Following a rather tough win against Fiorentina last week, AC Milan faced Lecce at home in a game that looked easier on paper and proved to be so, with a 3-0 victory the end result.
Milan got a hold of the game pretty quick with Christian Pulisic opening up the scoring just six minutes in and then Olivier Giroud doubled the lead in the 20th minute with a flick from a corner.
Things got worse for Lecce with Nikola Krstovic earning himself a red card in the 45th minute and Rafael Leão scored the third goal to pretty much seal the win just before the hour mark.
It was a professional performance with one eye on Thursday’s game against Roma in the Europa League, and it keeps second place safe. Here are five observations from the game…
1. Take-off at last
Samuel Chukwueze started off the game really well and provided the assist for Pulisic’s goal after showcasing his dribbling abilities as he beat his man effortlessly before passing to the American.
The Nigerian has done really well recently, and he is starting to show why he was Milan’s most expensive summer signing as the talent is clearly there and he can improve further as well.
Admittedly with a bit more composure he could’ve gotten a goal too, but despite that it was a solid performance and continuity is key for the winger after the tough start to the season.
In addition to that, it is vital that Pioli has all of his forwards firing as we enter the business end of the season, given the hectic nature of the schedule.
2. Commanding in the middle
Yacine Adli has had less playing time as of late but he was back in the starting XI against Lecce and did not disappoint, playing in front of the defensive line.
The Franco-Algerian worked hard and opened up a lot of space for his team-mates whilst also dictating the game well, as evidenced by his two assists for Giroud and Leao.
His second assist for the Portuguese winger was especially brilliant as it showcased not just his vision but his passing abilities that allowed him to execute a long-range through ball.
That pass drew comparisons with Rui Costa’s over two decades ago, and it was the highlight of a very solid display by Adli who continues his positive season. There’s still plenty of room for improvement too, given his age.
Yacine Adli vs. Lecce:
➤ 90 minutes
➤ 2 assists
➤ 134 touches
➤ 110/120 accurate passes (92%)
➤ 2 key passes
➤ 3/5 successful long balls
➤ 4/6 successful tackles
➤ 4 duels won pic.twitter.com/jCdOkO7WFw— MilanData📊 (@acmilandata) April 6, 2024
3. New role? No problem
Christian Pulisic started as an attacking midfielder given that Ruben Loftus-Cheek was suspended and Chukwueze was deployed on the right flank.
The position itself isn’t new to Pulisic who has played there plenty of times for his country, and he did not disappoint. He picked up a goal with a lovely bit of technique on the edge of the box and could have had another if his header deep inside the box weren’t tipped over.
Pulisic also display high work rate in both phases of the game helping Milan bring balance to their game. He might find himself used in that role more often, though RLC is back and has been excellent in that position.
4. Finding consistency
Leao has been struggling this season for continuity and with finding the back of the net specifically, but he has been a different player since the turn of the year.
The winger has been scoring both domestically and in Europe whilst also continuing to rack up assists, turning himself into the classic double threat that many thought he was capable of being.
Whilst he was a tad quiet in the first half, he looked more lively in the second making that lovely run on Adli’s pass and then getting his goal. one which certainly improved his mood as he was more proactive after it even hitting the woodwork.
It is really good to see the former Lille man consistently performing and being a game changer, something Milan will need if they want to win the Europa League.
Leão’s performance against Lecce
Masterclass. 😮💨🏄🏿♂️
[@AtomicCFC]
pic.twitter.com/zCJAcmz3v4— Best of Rafael Leão (@BestofLeao) April 7, 2024
5. Ship turned around
Stefano Pioli has had a rollercoaster of a season with a very bad period between October and December that pretty much got Milan out of the title race, causing plenty of fans to call for his head.
However, since then in 2024 Pioli has managed to bring stability to his side as they started winning points more consistently despite not playing the most impressive football.
In recent weeks, however, the football itself has improved and Pioli’s Milan even have one more point more now compared to the same stage in the Scudetto-winning season.
It is a pity that a bad period got the team out of both the Champions League and the title race, where Inter have been more or less flawless this season, but second place and a run to the UEL final in Dublin no longer seems a distance mirage.
It will be very interesting when Pioli’s job gets evaluated this summer, because the number of positives might just catch up with the factors playing against him.
It has been a decent – not great but still decent – performance so far for Milan in the Serie A. It is just Inter having been superb. I did not expect Inzaghi find such balance in the team.
“the football itself has improved and Pioli’s Milan even have one more point more now compared to the same stage in the Scudetto-winning season.”
This has said it all. Inter Milan are just too good this season. If not, the gap won’t be as high as it is presently.
I believe addition of 3 key players in key positions which are central defence, defensive midfield and central striker will make us become great and commanding next season both in Europe and Seria A.
If it wasn’t for the injuries we had, your lucky break team (which was dumped out of Europe), wouldn’t have been so lucky.
Its was problematic integration + injury of lots of players
we will do better, next season
Most Milan fans are only daydreaming for expecting Pioli to be sacked and top tactician to be employed. Firstly, Milan can’t spend like the top clubs in Europe because of the income presently. Maybe a couple of season in the champions league and after building our stadium, then our income will improve remarkably. Then we can start spending like Juventus.
The likes of Guardiola and Klopp need top quality players to compete and they are way expensive. Do you know the number of players Manchester City and Liverpool had signed that did not perform ? You should confirm that. It took Guadiola almost a decade after winning champions league with Barcelona before he won another at Manchester city.
It is only Ancelloti that has proven time and time again that he can make do with what he has at his disposal and still compete for major silverware.
Based on result and budget, Pioli is doing fine. He deserves another season.
This Milan shows that you don’t need to spend “like Juve” because clearly they are terrible with all those funds spent.
You have to spend wisely and have the right balance. RedBird model is a sustainable one as this summer has shown.
Need key additions and eventual upgrade on Pioli. But we’re off to a promising future.
It’s not just Juve that’s run foul with this. But Inter too… who have run major debts. Wait and watch as both are forced to sell.
Agree my friend
‘Dreaming’ or showing a complete lack of respect for the coach which sort of makes you question whether they’re fans at all.
We can spend. We just choose not to.
Yes of course,Pioli needs more time to deliver.
Is important to get “hot” during the critical period of the campaign. We have tough fixtures coming up and need the whole team firing on all cylinders.
Luckily the infirmary is mostly empty and the regular starters are available. Need to stay mentally sharp and power through the tough fixtures.
It will say a lot about how far this team has come with Pioli.
Ok the stats seem to prove me wrong about Adli.
I definitely shouted at him 5 times.
I didn’t see that in the stats.
You shout at a lot stuff, dude. If it was up to you Adli would be in Turkey or something and we would have Krunic playing day in day out.
Adli isn’t super fast, but he’s a million times more skilled than Krunic and is becoming a key component in our midfield.
One of the times I shouted at him was when he hit the ball directly into the path of an opposition player in our third, another time was he missed a defensive header, another was when he didn’t close down on the edge of the box and there were a couple of times he slowed down or overcomplicated the play.
He often does this thing where he can pass the ball quickly to a player who is free but then turns around, takes a few extra touches, and then passes to a player who is crowded out (usually on the left hand side).
I would certainly have chosen Krunic over Adli. He was by far our most efficient passer in midfield, took the fewest touches, moved the ball quickly and decisively, was usually well positioned, and had pretty good technique when he needed it.
Adli reminds me of some really annoying people I have played 5 a side with…..
Krunic couldn’t string more than two passes and often backtracked. Nobody said Adli is perfect, but he’s infinitely more skilled than one dimensional Krunic. You’re absolutely wrong in your statements on Krunic. He wasn’t skilled nor was he any good. And his performances became really poor before he was sold.
“I would certainly have chosen Krunic over Adli. He was by far our most efficient passer in midfield, took the fewest touches, moved the ball quickly and decisively, was usually well positioned, and had pretty good technique when he needed it.”
I think you’re talking about another player here.
“He was by far our most efficient passer in midfield”
Yeah. 99 of 100 were backward-passes. Super-efficient. LOL.
Bingo. He never had any ability to go forward. Attacking play used to die all the time because of Krunic. One dimensional player really.
Had we beaten Lecce (in the first leg), Udinese (at home), Salernitana (away) and Monza (away) we’d be a point behind Inter (who would have a game in hand with it all to play for in the Inter game).
Inter’s run of 25 wins, 4 draws and just 1 defeat is ridiculous though.
They also have just 40 yellows and zero red cards despite all the foul highlights against them.
Not to mention key players in opposition teams getting suspended right before they play Inter.
In fact, Fik Tomori is at risk of missing the Derby again if he gets a yellow in the Sassuolo match. He already got suspended for the first Derby this season for ridiculous calls in the match before that. I’m actually expecting him to get suspended at this point. Moratta League strong.
A lot of Inter’s red card avoidance is down to Inzaghi’s in game management/rotation. He gets many of his key players that are pressing; to go hard for 60/70 mins and then come off. Limiting the chances of them getting two yellows.
They do have great depth at the moment. With a “starting” level” back up player for almost every position.
A lot of Inter’s red card avoidance is down to Inzaghi’s in game management/rotation. He gets many of his key players that are pressing; to go hard for 60/70 mins and then come off. Limiting the chances of them getting two yellows.
They do have great depth at the moment. With a “starting” level” back up player for almost every position.
The wise decision is then not to start Tomori against Sassuolo unless absolutely needed.
He is by far our best CB and the fastest.
See why beating them is important !
What’s the point of being 1 point away from them if we can’t beat them.
Had we beaten them with Lecce, Salernitana and Monza, we’d be first even with their game in hand.
Had we not beaten them in 21/22 we won’t have won the scudetto.
Yet you always seem to find excuses for losing the derby…
Injuries wrecked a key part of our season. If we didn’t have them, we would have been in contention for the scudetto, period.
Either way. People asking to have Pioli sacked are without any common sense.
Too little too late but a lot of good stuff recently. With Chuk doing better, I hope to see more of Pulisic playing as a trequartista. All credit to Pioli for integrating this team. I had no doubts about Pulisic doing great and Okafor and Jovic helping off the bench. What’s surprising to me, is how Pioli made the dysfunctional midfield work by moving Reijnders deeper and making RLC basically a second striker. All that’s left is to find a settled role for Musah. I still think we need a big signing there though. I think the Tonali sale hurt us on the pitch but in hindsight, considering his gambling problems, I hate to admit it’s looking like the management made the right decision.
Our team is way better than it was last season and the Tonali sale was smart for us. Not so smart for Newcastle even if he didn’t have gambling issues. He fizzled out pretty badly.
I couldn’t imagine playing Saelesmaekers and Messias another signing on RW.
*another season on RW. Typo