Milan took advantage of 2 second half goals for the second straight game to bring home all 3 points, beating Venezia 2-0 in their San Siro home opener. Like the first game of the season, definitely some positives to take away but also some things that still give me some pause when thinking about the season-long prospects for our club.
Let’s dive in.
First off, loved the Franco Baresi tribute. I didn’t catch it live but saw some highlights (I don’t know how much they showed on the pregame since I don’t watch those…or halftime…or post game…). He left us far too soon and I love the season-long tribute Milan have done with a patch on their jersey.
As for the game, it was similar in tone to the first one vs Torino, with Milan winning possession and being on the front foot for good stretches of the game. But we also saw a Venezia side willing to get out and play and they had more than a few chances to get one on target and get on the scoreboard. Let’s talk about that in a second.
In possession, Milan worked a lot from the outside when in the Venezia final third, and had a few chances before they finally broke through. Chukwueze was again active and Ramos wasn’t exactly tidy with some quality crosses. He’s good and looks to be that quality striker Milan has been looking for the last few years, but he does need to clean up his finishing and I think he will.
Modrić did a better job in this game than Jashari did in the first game helping to facilitate the offense when in transition from defense to offense. I thought this made the play more fluid when building from the back and I’d like to see Jashari do more of that when he’s in there so there isn’t quite as much drop off since Modrić can’t play as much as he did last season (Amorim seems to recognize this since he didn’t start him in round 1 and pulled him with about 20 minutes of game left including added time).
While the starting 11 did adequate, Milan got better once the subs came on just like last game. RLC and Cissé were both invisible for large chunks, both being the worst on the pitch for Milan until they came off. This would worry me more long-term but I think we’re close to getting some combination of Pulisic, Moriera, and the just signed Omari Hutchinson fielding those 2 positions. The sooner, the better.
This part in particular, the creative players, remains super important to me as once these lower-table teams start getting more defensive scoring will become even more of a premium. It’s been odd seeing these teams play so open these first rounds, with scoring being up roughly 20% (up from 41 to 49 goals after 2 rounds) across Serie A compared to last season. Even in this game and despite more willingness by Venezia to get out and run, the 2 Milan goals came from breakaway plays and not proficient offensive build up.
So, Milan not scoring until 2/3 into both of the first 2 games has me worried when you consider the opponent. Inter and Roma have not had that problem and it’s something that bothered me about Allegri a lot last season. Stop allowing these teams to stay in the game and sneak out a result. Too many important points could be lost just like last season.
On defense, the team still isn’t quite there. I know this will take time and I understand the risk/reward of the hard pressing/high defensive line (it’s actually my preferred approach!). But Milan could have easily conceded more goals these first 2 games that weren’t goal of the year candidates. De Winter got caught out of position a couple of times but I’m not sure Gabbia is the answer there either, not with a high line. Tomori wasn’t moved in the end and is going to be integrated back into the squad, so maybe he can help with his speed there. Amorim may like CBs who can dribble but not every piece has to be the same. Pieces can be complimentary too.
So, the defense is still not quite there but I’m ok with that as long as we continue to see some progress. Getting some more offensive umph will help as well, as teams will need to start keeping some guys back to help deal with what I hope is a potent offense. Milan will need to be better next game vs Juventus, who aren’t world beaters but they’ll definitely have more talent on the pitch than either Torino or Venezia did.
What Happened in Serie A
Only one change in the Gillis Power Rankings, with Roma taking the top sport after another dominating performance:
- Roma (2-0-0,+8 GD, 6pts)
- Inter (2-0-0,+4 GD, 6pts)
- Como (1-1-0,+1 GD, 4pts)
- Milan (2-0-0,+3 GD, 6pts)
- Juventus (2-0-0,+3 GD, 6pts)
Roma (1st) are on a complete bender. It won’t be like this all season but we’ve seen Gasperini hot stretches before where they just torch everyone and by more than a couple of goals. Donyell Malen added a brace to his hat-trick from round 1 and now has 5 goals in his first 2 games of the season as Roma beat Lecce (13th) 0-4. Small sample size but hard to see Roma not being one of the teams challenging Inter for the Scudetto.
Hakan’s hair plugs continue their hot streak as he bagged Inter’s (2nd) only goal in their 0-1 win over Cagliari (12th). Juventus (4th) beat Parma (17th) 2-0 while Atalanta (5th) and Lazio (6th) each beat their…meaty…opponents…Bologna (15th) and Genoa (16th).
Udinese (7th) got another quality result, beating Monza (18th) 2-3, after their draw last week with Como (8th), who also won by beating Napoli (10th) 1-2. Frosinone (9th) found out it’s a bit easier to win when playing Fiorentina (20th), beating them 0-3. Fiorentina have started this season worse than last season, which I didn’t think was possible. Don’t worry, they’ve added even more players in the dying days of the mercato, I’m sure that’ll help…
Rounding out the round was Sassuolo (11th) beating Torino (14th) 2-1.
Now, ratings.
Player Ratings
Goal Keeping
MAIGNAN 7 – Despite a few scares, nothing truly threatening getting through to challenge him.
Goal Keeping Overall 7
Defense
GILA 7 – Pretty good again and didn’t get burnt to the point of injury!
DE WINTER 7 – Is he really better than Gabbia? I don’t know but he’s getting the minutes right now and playing well-enough.
PAVLOVIĆ 7.5 – Best CB on the pitch again for Milan.
Defense Overall 7
Midfield
CHUKWUEZE 7 – Good for chunks, just ok for chunks. Still, a couple of solid showings upon his return to Milan.
MODRIĆ 7.5 – Hard to believe the man is 40 years old. That being said, glad to see him not playing the full 90.
MUSAH 6.5 – Good job running as usual but also showed why you don’t want the final ball finding him in the box.
BARTESAGHI 7 – Played fine. Better than Pervis.
Midfield Overall 7
Forwards
LOFTUS-CHEEK 6 – Milan scored shortly after his departure…just like last game. Shocking, I know…
CISSÉ 6 – Decent talent but again, the decision making is lacking. Need Pulisic or even any of the other new guys.
RAMOS 8 MOTM – Milan finally have a real striker. You can just tell.
Forwards Overall 7
Subs
RABIOT 6.5 – Solid but unspectacular.
SAELEMAEKERS 7.5 – Really good game! A one-off? Not quite but don’t get your hopes up.
JASHARI 6.5 – Needed a better finish on the that breakaway late that ended up being a Venezia own goal.
GABBIA NA – He played.
ESTUPIÑAN NA – He played.
Subs Overall 6.5
Coaching
AMORIM 7 – Getting 6 points in 2 games out of the gates is a win no matter how you slice it. Still some work to be done and I worry about the things I mentioned in the editorial at the beginning, but I like this more than anything the previous 3 coaches put out there.
The Juventus game will be a test in that Spalletti is always tough, but the thing I’m really curious about is how Amorim Ball plays against the smaller teams when they actually sit in a low block. That’s what will determine if Milan finish in the top 4 or not.
Final Thoughts
As I just mentioned, 6 out of 6 points is good even if Allegri got off to a similar fast start last season and it didn’t really portend to how the rest of the season would go. But something I always say is points lost at the beginning of the season matter just as much as those lost towards the end. So, it’s important not to be flippant about these early games. Don’t want to get behind the 8-ball early.
We don’t have much of a sample size but I’m down with the overall philosophy Amorim’s trying to implement of high pressing and vertical possession. Let’s see what happens as the sample size increases…
Next game is vs Juventus this Sunday at 2:45pm EST/6:45pm GMT.
Forza Milan
gillis
