What an exciting derby and another exciting finish, even if Milan were on the short…er…end of it.
I mentioned before the game that I would’ve been more than happy with a point all things considered, and I am…AND I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t bummed Milan couldn’t hold on for all 3 points. None of this is to say Milan lost the game, as Inter was very good throughout as well. But giving up an stoppage-time winner never feels good and this is no exception. But, with clear eyes we can see this for what it is and continue to move forward.
One last thing before we get started and that is the winter mercato. Clearly Milan was busy in a way we haven’t see in a long time and there are some new players arriving, some on permanent deals and others on loans, but it was a reinforcement to be sure and a welcomed one. We won’t cover that here but expect a mercato wrap up this week (most likely tomorrow).
Milan came into the game coming off of a very disappointing loss away to Dinamo Zagreb. It was disaster of a game and with Fofana missing this game due to accumulation, I know I wasn’t terribly optimistic especially considering Milan was trying to beat Inter for the 3rd straight time in a single campaign, which is never easy to do.
As for the game itself, it was very similar to the Supercoppa match at the beginning of the calendar year. Milan sat back some but were never really in a low block. Same with Inter although around the 60th minute or so Milan started to cede possession and Inter started to press forward more looking for the equalizer.
Conceição adopted the 5 man backline when out of possession (a 5-2-3) and a rotating midfield, with Reijnders, Musah, and Bennacer manning the area of the pitch where they were when they won back possession. The goal was clearly to transition quickly and worry less about traditional positioning. In the end it was a quality approach and it ended up getting Milan the lead with Abraham challenging and dispossessing the Inter player, Bennacer recovering and finding the outlet to Theo, who then found Leão. Leão appeared to play one of those shot-passes where you try to send it across the face of the goal aiming for the far post and maybe it finds a teammate making a run, finds it’s way in, or gets deflected back into traffic and finds a Milan player. Reijnders was there and hit a brilliantly placed shot into the upper righthand corner.
Inter had a ton of chances and truth be told, were very unlucky to not have scored prior to the equalizer in stoppage time. Tough to say how things would’ve gone but Milan won the previous two meetings with an 89th minute winner and a stoppage time winner, so these games have been thrilling contests right until the end. Who knows, if Milan take care of business in Champions League then Milan will get drawn with either Inter or Arsenal in the round of 16, so maybe we get a 4th and 5th meeting again on the books like we did the year Milan and Inter faced off in the Champions League semifinal a few years back.
The key to the game was clearly Conceição avoiding the mistake that Pioli routinely made and that was to press Inter high and allow them to counter you with the whole pitch to work with. As we’ve seen, a not in top form Milan can still cause Inter problems because of this (and because Inter actually try to play football and do not park the bus like many provincial sides). Should these teams meet again this season, you’ll be hearing me say the same song and dance.
I’ll talk about players down in the rating but Tomori, Pavlovic, and even Theo had their best games of the season (for Theo, I’m talking defensively). This was the key, along with solid work rates from everyone, to help make up for Fofana being out and Milan damn near kept Inter scoreless for the first time in the league (they’ve only been kept scoreless in Champions League, once by ManCity early before their collapse and then to Leverkusen). For those of you who don’t know, only Bayern Munich has scored more in their domestic campaign than Inter (Liverpool has scored the same amount), so doing as well as they did should be applauded.
In the end it was a spirited effort and I can live with that even if conceding the late equalizer is disappointing. Milan have shown signs of life mixed with just a few poor halves of football under Conceição. I think there’s progress being made and with the incoming players, I think a late season run is more plausible than it was before the game yesterday.
With that, let’s move on to what happened in the league.
What Happened in Serie A
Napoli (1st) dropped points for the first time in 8 league games, drawing 1-1 with Roma (9th). Napoli led for most of the game but a stoppage time equalizer did them in much like it did Milan. With Inter’s result, the top 2 teams remain exactly the same with Inter back 3 points but a game in hand (which is to be played this week). Atalanta (3rd), dropped points again drawing 1-1 with Torino (11th). Atalanta have won just 1 of their last 6 league games, earning 7 out of a possible 18 points. They’re not out of the Scudetto race yet but the door is closing.
Lazio (4th) played today in a back and forth 2-1 win against Cagliari (17th). Lazio have only won 3 of their last 7 league games with this win, so I’m sure they’re hoping this gets them back on track. Juventus (5th) won 4-1 over Empoli (16th). The 4 goals are bit deceiving, as Juve scored 2 goals in the dying minutes. Still, I’m sure they’ll take it after enduring that long stretch of consecutive draws. Fiorentina (6th) beat a hot Genoa (12th) 2-1 and Bologna (7th) beat Como (15th) 2-0, with Fiorentina maintaining their position in the table and Bologna leapfrogging Milan.
Udinese (10th) had a thrilling 3-2 victory over Venezia (19th), as Venezia came back from 2-0 in the second half only to concede in the 84th minute. Udinese needed the win, as it was their first win in their last 6 games.
Down in relegation land, Hellas Verona (13th) beat Monza (20th) 1-0. The win vaulted Hellas up 5 spots in the table but they are still just 3 points up on the last relegation spot. And finally in another relegation matchup, Lecce (14th) beat Parma (18th) 3-1. It was Lecce’s second win in their last 7 games and the loss is Parma’s sixth loss in their last 9 games. I wouldn’t say these are teams going in opposite directions but Parma is clearly in need of something soon to right the ship. That something? Probably playing a little defense as they have given up the second most goals in the league (Hellas is first).
Now, ratings.
Player Ratings
Goal Keeping
MAIGNAN 7 – Was very good throughout the game, yes making saves but also getting the ball out quickly. I know he normally does this but as I mentioned above, Milan was keen on transitioning quickly to attack once they won back possession.
Goal Keeping Overall 7
Defense
WALKER 7 – Wasn’t always where I thought he would be but for a first performance, against Inter and Dimarco opposite, he was everything Milan has been needing at RB. I think we have our solution (at least near term).
TOMORI 8 – The man was EVERYWHERE. Showcased all of his strengths. I saw on social media that all it took was to threaten Tomori with being sold to Tottenham and we’d get the game of the season from him. Funny to be sure (I had a good chuckle), but he hasn’t been as bad as many have made him out to be. His performance trajectory as been ascending since Conceição arrived and I’m all here for it.
PAVLOVIC 7.5 – Just about as good as Tomori and completely had his way with Thuram, something no Milan CB had been able to do since Thuram arrived at Inter. The physicality, the determination, it was all there. Bravo.
HERNÁNDEZ 7.5 – Best defensive performance of the year and was solid getting forward as well. Seems like Dumfries gets his juices going unlike anyone else in the league.
Defense Overall 7.5
Midfield
MUSAH 7 – Ran ’til exhaustion. Nice bounce back effort after the stupid red card in Champions League.
BENNACER 6.5 – Wasn’t bad and has been better at playing the ball forward even if at times his pass selection and execution has been subpar. This also marks potentially his last game for Milan as he’s off to Marseille on loan with an option. We’ll see what happens. More to come in tomorrow’s transfer post.
REIJNDERS 8 – THOSE ARE THE RUNS I WANT TO SEE HIM MAKE. Exactly what Milan needed to clean up Leão’s shot-pass. Also had a fantastic effort from distance that required a fantastic save from Sommer. Early-season Reijnders may be on his way back…
Midfield Overall 7
Forwards
PULISIC 7 – Very workman like effort. Like Musah, ran a ton and was exhausted.
ABRAHAM 6.5 – Didn’t score or assist but put in the work. Had a beautiful pass that almost set up a Leão penalty kick but he was offsides. Also was the guy who dispossessed the Inter player that led to the Milan goal.
LEÃO 7 – Was just off on a couple of runs, and Reijnders really misplayed a through ball that would’ve seen him 1:1 with the the keeper and of course his shot-pass led to the goal. I know he’s not the type of player everyone loves but he proves his worth just about every game.
Forwards Overall 7
Subs
JIMENEZ 6 – Wasn’t the step up over Bennacer I thought he would be but wasn’t bad. Really should’ve made a pass to Chukwueze late that would’ve been a nice goal scoring opportunity. Could’ve been the difference.
TERRACCIANO 6 – He played.
CAMARDA 6 – Like Jimenez, had the option to play an attacking opportunity a couple of ways to teammates making a run and decided to shoot it. Wasn’t a terrible shot but better options around. Again, with that late equalizer, what could’ve been…
GABBIA NA – Did fine.
CHUKWUEZE NA – Not going to score him but if I did it would be like a 3. Why? He probably should’ve covered the far post on Inter’s equalizer. Tough to say if Pulisic would’ve been there but Chukwueze definitely wasn’t. Another what could’ve been.
Subs Overall 6
Coaching
CONCEIÇÃO 6.5 – Would be higher but I would’ve left Leão or Pulisic (probably Leão) on late since I like some offensive threat going the other way when an opponent starts going all out to try and equalize. Usually they need to hedge some because that really good attacker can sting them and they don’t want to go down 2 goals. Sometimes a really good offensive threat is it’s own defense (see Theo for this version in a player rather than just a concept).
As stated in the intro, the gameplan was solid and the right approach. It challenged and made Inter respect Milan as it took them out of their preferred game and made them adjust and be uncomfortable. Milan have been competitive in these derbies in ways they hadn’t been in a while and I’m all here for it. I’m sure you are too.
Overall, Conceição has had a murder’s row of opponents since coming on and I’d say he’s done a pretty damn good job. Still more progress needed, and the reinforcements will surely help even if just more available bodies with some skill, but another busy month awaits. The Lazio game on March 2nd is a mile marker for me. Let’s see where we are at that time.
Final Thoughts
Ok, that wraps this up but another busy week ahead with Roma in the Coppa Italia on Wednesday. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again but Milan needs to rest players. The outcome of this match doesn’t matter.
Additionally for us at the blog, we’ll have a little something on the winter mercato, again probably tomorrow, so be on the lookout for that.
As always, forza Milan.
gillis
*Bookkeeping: as you’ll notice, we no longer have the Disqus ads between this and the Disqus comment section. Crisis averted!
