly prominent roles, partly out of necessity and partly because the transfer market hasn’t yielded any significant offers for them.

The resurgent five

At the start of the summer, there was a list of players everyone was expecting to leave, and who are now earning significant minutes. The most emblematic example is Pervis Estupiñan.

The Ecuadorian full-back had been practically sold to Aston Villa before Milan left for Australia, but Amorim blocked the transfer because he wanted to evaluate him during his training camp.

This decision initially slowed negotiations between the Rossoneri and the Villans, until the final decision was made to keep Estupiñan, also because the English club then shifted its focus to Ruggeri, given that Milan were no longer showing any signs of closing the deal.

Then there is Yunus Musah. The midfielder joined Atalanta on loan last year with an option to buy, failed to convince the Bergamo club, who decided not to exercise their €24m option to buy. His physical qualities and dynamism have convinced Amorim to use him in the double pivot.

Samuel Chukwueze is another case in point. He, along with Musah, was mentioned Amorim specifically on the day of his unveiling press conference. The Nigerian has found a new position as a wing-back that is giving him the chance to play consistently.

Fikayo Tomori and Ruben Loftus-Cheek deserve a separate discussion. The defender has been reinstated in the squad even though he hasn’t seen the field yet, the midfielder is a mystery. Amorim has tried to instil confidence and encourage him, but the results haven’t been consistent.

Alexis Saelemaekers is currently sidelined with an ankle issue, but he remains a wild card for Amorim. He has used him both as a wing-back and as an attacking midfielder already, on the right and on the left side.

In short the Portuguese coach is trying to get a tune out of everyone at his disposal, while waiting to see if any further gifts arrive from the winter window.