Should we see the consequences of his Algerian origins? But according to one of his former coaches, Yacine Adli is the “new Zidane”.
Algerian origins, a stint in Bordeaux where he revealed himself then a flight to Italy: Yacine Adli and Zinedine Zidane certainly have things in common. However, the former Parisian does not experience the same success at AC Milan as his illustrious elder at Juventus Turin. So much so that the native of Vitry-sur-Seine had to be content with a meager seven appearances for 140 minutes of play.
“On the first day of training I spoke with Pioli and he told me that we were going to change the way we played and that I was not in the plans. Then Tomori asked me what I would do and I told him: ‘I will stay here and you will see how I play’. I always tried to work well, the coach always helped me and gave me a lot of advice. It’s just the beginning. It wasn’t easy after a year without playing, I always prepared to play anyway,” said the person concerned after the match against Cagliari on Wednesday, won by AC Milan (2-1). This meeting indeed marked his big return to competition after almost a year without playing. Established from the start in an unusual role of sentinel, Yacine Adli showed himself to his advantage and was even entitled to the compliments of Stefano Pioli even if the latter took him out shortly before the hour mark.
“He played well. I’m very happy for him. He has been playing this position with us since July 10 with a lot of will and desire to improve, he always reviews his teammates’ performances in this role. He did a lot of good things, other things he can do better, but it’s a performance that gives me the option to consider Adli in this role.”the Italian technician told Sky Sport.
But the most complimentary towards Yacine Adli was… Paulo Sousa, his former coach at Bordeaux and now at the head of Salernitana. “ We still have a lot of affection for each other, he is an extraordinary young man, very creative. An exemplary worker, for me, the new Zinedine Zidane in terms of technical quality. He needs continuity,” he said about it.
