Despite AC Milan forking out big money for Brazilian starlet Lucas Paqueta at a time when they are feeling a financial pinch, Leonardo believes it was a purchase that was necessary.
The Diavolo paid Flamengo a fee of €35 million to bring the promising midfielder to European football, edging out competition from several other sides to do so.
Under orders from the club’s president to speak about Paqueta only at the player’s unveiling, the Milan sporting director outlined why he doesn’t feel the move is a risk and why he isn’t feeling the pressure of engineering such a high-profile transfer at a time when the Rossoneri are attempting to comply with Financial Fair Play restrictions.
“At the age of 49, I think I’m old enough to cope with the pressure of these deals because I knew what I was getting into. These challenges are important and I’m comfortable with them,” he told reporters at Paqueta’s presentation.
“These are shared choices and it is an investment that has been made in complete agreement with the club. I haven’t paid the €35m myself. But we don’t believe that it is a risky investment.
“It was an important expense and we know what the stakes are but it is an important signing we had to make as he is a young player who has already proven his worth and will have a chance to do so more at Milan.
“We want an offensive, proactive team. The current moment is a time of reconstruction. We want to buy good offensive players, regardless of their nationality, and I didn’t sign Paqueta because we are both Brazilian but because we want players who can do certain things for us on the field.”
Although Leonardo acknowledged that there is justifiable excitement surrounding his compatriot’s arrival at the San Siro, he was hesitant to be pushed into the obvious Kaka comparisons.
“I do think that his signing has created expectations, particularly with the rich history of Brazilian players at Milan, which has certainly influenced things,” he added.
“He will bring a good offensive way of approaching football to us. I don’t want to compare him to Kaka because it is very difficult to achieve what he did, and we are in a different situation.
“At that time [when Kaka played], Milan won a lot, while it is different now as the team is under construction and going through changes. He should be assessed on all of these things and not on what he has to do in relation to Kaka.”
Source: forzaitalianfootball.com