Omari Hutchinson got the chance from start against Salzburg on Thursday evening and he certainly made the most of that, showcasing his true value for the first time. 

Prior to yesterday’s game, Hutchinson had only played 63 minutes for Milan. He started in the Benfica clash and showed some promise then, but he was subbed off at half-time and the Rossoneri weren’t exactly brilliant overall, so it wasn’t a great chance to shine.

Against Salzburg, on the other hand, Milan looked much better as a team and the Nottingham Forest also got to play the entire game. It was certainly the right decision by Ruben Amorim as we got to see a lot of quality plays from him.

Big step forward

Just 15 minutes into the game, after looking incredibly lively on the right flank, Hutchinson bagged the assist for Alphadjo Cisse’s first goal. He twisted and turned in the 1v1 with the defender before sending in a perfect cross with his right foot.

From there on, he continued to create problems for the Slazburg defence and nearly got a goal himself just minutes after, denied by a goal-line clearance. Before the first half was over, he also helped start the move for the second goal with a nice diagonal run.

In the second half, he was incredibly unlucky not to get a goal as he did everything right on a counter-attack, receiving the ball from Luka Modric. He turned the defender inside out before firing a shot away. It initially looked like it was going in but the keeper managed to save it with his leg.

However, goal or no goal, he still got the aforementioned assist and also showed that he can be a proper weapon for Milan. What impressed me the most was his skills on the ball, being incredibly comfortable in possession, as well as his acceleration. He’s rapid!

It’s no surprise that the newspapers gave him very good ratings and the same goes for us, rating him at 7/10. Gazzetta dello Sport even likened his role to Matteo Politano under Antonio Conte: right winger in a 4-3-3, midfielder in a defensive 4-4-2, and, if necessary, the fifth man at the back.

After the game, Hutchinson was very pleased with the performance of the team and himself: “For me personally, it was another step forward. I’m really happy with my performance and I just want to keep it up, maintaining this level,” he said among other things.

Looking ahead (maybe foolishly so), he’s only at Milan on loan and they will have to make a decision on his future in the summer. The buy-out option is set at €40-50m, so it would require a sizeable investment for the Rossoneri to keep him.

Furthermore, they have already paid €4m for the loan and are covering his salary for the season, so they will want some sort of return. The Salzburg performance is a big step forward, as the player himself said, but there is still a long way to go for that buy-out clause.

Given the tight schedule ahead, we are bound to see him from start again and hopefully, he can get his first goal with the red and black shirt sooner rather than later.