Former Milan star George Weah has no doubt about who he’s going to root for in Saturday’s San Siro clash between the Rossoneri and Juventus, as his son Timothy also plays for the team he ‘never stopped’ supporting despite wearing their rivals’ shirt for many seasons.
The former Liberian striker played for the Rossoneri between 1995 and 2000, winning the Serie A title twice. As much as he left the Rossoneri fans with plenty of fond memories, he made no secret of his love for the Bianconeri colours, admitting Timothy Weah has made his ‘dream’ of playing for the Old Lady come true.
George Weah: I ‘never stopped’ being a Juventus fan, I’ll cheer for Timothy against Milan
“I was a die-hard Juventus fan,” he told La Repubblica in an interview, as quoted by Calciomercato.com.
“It was the years when Platini played for Juventus, and many African children, myself included, were crazy about him. I loved the way he took free kicks and penalties, and kids like me played in the streets trying to imitate his kicking style.
“But when the ball left his foot, it curved, while we could never manage to do that. Platini was a role model, a legend, and I never stopped being a Juventus fan.”
Paulo Fonseca’s Milan will host Juventus on Saturday evening in a match that could tell much about their aspirations of getting back into the title race, as they currently sit eight points behind leaders Napoli despite having a game in hand.
In the absence of Dusan Vlahovic, it was suggested that Bianconeri’s coach Thiago Motta could look at Timothy Weah to replace him by playing as a false nine, but latest reports indicate that Weston McKennie should be tasked with that function instead.
However, the fact that his son plays for the team he supports will be enough for George Weah to ‘be happy’ in case of a Juventus win, as the 24-year-old has realised the dream his father could not fulfil as his then-coach Arsene Wenger advised him to turn down an offer from the Bianconeri, who were ‘interested’ in him.
“I’ll cheer for Juventus because it’s my team, and because my son plays for them,” Weah conceded.
“I hope it will be a great match. If Juventus win, I’ll be happy. If Milan win, I’m not 100% happy, but a little bit I will be.
“Did my son realise the dream I had as a child? You could say so.
“When I played for Monaco, Juventus were interested in me, but I was still very young, and Wenger advised me to stay in France a little longer because I needed to mature.
“Serie A, back then, was probably the toughest league in the world. So I went to PSG.”
Going on to comment on his Rossoneri stint, Weah said: “Five fantastic years at Milan. As an opponent, I watched them, and admired them, I clearly remember that Champions League final loss to Ajax.
“Van Basten was still there, and he later honoured me by giving me his number nine shirt. Everyone wanted to play in Italy, and I made the choice, even though I could have gone elsewhere.
“I dreamed of Juventus, but I couldn’t say no to Milan. I’m still in touch with my old teammates: I called Sebastiano Rossi, I talk often with Boban and Maldini, to whom I owe a lot, and Marco Simone, a great friend of mine.”
