AC Milan 4-2 Juventus: Five things we learned – Forwards on fire; Bennacer and Kessie incredible

By Ivan Stoev -

Milan hosted Juventus on Tuesday evening in a game in which the Rossoneri finally managed to win against their rivals.

They did so in brilliant fashion too, overcoming a two-goal deficit to win 4-2 thanks to four goals in 18 minutes and moving into fifth place, albeit temporarily as Roma and Napoli have a game in hand.

After huge wins against Roma, Lazio and now Juventus, a lot of the players look reborn and so does the team in general. As a whole, all the players had a good night with maybe the exclusion of Romagnoli who was in fault for both goals.

Positive substitutions in the second half also had a big impact on the game as Calhanoglu brought creativity, while Leao notched another goal to complete the comeback.

But in the bigger picture the players finally started playing like a team and the last games reflect that showing just how capable they are.

The future looks bright for Milan as they need little to be competitive next season but most importantly they need a long term project, no managerial changes and a healthy environment so the players can flourish.

Here are five things we learned…

1. Forward on fire

Everyone is seemingly praising Ante Rebic – praise he thoroughly deserves as he bagged yet another goal and assist last night.

However, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Rafael Leao have been bringing some fire power as well. We all know what the Swede is capable of even at the age of thirty-eight and his stats do not fail to impress.

Leao has bagged three goals since the restart of Serie A which may not seem like a lot, but the Portuguese youngster has been coming off the bench as the red hot Rebic and Zlatan are keeping him out of the starting XI.

With many wondering who will replace the Swede in case of an exit, we can rest easy knowing goals can come from other sources.

2. Motoring along

Milan are on an impressive run and it is only a shame that the season started in such a bad way for the team. On a positive note, the Rossoneri have showed massive improvements since the start of the year in terms of results and in terms of individual and team performances.

The football they play now is entertaining and it has not been entertaining for a long period of time. Hopefully this will continue until the end of the season and we see more and more what each and every one of the players is capable of, and when the long term project is in place things may get even better.

3. A performance at last

The right-back spot has been identified as Milan’s biggest problem area this season so far, but at last we saw a positive performance by Andrea Conti as the Italian looked a little bit like his old self.

Conti managed to keep Ronaldo fairly quiet throughout the game as the red-hot Portuguese striker was not a big threat before he moved more central.

We saw a warrior’s performance by the former Atalanta man which if he could build on would be a massive boost for the management as there will be a lot of focus on the right-back position and potential signings – with Pierre Kalulu already through the door.

4. Just can’t get enough

Ismael Bennacer and Franck Kessie have done it once again, and what a partnership they have formed. The Algerian took the weight on his shoulders of being the more creative of the two, controlling the game from the back and going forward.

Meanwhile Kessie once again was a tank in the midfield recovering the ball on numerous occasions and winning virtually every physical dual he went into. The Ivorian actually ended up with a goal to his name and showed a bit of his passing abilities.

And what can we say about Bennacer. A stunning performance against Italy’s current best. He was shaking off the opposition with ease and his sharp passes were able to get Milan off Juventus’s pressing.

There is no battle either wouldn’t fancy at the moment, and it raises questions about whether spending big money on Tiemoue Bakayoko or Sandro Tonali is really needed.

5. Thank you Gigio

In a game in which Donnarumma conceded twice it may seem silly to mention him, but the 21-year-old more than compensated for that with a brilliant save on Rugani’s header to prevent Juventus coming back into the game.

It was a world class reaction by a world class goalkeeper as he kept our lead safe and sound. Fans actually haven’t given him the credit he deserves recently as he is also the keeper with the most clean sheets in Serie A, so his performances must be cherished while we all hope his future is red and black

 

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