Luka Modric on Rafael Leao's Future at Milan
Luka Modric knows what it means to be the centre of a transfer storm. He has lived it, won through it, and lifted everything there is to lift on the other side. So when he talks about Rafael Leao’s future, Milan listen.
As the transfer window tightens and the noise around Leao grows louder, Modric has cut through it with the calm of someone who has seen this movie before. No drama. No pressure. Just a clear message: Leao’s future is his own to write.
“I don’t want to give him advice,” Modric told La Gazzetta dello Sport, making it clear he would not step into the role of mentor-turned-agent. “Rafa is mature enough to know what’s best for him. He knows how much the fans and the club love him. He’s a great player and it’s great to have him here. He just has to work hard and give his best for Milan, as he always has done.”
That last line matters at San Siro. Because for all the speculation that followed the end of the 2025-26 season, when Leao signalled he was ready to “test himself in a different environment”, Milan still see him as the attacking pillar of their project. Seven years in red and black have made him more than just a winger. He is the reference point, the symbol of a front line built around his pace, power and unpredictability.
Yet Modric did not pretend the recent past has been perfect.
He openly acknowledged what everyone around the club already knows: last season was not Leao at full tilt. The Portuguese forward battled physical issues, a stop-start campaign that stripped him of rhythm and dulled the edge that usually makes him unplayable in one-on-one situations.
“Maybe he’s not coming off the best season, he had a couple of injuries and wasn’t feeling at his best physically,” Modric admitted. The respect, though, never wavered. “But he’s still a great footballer. In my opinion, if he were to stay, it would be fantastic for all of us because he’s one of the best in the world when he’s at his peak.”
That is the crux of it for Milan. This is a club heading into a season without the financial cushion and sporting magnetism of Champions League football. Every decision carries extra weight. Lose a player of Leao’s calibre now and the rebuild becomes steeper, the margin for error slimmer. Keep him fit, focused and committed, and the entire outlook changes.
Modric, who arrived to bring experience and authority to a dressing room in transition, clearly sees the upside of sharing the pitch with a fully firing Leao. For him, the idea of linking up with the Portuguese forward is not just a tactical asset. It is a genuine source of motivation as Milan attempt to reset their trajectory.
He is not the only one sending that message.
Ruben Amorim, tasked with steering this new Milan, has also been drawn into the Leao conversation. At the end of last season the narrative felt almost settled: Leao wanted a new challenge, and Europe’s elite were circling. Yet as pre-season unfolded, the mood around the player began to shift.
On the club’s tour in Australia, Amorim chose to underline Leao’s current state of mind rather than his past declarations.
“All the players are working really well: both those who started from day one and those who arrived later,” the coach said. “Rafa is lucky to be at a club like Milan, so he should be happy. I feel he’s happy and motivated.”
It was a subtle but important repositioning. No promises, no guarantees, but a clear indication that inside the camp they see a player engaged, not one with his suitcase half-packed.
Still, the market never sleeps. Rumours continue, and Leao’s previously expressed desire to explore a different environment hovers in the background. Modric did not ignore that reality. He simply framed it in the blunt terms professionals understand.
“As I said, he and the club will decide what the best solution will be,” he concluded. Then came the line that strips away the politics and leaves only the footballer’s instinct. “But as a footballer, of course I want Rafa in my team.”
That is where Milan stand today: between the business and the ball, between a player’s ambition and a club’s need. Modric has made his position clear. Now the question is whether Leao’s next decisive run comes down the left flank at San Siro, or out of the stadium door.
