Alexandre Pato’s six years at Milan remain a distinct chapter in the club’s modern history: a gifted young forward arriving from Brazil, a league title in 2010-11, the Italian Super Cup a year later, and a bond with supporters who remembered both his ability and his nickname, “The Duck”.
From Porto Alegre to Milanello
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Pato joined Milan as a teenager in 2007, leaving Porto Alegre and a far more modest setting behind him.
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One early memory of Italy stayed with him. On the way to Forte dei Marmi, he saw a Ferrari pass by — something he had never seen before.
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He then met Adriano Galliani, who took him to meet Carlo Ancelotti and the Milan squad.
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Pato recalled being small and shy as he was introduced to the group. The players stood up, shook his hand and embraced him, an occasion he described as especially meaningful.
That welcome led into a six-season spell that lasted until 2013. Pato became part of a Milan side that won the Scudetto in 2010-11 and followed it with the 2011 Italian Super Cup, while his technical quality gave him a lasting place in the memories of Rossoneri fans.
Brazilian idols in the Milan dressing room
Milan also gave Pato the chance to share a dressing room with several of the Brazilian players he had admired growing up. Kaká was one he followed closely, although Pato noted that they occupied different roles on the pitch.
Ronaldo, however, had been his childhood idol. Pato said he had even copied Ronaldo’s hairstyle. Later, Ronaldinho arrived at Milan, and Pato regarded him as the finest of them all.
Alongside those Brazilian figures, he also played with a long list of leading Italian players during a successful period for the club.
A choice between Milan and Inter
Pato confirmed that Inter had shown interest in him, while other clubs had also made enquiries. Yet he viewed Milan as the right destination.
For the Brazilian, the reasoning was simple: he joined a Milan team capable of winning trophies, and he did exactly that. The medals and the welcome he received at the beginning of his Italian adventure remain central to how he looks back on his Rossoneri years.
