AC Milan again failed to win in two consecutive matches in Italian League matches. AC Milan players feel disappointed. After last week’s draw at the San Siro against Bologna, AC Milan was forced to fail again to win against Torino in the Italian League match week 32.
The away match against Torino on Monday, requires AC Milan to play carefully. Given that the Torino team nicknamed the Granata is a formidable opponent, the Rossoneri should not waste any more points. The Scudetto race has entered a very decisive stage and dropping points can be fatal. Stefano Pioli is not ahead for this match in his best line-up. The AC Milan coach cannot rely on his seven flagship players. Apart from Simon Kjaer, whose season has ended due to a lengthy injury, Alessio Romagnoli, Alessandro Florenzi, Ante Rebic, Ismael Bennacer, Samu Castillejo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic will also miss this match.
With the announcement of several core players who must be absent, the starting line-up for this match is Mike Maignan as the goalkeeper, then in the defense sector there are Davide Calabria, Pierre Kalulu, Fikayo Tomori, Theo Hernandez, then in midfield occupied by Sandro Tonali and Franck Kessie, then there is Alexis Saelemaekers, Brahim Diaz, Rafael Leao in the third field, and for the center forward Pioli still relies on Olivier Giroud. In the first half, AC Milan displayed a clever and tense game. The Rossoneri did well to win possession but struggled to create dangerous chances in the Torino defence. Starting in the 24th minute, Davide Calabria fired a shot towards the Torino goal but his effort was still denied by Etrit Berisha.
Torino kept calm by setting the pace again and in the 32nd minute they counter-attacked, when Samuele Ricci slipped easily into the AC Milan penalty area, but the number 28 failed to hit the target from a tight angle. Still in the first half, AC Milan increased the tempo of attack and closed space for the home team, but all the pressure they put on, still did not provide dangerous opportunities, until the first half ended without added time.
Continued in the second half, there were no player changes. In the 50th minute, Mike Maignan pulled off a stunning save to deny Mergim Vojvoda. In the 56th minute, Rafael Leao showed great skill to jeopardize the Torino defence, but Gleison Bremer blocked it and Sandro Tonali’s continued effort in the rebound was blocked for a corner. The second half was not over, Stefano Pioli’s side increased the pressure and the defense almost managed to hold off Torino, where in the 65th minute, Fikayo Tomori managed to block a powerful shot from Andrea Belotti.
Then the Rossoneri also had a big chance in the 65th minute, with Junior Messias setting up Sandro Tonali, then firing with his left foot and again being saved by the Torino keeper. Several dangerous chances towards the end were shown by AC Milan, this time it was Junior Messias who fired but missed the target in the 88th minute. Until the match ended with the score 0-0.
It looks like Stefano Pioli’s side are experiencing the same problem as in the last few games, namely a lack of creativity and imagination in the attacking phase. So many regrets from Sandro Tonali. The AC Milan midfielder had chances to score in this match, but he too, like his team-mates, was unable to convert them. “There was so much bitterness because we came back from 0-0 and because of that the disappointment piled up and it hurt more. We have to forget these games even though it’s not easy because it’s a shame,” Tonali told DAZN.
“I don’t think it’s a classification problem. Now there’s a few more games to go and today’s 3 points can change everything, even the spirit to face next week. We had to rearrange one more time and thought that we had just lost the goal. On my shot I wanted to kick immediately then I changed my mind but it didn’t go well. However, we continue to believe in it.” There have been so many disappointments for AC Milan after the 0-0 result against Torino. The Rossoneri remain top of the Serie A table this week of 32, but are leaving another two points, which should be an important advantage.
After the match, Stefano Pioli made comments for his team in a press conference. “After the final whistle I told the referee that there is no point in giving so many minutes of recovery if they don’t make sure that no time is wasted. How much is played in recovery? I was nervous, but I didn’t fail to make up for it. It’s okay … ,” AC Milan coach Stefano Pioli told DAZN. Stefano Pioli says that AC Milan are tired in the attacking phase, lack of quality and physical strength. “It’s clear that we did everything to move and give some reference points, we know the difficulty of the game. It’s true that we haven’t created clear chances, but some situations could happen. I have nothing to say for the passion and determination, we lost the spark. Positive results, but we want to win.” Meanwhile, now that Stefano Pioli’s men have kept five clean sheets in a row in Serie A, this result represents one step forward in the table even though the Rossoneri are going through a difficult period in terms of appearances and added points to keep them away from their rivals.
ASL
