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Locatelli on where his progress went wrong: 'I looked like a new Messi...'

Locatelli on where his progress went wrong: 'I looked like a new Messi...'

Manuel Locatelli, currently on loan at Sassuolo from AC Milan, returns to play his parent club this weekend; the Italian midfielder taking to Instagram to explain more about his career progress - as well as suggesting what may have had a negative impact on his growth and development as a player.

Locatelli said "I experienced a boom in which I looked like the new Messi, who scored all the time, headlines in the newspapers, and then many criticisms when things were not going well. They did hurt because I lived through some difficult moments but with the help of my family and my girlfriend I managed to get out of it."

Locatelli's point is that the pressures of the media and fan expectation got to him and it is this pressure which claims the careers of so many 'wonderkids', as they are dubbed. Locatelli will be hoping he can impress Milan at the weekend and possibly earn himself a place back in the squad in the future.

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