By Ewah Chika.

After scoring against his parent club AC Milan in Seria A last season while on loan with AS Roma, Stephan Karim El-Shaarawy had this to say, "It was a whirlwind of strong emotions for me. It's been a very special night coming back to San Siro, scoring in front of the Curva Sud where I scored my first Seria A goal, getting a round of applause when I came off.

"It was a unique and unforgettable night and I have to thank the Milan fans, as they cheered me even when I was substituted. I'm delighted," he concluded.

As if that wasn't enough, it didn't take long before Roma announced the signing of the 23-year-old for €13 million on a four year deal after impressing on loan last season which represents a loss of €6 million considering he was signed for €20 million from Genoa in 2011 by AC Milan. AC Milan fans will feel bad partly due to the fact that the Italian player is a fan favourite and one whose talent is unquestionable. El-Shaarawy was signed in 2011 for €20 million from Genoa after impressing on loan in Padova scoring nine goals in 29 Seria B games which qualified the team for the Seria A playoff. While in Milan, the player was nicknamed "Young Pharoah" by the fans as his pace, work-ethic, technical skill and ball control were all joy to behold. El-Shaarawy joined a Milan team in decline as the club struggled to compete with big teams and financial resources selling their best players Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimovic to PSG and replacing them with average players. In his second season (2012/2013) he was the light of the team and was the star player scoring 19 goals in 49 games in all competitions . This is still his best season to date even though he struggled in the second half of the season after the signing of Mario Balotelli from Manchester City. One of the reason for El-Shaarawy's loss of form is the fact that Balotelli became a vocal point of Milan's attack, as Maximiliano Allegri's tactical game plan changed which favoured the former Manchester City man, shifting El-Shaarawy to the wing burdening him with defensive contributions which is not one of his strengths .


With a flair like that of South American, El-Shaarawy might have struggled with pressure and expectations as he gradually lost form before the season ended. If 2012/2013 season was his breakthrough season, 2013/2014 season turned out a disaster for him as he struggled with injuries and match fitness for two years before the club decided to send him on loan to Monaco last season. It was at Monaco that the Egyptian lost his love for the game as he only played only 15 Ligue 1 games scoring no goal . This was the reason why he was sent on a second loan to Roma last season after Luciano Spalletti took over the club from Luis Garcia and requested for his signing.

In total El-Shaarawy played 82 Seria A games for Milan scoring 21 goals . With the signing of El-Shaarawy , Roma has upgraded and can now compete with the big boys In Seria A provided the sign players who will supply the key passes that the striker will convert . AC Milan might feel it was better to sell the player considering his recent struggles and form of Carlos Bacca but one thing that should be noted is that if given more time and patience El-Shaarawy would have been a monumental success at the club.

Source

http://mailtelegraph..com.ng/2016/07/stephane-el-shaarawy-how-ac-milans-loss.html?m=1