“Although he has never taken my breath away, Kaka has impressed,” Sir Alex Ferguson said in 2009, and we think he may have been telling a little white lie.
Two years earlier, the Brazil legend put in a dazzling display against Manchester United at Old Trafford to help dump them out of the Champions League semi-finals.
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Kaka, then 25, might have been on the losing side on the night but his spell-binding showing on April 24, 2007, in a 3-2 defeat set them up perfectly for a home leg which they would win 3-0, propelling them into a final against Liverpool.
The tie, with Lionel Messi not yet up to full speed, was billed as a battle between Milan’s attacking midfielder and Cristiano Ronaldo, which man could prove themselves worthy of being called the best in the world.
And the Portuguese struck first, five minutes in, as his header was pawed over the line by Dida in an attempt to keep it out.
At the other end, Kaka was already asserting himself, getting chopped down by right-back John O’Shea when about to burst towards the penalty area.
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With the safety net of Gennaro Gattuso, Massimo Ambrosini, Clarence Seedorf and Andrea Pirlo, around him, he could flourish and fly forward, and often past striker Alberto Gilardino, who created space for his runs.
His height, 6ft 1in, as an attacking midfielder caused all sorts of trouble too, able to take the ball on his chest and control the ball before passing or powering away from opponents.
Drifting into spaces behind Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick and slaloming away to link with Seedorf, he chipped away at United, a long range effort gobbled up by Edwin van der Sar.
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After 22 minutes, another darting run would have Carrick floundering, passing the buck to Gabriel Heinze, while Van der Sar could only collapse to the deck as Kaka rolled the ball home and into the far corner.
He drifted both right and left to create opportunities but it was driving into the heart of United where he devastated, and 15 minutes after his first, his second followed.
His height caused the initial problem, Darren Fletcher this time unable to cope, the ball was flicked over a charging Heinze.
The Argentine giddy from the wave of the matador’s muleta, turned apace but his about turn merely saw him collide with Patrice Evra, attempting to halt Kaka.
Heinze was left on the deck and the Brazilian, with barely a break in his stride, and with tremendous composure, slid the ball around Van der Sar.
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It’s here where we should again point out Milan lost this match, neat play in the second half saw Wayne Rooney level the scores at 2-2, Scholes’ flick to assist another sensational moment in the match.
And in added time the forward grabbed the winner on the night with an effort from the edge of the area beating Dida at his near post.
But, even while Old Trafford witnessed a home triumph, Kaka provoked hushed awe and gasps with his display.
A long range shot palmed away, a stepover tying O’Shea’ legs together, before a one-two with Seedorf was wasted.
One time when Heinze snuffed out his opponent the roof was raised, the United supporters realising the difficulty of the task on the night.
Thanks to a 3-0 second leg win a the San Siro, Kaka’s Milan would go onto the final and lift the Champions League, swatting away Liverpool in Athens.
As an individual, he would go on to win the Ballon d’Or ahead of Ronaldo, who Ferguson admitted ‘disappointed’ him in that second leg.
“Cristiano had a disappointing night,” the Scotsman admitted.
“He knows that but he is a young man and on nights like these he sees the professionalism and experience of AC Milan.”
Meanwhile, Kaka’s teammates could only look back on how good he was during that period.
“For two or three years, he was the best player in the world,” explained Andrea Pirlo in 2009 after his teammate left to join Real Madrid. “There was a point when teams just had no idea how to stop him.”
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Manchester United did not know how to stop him.
When Kaka eventually retired in 2017, Brazil legend Pele remarked: “I will miss seeing you with a ball at your feet – you were a magician.”
We were all under his spell during that match at Old Trafford, even Ferguson, no matter what he says.
You can listen to Manchester United vs AC Milan in the Europa League Round of 16, live on talkSPORT
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