Fikayo Tomori told his friends 'fantastic' Rafa Leao didn't even know how good he is

Portugal international Leao was the talk of the town for his magical solo run against Serie A winners Napoli in the Champions League quarter final in April.

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Picking up the ball deep inside his own half, Leao powered his way up the pitch, fending off several challenges from the Napoli defenders before teeing up Olivier Giroud to put Milan 2-0 up on aggregate.

It was another example of the form that has seen him linked with some of Europe's biggest clubs.

One man not surprised by his form, though, is former Chelsea defender Fikayo Tomori, who joined Milan in a permanent deal in 2021.

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Speaking to The Times, he said: "The scary thing about Rafa is when I came to Milan, my friends were asking me 'Who's the player who's really good' and I said, 'You don't really know but there is this guy called Rafa Leao he's so good but he doesn't understand how good he is!'"

At just 23, the Rossoneri star has the potential to become one of Europe's top players, and maybe even a future Ballon d'Or winner. In his native Portugal, many fans believe he is the heir to Cristiano Ronaldo's throne in the national team set up.

"Rafa can dribble, shoot, head, run in behind, link up well," Leao added.

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"Last season when we won the Scudetto and he tore up towards the end of the season and won best player, he realised, 'Yeah, this is what I can do'. He's our talisman. We look to him, you saw against Napoli when he went 70 yards, set the goal up. He's a fantastic player and he's only going to get better."

The former Lille forward made his senior international debut for Portugal in October 2021, and has since gone on to make 18 appearances, scoring three goals. Two of them goals came in Qatar at the World Cup, where he showcased his potential despite being limited to just 83 minutes of action as a substitute.

Whilst the future is bright for Leao, Rossoneri fans will be hopeful he can contribute in the present, as they prepare to face neighbourhood rivals Inter in the Champions League semi-final and add to his 12 goals and seven assists he has recorded in Serie A.

After limping off in the 11th minute against Lazio on Saturday, Milan manager Stefano Pioli will be sweating over the fitness of his key man ahead of a season defining tie.