AC Milan claimed three huge points in the game against Napoli thanks to a first-half goal by Theo Hernandez. The Frenchman, along with a few others, stood out and below are the player ratings for the Rossoneri.
If you haven’t already, make sure to check out how we decide the player ratings. From the scale to what affects the rating, we have compiled everything there.
Starting XI
Maignan (6.5): He was forced to a few saves this evening and also did well in the aerial duels, coming out and clearing the lines for Milan. Overall, a decent performance from the Frenchman.
Calabria (N/A): The captain was subbed off after just 36 minutes due to injury and he thus didn’t play enough to get a rating.
Kjaer (5): A very tough evening for the Dane, above all showcasing poor positioning which usually is one of his main strengths. He lost Simeone on Napoli’s golden opportunity and then attempted a dreadful tackle on Kvara, which probably should have resulted in a goal.
Gabbia (7.5): Another very, very good performance by the academy product, always breathing down the neck of his opponent and making several interceptions. Furthermore, he was at the right place at the right time in the box, clearing many (and some dangerous) crosses.
Hernandez (8): Outstanding at times from the Frenchman, scoring the opener after a great run in the first half, and stepping up defensively in the second half. It didn’t look like the Napoli attackers could beat him at times and his runs forward destroyed most of the momentum for them as well.
Adli (6): A mixed bag once again from the Frenchman, but in the end he did enough to get a pass here. He used his ability on the ball in a much better way in the second half, after what was a questionable first 45.
Bennacer (6): He had one really poor giveaway, which could have been costly, but he was good otherwise and actually made several key defensive contributions. We can demand more from him with his passing, though, with not as many vertical passes today.
Pulisic (5.5): Pretty much invisible for most of the game, aside from a touch here and there, and one could probably argue that was because Milan attacked down the left-hand side instead. Rightfully subbed off in the end.
Loftus-Cheek (5.5): He can be very good at times when first receiving the ball and setting off with it, but he lacks so much when it comes to timing. He had a few good opportunities today that simply were not exploited. One good block in defence that should be highlighted, but far too poor in attack and sloppy overall.
Leao (7): Fantastic pass to Theo for the first goal, and almost every chance that Milan created today involved the winger in one way or another. He nearly scored with a curling effort, and perhaps he should have done better there, but the rating is warranted simply because he added an x-factor tonight and put Napoli in difficulty.
Giroud (6): Another display that was rather quiet from the Frenchman overall, but he was involved in the first goal and thus had an impact on the game in the end.
Substitutes
Florenzi (6): He did well overall and saved Milan on one occasion, when Kjaer completely mistimed a tackle against Kvara.
Simic (5.5): Nearly scored an own-goal after a failed clearance, which was unlucky indeed but still could have been costly for Milan.
Musah (6): He did what was needed, covering a lot of ground and also making sure to push forward when given the ball (to force Napoli to track back).
Jimenez (N/A): He didn’t play enough to get a rating.
Jovic (N/A): He didn’t play enough to get a rating.
The manager
Pioli (6): You could definitely say that it was a poor game from Milan, but they played to their strengths (counter-attack and low defending) just like we saw in the Champions League games against Napoli last season. And the win is all that matters in the end.
Giroud almost played for Napoli and got 6 and Mike just have clean sheet aaaaand got 6????
Silly comment
Giroud had a very important role. He was modeling our 4th kit for 80 minutes.
Ha. Gold.
Another win in the box. Seems like Napoli is a team that suits us lately, like Roma and in contrast to Inter and this season’s Atalanta.
I see this game as one of those “we did just enough to win” type of games. I thought tactically Napoli managed to shut down our buildup in the first 20 minutes or so when they were in this 3-5-1-1 setup and in the second half when they switched back to a 4-3-3 (I think ?) they created most of the dangers. But they lacked teeth and it was us who made the most out of the few chances we got (but we missed a lot). Defensively this time, we were good.
Good game by Theo who scored the only goal in a beautiful combo. Defensively he was alright and offensively contributed very well. Overall since we abandoned the 4-3-3, he seems to be able to find the back of the net and create chances for his teammates.
Leao did overall play well. Aside from the superb assist, he did create good chances and was overall good. But he seems to have forgotten how to score and that 1vs1 with the goalie that he tried to give to Theo is for me a big mistake for a forward and shows he is not up to the number 10 he is wearing.
Gabbia had a great game. Kjaer was subpar, his sub was correct and happy to see Simic again (who almost scored an own goal though).
It seems like we didn’t had an injury in a while yet here we go again. Florenzi did ok, but was often beaten by Kvaratskhelia who enjoyed more freedom and seemed less heavily marked today (but who is fortunately for us worse than last season).
I felt like our midfield pair (Bennacer and Adli) were subpar today. Not in the sense of them being dispossed but their creativity was lacking and Bennacer made a misspass that almost costed us a goal.
RLC was good as a ball winner but not so much as a ball distributor. His passing and decision-making when he has the ball are very poor for an AM.
Pulisic was invisible today and I feel he regressed since 5 games or so.
Giroud wasn’t very present today as well but seeing the lack of creativity, I can’t blame him much.
Overall I was more intrigued by Napoli’s 3-5-1-1. Was this done because of an injury or absence or was-it them trying to stack the midfield since they generally did poorly against us with their usual 4-3-3 and that we seems to struggle against teams who play with these 3-5-2 or 3-4-3 systems ?
Leao gets so much hate nowadays but he was a headache for their defenders all night – we probably wouldn’t have won without him on the pitch. Gabbia deserves yet another shoutout and Adli was immense. Overall great win and nice to finally see us defend a lead in the second half – especially against Crapoli.
The headache is that he simply has no composure in the final third. As soon as he’s within 20 yards, he seems to completely panic
His movement and the way he creates space and assists for others is as important as his goals. But people don’t understand that here…
Simple minds only understand “goals scored”
They don’t understand. He’s still the most dangerous player on our team and on the field and creates load even when “he’s not having aa good game”. Puli is having a great season overall and should thank Leao for creating him the space to do so. Even with Puli being statistically ahead in g/a, teams will still double or triple team Leao because he’s that guy. The danger guy.
Leao played very well yesterday and that assist is not something any player can pull off.
Overall this season, he seems to be trying to mutate into a more collective player even at the expense of individual stats. He seems to be more of a team player recently that what he was during prior seasons or even in the beginning of the season.
However he had a great scoring chance and simply ran away from it. He is wearing the number 10 and has the biggest salary in the team, he to be more lethal in front of the goal. Had Napoli scored he would have been slaughetered for that.
Forget about goals. He has very low soccer iq. Some of his passes say it all and yet you complain about “simple minds” . Oh the irony.
Agreed. He had a very good game. Chance creation is as important a stat for him as goals scored and today he got another assist.
People don’t understand that fast attackers like Leao, keep the opponent’s defense line in stress all the time. It affects and slows down their build-ups and significantly decreases their chances of scoring. Best defense is attack.
And rightfully so he deserves the hate. The guy has very low soccer IQ .
Everyone is looking at that one assist but did you see what he did prior to that? He cannot connect.
puli did a lot, cover the rb a lot.
Mike was fix a 7, very solid this game
Yes leao made an assist but he doesn’t deserve a 7. Such poor decision making and so lazy. He irritates me actually when once upon a time he used to dazzle everyone. Shadow of himself and he should be benched.
Gabbia is a monster. He has been so crucial since coming back and his tackles and reading of the game is that of a classic Italian defender. So happy for him he’s turning into one of my favorites.
We got the win and we’re on a good run. Keep it up boys!
Gabbia is like playing in central defense all by himself with Kjaer next to him. Thiaw is back and really needs to start over Kjaer.
Defensively we did good with the others. But Kjaer is a weak link. I love the guy but yes it’s time for him to move on.
If Gabbia keeps this up the rest of the season (assuming he keeps getting a chance once Tomori, Thiaw and Kalulu return), he has to be considered to be selected for the National team, shouldn’t he?
He can certainly only get better. But once Thiaw and Tomori are back he should give Pioli a selection headache. He will certainly make it easier to rotate CB’s game in and game out.
I don’t know what kind of Tapas they’ve been feeding Gabbia in Spain but he looks like a completely different player now. (Maybe it was that concussion he got)
I think it was just the overall experience of playing in Spain and a certain level of maturity he gained from that. Might be the smartest loan we’ve ever done. I’m just glad we didn’t sell him permanently to them.
” But once Thiaw and Tomori are back he should give Pioli a selection headache.” and yet he wanted another CB this winter.
Yeah, a 7 is a joke. The man lacks a lot of quality. Just simple passes he sometimes struggles with.
Adli deserves to be given a much higher rating. Criminal giving him a 6.
I agree. He was very involved defensively. Shut down several dangerous plays and had a nice block in the box.
Mike is bouncing back in form and made several crucial saves. Deserves a 7. Sad to say I think Kjaer simply can’t start anymore. We need to start Thiaw and see more of a assured defense.
We basically were playing with just Gabbia in defense. What an immense showing. And of course hats off to Leao and Theo for the goal.
Gabbia 💪🏻💪🏻
Gabbia MOTM!
How is giroud performance rated the same as Adli’s?
Glad to see theo back in true form, and gabbia has nailed down a starting spot from now on for me. Bennacer did fine for coming back from injury on intl duty, he’ll need time to be 100%. Leao just gives me a constant headache, the pass is good yes, but how many times can you choke in the final third and still never get subbed off? We have Okafor in the bench or pulisic who is normally LW anyway, why keep forcing something that isn’t working? Sub him. The fact pioli didn’t even bring on Okafor at all is just baffling…
💯
Because Musah for Puli is a defensive sub to preserve a lead. Okafor isn’t a good defender. This is a normal sub in a close game.
Good win. Should have been put to bed earlier but when you have a forward that can’t score you have to fight until the 96th minute not to lose points.
What difference tactics make. For the first time in a long time Pioli didn’t have his players pushing up and pressing like crazy and you see a lot more solidity and less space for Napoli in the middle of the park. Hopefully he continues with that more reserved approach until he F’s off at the end of the season. Same approach BTW that Milan had in the last 14 games of the scudetto season when they end up with 10 clean sheets.
Gabbia for me was the MOTM. In 4 months under whoever coach he had in Villarreal he improved more than in 4 years under Pioli.
These next 4 months should be Kjaer’s last at Milan. Out of 100 1v1 situations he gets beat 100 times. He can’t stop a nose bleed. He couldn’t stop Kvara even when he was trying to foul him.
Adli has great ball control and vision but needs to work on his accuracy.
Bennacer did OK defensively, but was poor with his passing.
Theo was at his best.
Brahim Diaz, I mean Loftus Cheek needs to get in the weight room. It doesn’t matter that he is 6’4 , he is weak. Any bump and he loses balance and ends up on the ground.
Anemic performance by Pulisic.
Giroud did a lot of tracking back.
Leao did OK on occasions but failed to finish off the game which would have costed Milan. Top players finish off games. He will never be a volume goalscorer. You should consider yourself lucky if you get 10 a year.
That 1v1 with the GK, when instead of shooting he tried to pass it to Theo, who was covered, was embarrassing. Luckily it was offside.
On to Rennes.
Leao be living rent free in your empty head 🤣 😂
You only write the negatives when he’s on a negative form but will never appreciate him when he’s on a positive form.
Players have bad seasons too, and consider this to be one of Leao bad times, he’s struggling at the moment doesn’t mean he’s not a good player.
And the same way you criticised CDK is the same way you would bash any other player, we are not surprised.
Best player ever @Z
I hope you get yourself a journalist deal for AC Milan, stop wasting your career in the comment section of every article that involves Milan players.
That was a very poor performance by Milan against a struggling Napoli side in 9th place, we made them look good tonight.
So many horrible performances
Gabbia, Theo and Adli played well imo.
Bennacer is clearly very rusty but good to have him back
The rest were mostly awful
Leao – omg the only reason he is not being dropped is because of his € value in summer.
He looks really down and could use a break
RLC is bloody useless, worse than that he kept giving Napoli the ball
Pulisic is captain invisible
Giroud – nothing, but that is expected if we play on the counter, thats when u use a pacey forward like Okafor…… why is he not playing?
Pioli
We got very very very lucky today.
I said some weeks ago , why does he not give Simic some mins? He will end up coming on in an emergency against Napoli or someone. Well here we are, thats very poor management. Let the lad get practice against Frosinone not Kvara!!!!
Also he should have brought on Okafor when the game was so open
Watch where Puli is on D. He was playing right back and Calabria/Flo were inside.
I’m pretty sure he did the job he was asked to do and did it well. 6
Lol even if Milan played well overall (and they did), you would still find every single negative. There were more good performances than bad. And overall the team is 6.5 today.
Well we have been poor this season.
I watched the game and we were lucky against a Napoli side that are rubbish.
Even the commentators said Napoli were better and we got lucky
Lol I can’t even justify a response to this. Napoli were not better until the last ten minutes then they got desperate.
👆 This…. makes no sense to me.
Keep in mind who the post is by. Mark him with a grain of salt.
Don’t worry, it’s more than a grain. I usually ignore his posts but this one tipped me over the edge.
You have a higher tolerance than me then…. SMH…
SJF – post and post again I feel like you either lack complete objectivity or just don’t understand what you’re looking at… or maybe both.
Your only metric of success is apparently goals scored. What are you 10? Leao and Giroud are failure?? LOL!!! The reason Okafor and Jovic don’t start because despite his age Giroud has STELLAR numbers and Leao creates dangerous situations and assists EVERY DAMN GAME!
I mean honestly, why do you keep posting this non sense? LOL!!!
Is there is something i wrote you disagree with?
Okafor and Jovic numbers are stellar with the minutes they’ve had.
Anyway i was questioning the coach not bringing on a pacey forward when the game was open and we were playing counter….
Giroud can’t do that. Hes good in the air against a low block.
Now see if you can use your words not some insults
You didn’t watch this game or has sunglasses on. Milan were better than Napoli for 80 minutes of the entire game and nearly doubled the score in the 72nd. They played an overall good game. But alas you think it’s poor
But when I say that, he thinks I insult him 🙂
Your evaluations make zero sense…
1. “Giroud – nothing, but that is expected if we play on the counter, thats when u use a pacey forward like Okafor…… why is he not playing?” – Because Giroud’s numbers are stellar and Okafor is not a 9.
2. “So many horrible performances” – WHO FAILED? Kjaer isn’t getting any better. I’ll give you that. But he held up OK.
3. “Leao – omg the only reason he is not being dropped is because of his € value in summer.
He looks really down and could use a break” – Are. You. Blind? Every time Leao is on the ball he is dangerous. He gets double/tripple teamed BECAUSE he is dangerous. When he doesn’t score, he opens up space for others because of the marking on him, BECAUSE he is dangerous. When he doesn’t score, he provides assists, BECAUSE he is dangerous. SO, what metric do you use to need to drop/clown on him???
4. “RLC is bloody useless, worse than that he kept giving Napoli the ball” Pulisic is captain invisible” – RLC is an AM – the engine that drives forward and shakes off challenges the way Brahim NEVER could. What metric do you use to consider him useless? Pulisic was more of a RB than Calabria who was inside more, contributing DEFENSIVELY. What metric do you use to consider him invicible?
DO I keep going here??? The only metric use seem to understand is GOALs scored. Because other than that I don’t understand how any of what you say makes any sense….
There were NO insults in my original post, just questions, which you seem to take offense to.
I am asking you to think what you’re gonna post so you don’t come across as lacking any objectivity, which is often the case.
Why are you so mean to my friend SJF? He is an angry person who only sees the negative in all things. You should be glad he has such a bad attitude because that means he will die sooner than he should and that will make you happy it seems.
Spot on @ACM1899
The raters seem to have a simplistic view of the game. Beyond what you said ACM 1899, the midfield play was too slow. They were weak on the ball, turned away from open passes especially in the middle of the field when a player was beaking forward, and tell me when they ever broke a line.
Good assessment here. You can tell the people who assess every game with no context or football knowledge.
1. Yes Giroud did not contribute much. As you say its not all about stats/goals. He was not suited to this game.
Fair enough starting him but should have been subbed off earlier. Okafor’s pace would have been useful on the counter
2. Kjaer struggled. Pulisic who usually contributes more to overall play was invisible. RLC kept giving the ball away and wasting good moves. Giroud had no effect. Leao missed chance after chance after chance
3.Leao is a huge talent, someone we all love to watch. He is also a forward and our highest paid player. I honestly felt embarrassed for him, he looked like he wanted the ground to swallow him up. He is more than capable of scoring goals. So don’t make an excuse for terrible finishing. This happens to lot’s of players, sometimes it’s better to take them off or give them a break, his confidence in front of goal is gone.
4. RLC – I don’t know what to tell you, he was just really bad. Rewatch the first 15 mins and count how many times he gives the ball to Napoli
Pulisic works hard but has been lacking in offensive output (his main job)
Overall it was a nerve wracking win where Napoli were camped in our half, thankfully they are not very sharp this year.
I am perfectly prepared to praise a good performance, and we have had some in recent months, but too often we are wasteful and invite trouble, hence losing so many leads this season, luckily it didn’t happen again last night
Leao missed four possible assists over hitting the ball to players making nice runs. (we could have been up by 3 goals instead of fighting for our lives). WAKE UP AND ACTUALLY WATCH THE GAME !!! SOCCER IQ QUESTIONABLE!!! One great assist does not tell the whole story.
Check the replay. Mike was out of position. Simic saved a goal. 6.5
Honestly, I think you haven’t done Adli justice.
Finally we beat Napoli at home in serie A.
Not a pretty game but nonetheless 3 big points.
Also, congrats to a Milan legend Franck Kessie on winning the African cup.
In 3 years he won a scudetto, title and super cup in Spain and now African cup. Not to mention big payday. Congrats El Presidente
It is interesting you saw that as a negative performance by Milan. Sure, Napoli had possession but Milan’s chances were far more dangerous than Napoli’s. That said, that match was a game of ebbs and flows with periods of each team dominating the other, so I can see how you consider the performance subpar. I would just caution not to let the standings fool you. Napoli are much better than their record.
Leao 1v1 against a goalie is hard to watch
First win against Napoli at San Siro in years and ppl are whining 😂. How this win lucky is being called lucky blows my mind. So our missed chances don’t count for sh*t – Napoli weren’t lucky. But they miss a chance and “we were lucky”? Some fans should really take a good hard look in the mirror and ask themselves why they bother.
It was an overall good performance with some faults here and there, yet people still are saying we were horrible in so many parts. Unbelievable.
We were closer to 2-0 then Napoli were to equalizing.
Exactly- no one’s saying we’re world beaters atm but let’s just enjoy the win for once ffs. Good job that loony tune “Tkoje/Martin” isn’t around – I remember him saying we shouldn’t be celebrating after that crazy win over Genoa with Giroud in goal. Some sticks are very far up some asses that’s for sure.
This game was a lot closer than it should have been. This is more on our failure to put away our chances keeping the door open for Napoli to get back into the game. There was definitely an element of luck as Simic could have easily deflected the ball into our net and despite what we did, we never got the second goal…
Agree – Flopoli were lucky too though, that’s my point. We’re on about the same amount of points as our scudetto season and ppl acting like we’re in the relegation zone – that’s what’s grating.
100%.
“We’re on about the same amount of points as our scudetto season” But that doesn’t tell the whole story. You can’t just look at the points and assume we’re more or less the same.
Napoli was stronger in 21/22 than during this season.
Roma, Lazio and Fiorentina are shadows of what they were in 21/22.
These teams kept the total point generally low for the scudetto race. Now none of them got a single point against Inter.
The only teams that have improved a lot are Inter and Juve.
Mike did better than a 6. I’d grant him a 7.
Kjaer was awful. I think the ideal CB duo now is Gabbia (again, fabulous) and Tomori when he’s back. While we wait for Tomori, Thiaw and Gabbia. Kjaer should not be starting any longer.
Theo, a monster. Won the game all by himself. Scored a gorgeous game and destroyed the opposition, defensively. What a performance!
Calabria, I didn’t really pay attention to him before the injury. I guess it means he didn’t screw up. His replacement Florenzi was decent but didn’t add much, offensively.
Adli was good.
L-C was poor. He is our most irregular player. Some spectacular performances, some weak ones.
I’m worried about Pulisic. He seems off, not with the good form he was showing a few games back.
Giroud, an off-night, offensively.
Rafa, mixed bag as usual. Great assist, some dangerous contributions that unsettled Napoli’s defense, but continues to finish poorly. Overall he gets a pass thanks to the assist and to upsetting Napoli’s defense quite a lot.
Bennacer, mixed as well. Did well with ball control for a good while but then almost gifted Napoli a goal. He’s still fresh from injury so I expect that soon enough he will show his excellent form again.
The subs were either decent (Florenzi, Musah) or didn’t have time to show a lot.
Overall we played poorly (Napoli always seemed ready to tie the game in second half), but got all 3 points thanks to Theo. It’s good to finally beat Napoli at San Siro.
Excellent analysis
I agree with your comments entirely…it’s not often I agree with all statements made ,,,but on this occasion you were spot on ..Well done ,,,but nether the less a good result and a good win …it was not a top performance.
Rafael leao was definitely the player who makes things happen ,,,just wish he could score a few goals.
Despite looking threatening Napoli only had a few shots on goal. Defense held up reasonably well and didn’t concede thankfully.
Up front we had opportunities to score more but wasted chances. Leao had chances but struggled with the goal, but he did create plenty. Giroud wasn’t useful at all this game which is expected given he’s starting every damn game. Jovic would have been more effective with Oli on the field but then we would have been out of balance.
I felt Pioli waited too long to make the subs. Okafor should have come in (sooner) for the mostly invisible Puli (who also could use a break to be honest). And when he did make subs, they were defensive given he was trying to preserve the lead.
Simic got lucky but i bet had that deflection gone in, the same people that called for him to start more, would have turned on him and criticized Pioli for using him. That’s just the thing with the youngsters – they need to be allowed to play and make mistakes.
But when you have Kjaer in the back risking fouls every time he dove at Kvara, you have to thrown Simic in sooner than later.
There was definitely an element of luck in today’s game which went our way. There were plenty of times I felt this game would have ended in a draw but Luckily Napoli is in poor form post Scudetto. Against Juve or Inter we would have bled out in the first half. But this goes with our standing in the table as both Juve and Inter are BETTER than us this season.
Hopefully in the summer we take a giant step forward. FORZA MILAN ⚫️🔴
Oh so you are actually saying the same thing i was.
Read through what I wrote. And compare that to what you wrote.
How on earth can you give Adli a 6??? He was with Theo and Matteo our best player by far. First half questioning? He was amazing first half. Are you drunk??
Pulisic actually put in a good defensive performance, intermittently harassing his man, and stealing the ball a few times. He immaculate touch saved several balls from being wasted out of bounds. His rating is about right, but not because he was “invisible.”
This was a game of flanks. Our right flank was crazy almost out of control while the left flank was slow and conservative.
Big Mike did his thing again tonight. He made a few saves but nothing that a Serie A keeper should struggle with. He did have one out of position shot that luckily for us was deflected by Simic and hit the post. Overall, he kept the backline in shape and I didn’t feel a goal was on the horizon for Napoli.
Backline did half a job literally. We started out firing on both sides of the pitch but after Calabria’s injury the right wing shutdown on both phases of the game which in defense is a positive because that means we kept Kvaratskhelia quiet. Calabria did okay while on the pitch decent in both phases but not enough to really know his impact. Flo came on for him and did a job but I also noticed Pulisic dropping down and honestly playing Kvaratskhelia more than Flo did but it was probably a tactical decision. Kjaer had a poor game for what we expect from him. I am starting to think his age is catching up to him and he was not expecting to play so much this season. Gabbia was the defensive player of the game and his contributions kept the clean sheet. If not for him I think we lose this match. Theo played like we all love. He bombed forward like no other fullback can and put in an amazing goal so he won this match for us.
In the middle of the park we actually looked the boss. Bennacer and Adli look a good team. We forced Napoli to the flanks leaving them with a hope and a cross for a goal. RLC on the other hand had another meh game he could have made many decisive passes but failed to do so.
The frontmen was mixed. Giroud had his hands full with the CBs and never really got on the ball. He should have put that ball over the line before the keeper intervened. He fought hard for the long passes but they never fell to his favor. Leao had an energy filled game. If I didn’t know better he looked like he drank 2 Red Bulls and snorted some pre workout. He was all over the place and had some great dribbles and fancy footwork. He and Theo were working hard prior to the goal and kept the pressure on throughout. some of his passes were over hit and he should have taken the shot on goal even though he was offsides. Pulisic on the other hand seems to be playing to patient again. Last week I felt the same. He needs to take it to the defense like Leao did tonight instead of slowing down and hoping to beat his man off the dribble when the play was already snuffed out. His defensive contribution was obvious but I don’t want my winger’s highlight to be helping to shut down the opposing teams biggest threat. For one game fine lock down in defense but its been at least three in row now.
The subs did what was asked. Musah came in and did his usual. He helped lock down in defense and tried dribbling down the wing only to lose the ball. Jovic made a cameo nothing of note and same goes for saelemaekers body down Jimenez. Simic came on and helped keep the cleans sheet. He played better than Kjaer and was good and lucky on that shot that hit the post.
Pioli did a job, he kept the guys playing no real mistakes but nothing profound or notable either.
The fans were instrumental in keeping the energy going. That was a loud atmosphere and they provided the players with energy and making the refs aware when they missed a call and breathed down their necks the entire match. Huge applauds to the supporters.
Jfc.
This was actually a really good game by Milan until the 80th minute or so. And we nearly doubled the score in the 72nd.
Napoli then got desperate the last ten minutes and threw everything they could.
Yes we should have doubled the score. Yes, not everything was perfect. But overall it’s a 6.5 to 7 score for the team and 7 for Pioli in my book.
This season hasn’t been perfect. No one is claiming it’s perfect. But if you listened to SJF you’d think we were in 17th place battling relegation. Insufferable.
Sorry not the 72nd. The 70th with that big chance. Missed.
Had zero doubts this was 3 points. We just basically own Napoli as Inter owns us. It’s just one of those things. The reason why we do so well against them is because they play an open game and we’re the best team in the league when it comes to open type games. It’s also why teams close up against us
For the individual players, I thought Theo, Gabbia and Leao were excellent. Calab was good until injury. Florenzi. Sometimes I don’t understand ppl who call for one player over the other. I prefer a player that’s right for the opposition and Calabria has time and again pocketed Kvara. Maybe against a different team id prefer Florenzi.
Bennacer has shown what quality does in the middle of the pitch. It’s been sorely missed. And we used to have even better players in the middle. How is this not obvious is beyond me.
Puli had a so-so game as did RLC but he had more good than bad. There were a few lost possessions that undid some good work. Same with Adli I suppose esp the blocks which were good.
Kjaer imo shouldn’t have come off just because of the stage of the game we were closing up shop and were going to sit back so it was less likely he’d have 1v1 encounters. When Simic came on he let the ball cross the face of the goal, can’t do that bud. it was something I think Kjaer would have done better with.
Jiminez I had no clue where he was playing and Musah was doing his usual things.
All in all, great 3 points to pick up to put the pressure on Juve
With Gabbia playing this good, maybe it’s time to try a 3 man back once tomori is fit. Try it out on a lower level team and get more men in the midfield.
The Leao hate on this forum is comical and sad. If he doesn’t score he’s trash and if he does score well then he should have LOL.
Perhaps instead of the armchair pundits sitting that their TV screens trying to bash, umm I mean analyze Leao, should instead listen to what Theo just said about him after this game:
Now Leao is just missing a goal…
“Yes (laughs). He is an incredible player, when he doesn’t score goals he gives assists. People don’t see the work he does every day on the field, we are happy to have him like this.”
Now is Leao perfect? Absolutely not. Should he more clinical in front of the net? – yes. BUT even when he doesn’t score he influences the game beyond most casual fans comprehension. He draws double and triple teams and opens up opportunities for everyone else. Theo understands that and so do his teammates. BUT the PlayStation crowd (like @ACM1899 pointed out above) unfortunately does not. Sad
I was critical of Leao a while, but he is contributing in a different way, defensively and with assists. I do wish he could score. I think people are unfair to him. But these are the same people who want to sell Mike because he had two bad games…
Bunch of casuals on this site. Plain and simple
I always keep everything casual.
Ah. Did they update Mike’s score to 6.5? I swore it was a 6 earlier 😉 He had a couple of really good saves. He’s getting back to his old self.
Its unfortunate to see zero contribution from Pulisic and Loftis-Cheek. Comparing their contribution with Dybala’s. If a play maker is invisible in a few game, then he needs to be replaced.
I honestly dont see any value in Tijani, Cheek, Pulisic and Checkwezi.
If you consider Puli playing mostly defense to be zero contribution, okay.
ZERO CONTRIBUTION FROM PULISIC ?????? OPEN YOUR EYES PAL… (DEFENSIVE WORK,MAKING RUNS ,ETC.) NOT CHANGING THE FIELD OF PLAY QUICK ENOUGH TO CREATE 1V1 ,2V1 ,3V2,ETC,DOES NOT HELP! CAN WE SWITCH THE PLAY ANY SLOWER ???
We’ve been unbeatable in serie a for 9 games. 7 wins (vs Roma, Napoli, Udinese, Frosinone, Empoli, Sassuolo, Monza) and 2 draw (vs Bologna, Salernitana). We’re in 3rd position and possibly can reach 2nd at the end of the season.
But some fans keeps acting so negative like we’re battling for relegation. Fkin nuts :/
Thumbs up to you, a very good observation
A very big win.
Forza Milan 🔴⚫
Good win. Theo is doing everything for the team; driving the ball forward, creating chances, scoring, assisting, and defending. He has shown more discipline since his spell as center back. He is absolutely amazing.
Apart from one big mistake, Bennacer was great. He is still rusty but clearly a class above the rest. It still seems to me that the midfield players, despite improving, are just not compatible with each other.
A big shout out to Gabbia who has been next to perfect since coming back.
Leao did well too. He can improve and I want him to score for his sake, but in terms of creating danger and helping the team win, he is doing his job.
Can someone explain to me what happened to Pulisic??
I don’t see him impacting the game at all anymore. Is it because he’s not getting the ball in dangerous places or is he just not taking on players?
IF he played defence like LEAO ( LAZY) HE WOULD HAVE MUCH MORE CONTRIBUTION ON THE OFFENSIVE SIDE. CAN WE SWING THE BALL ANY SLOWER ??? OPEN YOUR EYES YANKEE !!! IF PULI PLAYED LEFT SIDE LAST GAME HE WOULD OF HAD THREE ASSISTS BY NOT OVER HITTING THE BALL TO PLAYERS MAKING NICE RUNS
Thumbs up to you, a very good observation
BULLSH……… OBSERVATION !!!!