Looking at 'the other' Donnarumma's controversial tenure with AC Milan
With Gianluigi Donnarumma set to miss tonight’s Coppa Italia edition of the Derby della Mole, another Donnarumma will don the AC Milan shirt in his place.
While Marco Storari will be between the pipes, Antonio Donnarumma (the brother) will be on the bench.
Earlier this month I took a look at the unique and controversial role he plays on the team. See below for the story from December 14th.
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When Sinisa Mihajlovic gave, a then 16-year-old, Gianluigi Donnarumma his first start in Serie A, he upended Italy’s long-trusted policy of hierarchy among sports teams. Until that point, the importance of seniority generally trumped that of talent. With his success at AC Milan, Donnarumma was the face of meritocracy in Italian soccer.
Two years later, he is now the subject of unrelenting criticism by the same fans who once hailed his ascent. Strangely, their jeers are not a result of his performances on the pitch, but controversy surrounding his financial relationship with AC Milan.
One of the main criticisms from the fans is a perceived hypocrisy from the precocious keeper. It centers, not on him but, around his older brother, Antonio. Also a goalkeeper, Antonio occupies the third spot on the AC Milan depth chart, yet pulls down a €1 million salary.
His move to the San Siro this past summer was orchestrated by superagent Mino Raiola, who used Antonio’s contract to sweeten the €6 million per year contract extension Gigio signed with the Rossoneri. However, fans see the ‘other’ Donnarumma as a prime example of what many feel ails Italian soccer, and a move away from the meritocracy Gigio seemed to have ushered in.
Their anger boiled over last night as they created a banner criticizing Gigio for being greedy, in which they called Antonio a ‘parasite’. Having only one Serie A appearance to his name – the final match of the 2012/13 season for Genoa – and coming from Greek club Asteras Tripolis, fans are infuriated that he’s earning so much money and is blocking the path of other young, talented hopefuls, like Gigio once was, from moving up AC Milan’s depth chart.
If there is a split between Gigio and AC Milan this summer, it will be interesting to follow the fate of his brother.