After the rather disappointing draw against Bologna last week, AC Milan had their eye on all three points as they travelled away to Frosinone.
The game started well for the Rossoneri who opened up the scoring just 17 minutes into the game through a lovely headed goal courtesy of Olivier Giroud after Rafael Leao provided a great cross for the Frenchman.
The lead didn’t last long, however, with Milan conceding a penalty in the 24th minute, calmly converted by the on-loan Juventus forward Soule.
It was Frosinone that struck again to turn the game on its head in the 65th minute, putting Milan in a very awkward position, but Matteo Gabbia equalised with a header as Giroud turned provider.
Then, Luka Jovic grabbed the winner a minute after coming off the bench and continue his excellent recent form. Below are five things we learned from the game.
1. Staking a claim
Giroud is 37 years of age and Milan needs to secure a top striker for the future but that doesn’t mean he can’t have a seat on the bench, and he’s fighting hard to earn another year on his contract.
The striker has had his ups and downs this season in terms of overall performance, but his goal contribution has been consistently there.
With 11 goals and 8 assists in 20 games, Giroud has almost 1 g/a per game showing that he can both score and provide for his team-mates and he did so against Frosinone as well.
He managed a lovely goal to open the scoring and got an assist for the second, while the Frenchman was also quite involved throughout the game and his fitness levels are impressive too.
2. Getting there, but work to do
Leao had one of his best games this season as he beat his marker consistently throughout the game and was the main man for his team.
He picked up an assist for the first goal and really should’ve probably got another goal or assist, which is why he still has some work to do to be on the level we’ve seen him these past two seasons.
However, against Frosinone, we at least saw those unstoppable runs and dribbles that haven’t been always there this season, which was a big bonus.
A really solid game by the former Lille man who was up there with Giroud in terms of impact and hopefully this can be a confidence boost for him.
3. Midfield duo disappoint
Tijjani Reijnders had an underwhelming game as he did little to nothing whilst on the ball and he also picked up a yellow card that will mean he cannot play against Napoli in a week due to suspension.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek will want to forget about his performance as the only positive thing he did was get the pre-assist on the first goal.
For a player who was one of the best in Serie A in January, it was not a performance to be proud of but given his uptrend in recent weeks, we can’t be too harsh on the Englishman as one bad game doesn’t erase all the positives we’ve seen.
4. The stabilisers
Unlike Loftus-Cheek and Reijnders, Bennacer and Musah had a nice impact on the game.It was nice to see the Algerian back on the pitch for Milan again after his absence while participating in the African Cup of Nations.
Bennacer was involved in the third goal and was also good on the ball helping in the build-up. It was a vibrant display off the bench and it’s great that Pioli can rely on him next week with Reijnders suspended.
Musah also came off the bench in the second half and the American was good at holding the ball especially when Milan got the lead again and had to kill off the game.
A solid performance from the American, and he will be getting more playing time with the upcoming Europa League games.
5. Jovic to the rescue, again
The Serbian came in the second half and was at the right place at the right time again for his team as he scored the winner after reacting fast and firing the ball into the back of the net.
The striker has accumulated seven goals and an assist in the last two months or so after barely getting any playtime in the first few months as a Milan player, let alone goals or assists.
Jovic has stepped up his game and his positioning has been impressive as of late, but furthermore, he also showed the composure and striker instinct to pull the trigger first time.
Unfortunately for him, Giroud has also no intentions of slowing down as he’s picking up goals and assists too, which is great news for Pioli as the healthy competition has done wonders for Milan.
However, that also means Jovic can’t solidify a starting spot. As said above, with the Europa League around the corner there will be plenty of game time for both and Jovic, like Giroud, seems determined to earn his stay at the club beyond the summer.
