Gonçalo Ramos will make his San Siro debut for Milan tonight against Venezia, hoping to mark it with his first Serie A goal.
The stakes stretch beyond a personal milestone. According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, a win would push Milan to the top of the table, and while it is only the second game of the season, Ruben Amorim would get to enjoy sitting at the summit for at least one night.
Ramos steps into the fixture as the club's new centre-forward, the man Milan spent over €70m to sign from PSG, the most expensive transfer in Serie A this summer. After three years in Paris he arrived with a collection of trophies but never the leading role. At Amorim's Milan, the brief is different: he is the No.9, the starter, the team's designated goalscorer.
The evening carries weight of its own. San Siro will be a sell-out, away section included, and the club will honour Franco Baresi in a tribute that runs well beyond the 90 minutes. It is Milan's past being celebrated in a present that Gerry Cardinale wants to make worthy of that history, after two seasons that fell short.
Amorim, who like Ramos will experience San Siro as a Milan figure for the first time, framed the night in his press conference. "It will be special; I want to enjoy the moment," said the former Sporting and Manchester United manager.
For Ramos, the ideal night beyond the three points would be a first goal in front of a Curva Sud expected to be loud from the opening whistle. His value to the side, though, is not only about what shows up on the scoresheet. He is the first to trigger the high press Amorim wants and the last to give up on loose balls.
He showed as much in Turin, even without getting on the board. Adrien Rabiot beat him to a Samuel Chukwueze delivery just yards from goal, denying him what would have been the opener. The chances will keep coming.
With €70m committed and the No.9 shirt on his back, the goals are the part still waiting to arrive, and tonight is Ramos's first invitation to deliver them at home.