AC Milan managed to come back from two goals down against Torino, reclaiming first place in the standings. Christian Pulisic was the big star and below are the player ratings for the Rossoneri.
If you haven’t already, make sure to check out how we decide the player ratings. From the scale to what affects the rating, we have compiled everything there.
Starting XI
Maignan (6): He very nearly added another penalty save to his tally, getting a hand to Vlasic’s effort, but it wasn’t enough in the end. Questions can perhaps be asked about Zapata’s strike, but it’s also true that the defenders didn’t help him a whole lot there. All things considered, as such, he gets a pass here.
Tomori (5): It was very clumsy, and unfortunate, defending that led to the penalty. He clearly got caught in two minds and in the end, it looked rather comical. He had good moments after that, but I cannot overlook the difficult spot his silly (and avoidable) mistake put Milan in.
Gabbia (7): For me, this was another game in which he barely put a foot wrong, always leading the team from the back and making himself available in the build-up. What I liked a lot is that he also covered for others’ mistakes, not afraid to get out of his central role to sort things out. Revised to a 7 upon further reflection.
Pavlovic (6): I personally think he could have done a better job of closing down Zapata on the goal. The striker was arguably Torino’s biggest threat and he shouldn’t have been left so alone. After that, however, the Serbian played an important role and that was enough to get him a 6 here.
Saelemaekers (7): Mr Lively, you could call him, because it felt like he was everywhere. He nearly had a nice assist for Rabiot in the first half, and then followed that up with the assist for Pulisic in the second. Yet again, his versatility came in handy for Allegri (or Landucci this evening).
Loftus-Cheek (6.5): He had a bit of a slower start to the game, certainly not playing to his strenghts, but he grew into the second half very nicely. That early run to set up Nkunku’s backheel was the start of everything and he continued to do well, playing a part in the winner as well.
Modric (7): It might sound like I’m exaggerating just because of the name, but the truth is that it was a massive difference compared to the Lazio game. Even if Milan didn’t always create loads, they kept control and that was crucial in wearing Torino down. Modric was the key to all of that, with his smart movement, dummies, passing and more.
Rabiot (7.5): Allegri asked for goals from the Frenchman and that’s exactly what he got. Who knows how it would have gone without his screamer! In addition to the goal, which warrants a high rating just by itself, he was very useful as always in all parts of the game.
Bartesaghi (6): With the risk of perhaps sounding harsh, he was a bit too timid for my liking in the first half. He improved in the second, as showcased by the header that was well-saved by the keeper, but his crossing definitely could have been better throughout the game.
Nkunku (6): He went down far too easily just before Torino’s goals and while other mistakes were made after that, it was his loss of possession that led to the counter. In the second, he improved massively in my opinion as he was involved in several good moves, including a good run to open up space for Pulisic on the winner. A 6 still seems fair, but it’s promising for sure.
Leao (N/A): Given the injury and substitution in the first half, it’s very difficult to put a rating on his performance tonight. Let’s just hope it’s nothing serious, although admittedly the Napoli clash feels at risk.
Substitutes
Ricci (7): He had a good chance to level the game, getting a touch to a rebound but not enough from close range. Fortunately, he followed that up with some very good moves, including the cross for Pulisic on the winner. He was also involved in the build-up for the second, while another inswinging cross nearly led to an Nkunku goal. Revised to a 7 upon further reflection.
Pulisic (10 – MOTM): I very rarely do this, but considering the circumstances, the 10 feels appropriate here. Milan have struggled massively in this fixture over the years and another disappointing result looked certain, then the No.11 stepped up.
The fact that he was a big doubt for this game, due to a fever, only adds to the story and makes his cameo all the more special. I can’t help but love the fact that the two goals were both scored with his left foot, and after brilliant movement inside the box. Like a striker.
Estupinan (N/A): He came on for he final minutes of the game to secure the matter, but I didn’t see enough to give him a rating.
I’d rather we play De Winter instead of Tomori at this point. The rest of the ratings are on point.
Tomori has lost his pace and flexibility, his unnecessary tantrums doesn’t help his case either, unnecessarily over confidence to a fault and it showed tonight.
I’ll still say cashout on him and RCL before it’s too late.
It’s not just the tantrums. His mistakes nearly cost us this entire match. And he’s Dr Jeykl and Mr. Hyde. His inconsistency has been a problem for several seasons.
Yeah, he’s gotta go.
At least he plays and isn’t injured, so offloading him should be an option this winter.
👎95%
I’m not Tomori’s biggest fan but this seems harsh – he made one silly mistake but has been on top form most of the season…
👍
I am not sure if top form but he was being positive until this point
Dejan10,
I agree with you. Tomori didn’t have the best game yesterday but to be fair and honest he’s been in good form this season, most times working on the flanks too. Overall, I’m just optimistic about this season, the difference is definitely clear and I hope this trajectory continues.
Pace in the gameplay or as in the running (speed)?Because he had a good run versus Lazaro where he also had great tackle on the ball
“Tomori has lost his pace ”
Please elaborate because this claim is utterly ridiculous. 😀 😀 😀
De-winter will be a disaster trust me, Tomori might be poor but he is better off
You are out of your mind.
De Winter… did someone say Thiaw at the back?
tomori is still one of the fastest players in the world.
You cant coach that type of speed.
👍100%
Fastest players in the world… or just a headless chicken?
👎100%
I fully agree. Tomori seems to going through a confidence crisis and it is starting to show in his play. For once the ratings were spot on. I would like to see Ricci and Barte taking more chances instead of keeping it too safe. It will be good for their confidence to attack a bit more, and grow into that space. Big up to Puli for bailing us out. Hope Rafa has picked up something too serious
No way
Tomori far better than him
One silly mistake didn’t change the fact right now those trio are the best option
Wow – Pulisic does more in 10min than Gimenez and Nkunku combined all season. I’m speechless… someone should throw a wet towel over me..
Better yet throw it on Nkunku you know he’ll dive from it.
😂
🤣🤣🤣
👍100%
His positioning and first touch on his first goal are things of beauty. True striker skills. He pulls away from the defender, and then he simply kills the ball with a first touch. And then he doesn’t over-hit the finish, just placed it where the keeper couldn’t get it. Top notch work.
Clearly RLC and Nkunku were much better with Puli on the field. His dynamic runs and combination play opened up the attack.
I have seen almost nothing from Nkunku all season until this match. He actually looks like there could be a Milan-level player in there.
Leao’s injury may make this a moot point, but I would actually like to see a Puli-Nkunku tandem for a couple matches. I think they might just play well together and better than either plays alongside Leao.
I was actually going to say that. Player like Pulisic allows his team mate to play good football. Nkunku will benefit a lot from his dynamic play. What a fantastic footballer.
So who is the main star of this team, Leao or Pulisic? It is pretty clear isn’t it.
Puli today, Leao one week ago. So what is your point?
MM16 few weeks ago, Modric a month ago 😉 Keep calm.
There are many. Some them are: consistency, dedication, teamwork, determination, work rate, off the ball movement, concentration, shooting, composure, e.t.c.
All of that for a lesser salary. Leao has no right to act like a primadonna in this team any longer.
Milan needs more players like Pulisic & less like Leao.
I love how Pulisic being great turns into “Leao is awful” debate 😅
This is my point!!!
Not quite what he said. He said Puli is the star and focal point. Which is true. Team first and gives 100% at all times. Leao has streaks where he thinks he doesn’t have to try
It’s crazy. I love both players. Glazing either player isn’t a shot at the other and people should just support them both.
It is because both play more or less in the same position
Every time. I am happy we have 2 guys scoring and the team is at the top but it is better to compare and belittle one of them. It is like we don’t have Nkunku in the team for that. 🤣🤣
Calm down Pulisic was superb today, he did stepped up for his injured BIG brother, the real game changer Leao….argue with your keyboard if you disagree…..while I take nothing away from almost flawless performance from Pulisic, but Torino’s goalkeeper was pretty poor on the goals he conceded
LOL the ultimate Pulisic hater comes out 🤣🤣
Two great forwars,Leo and Pulisic,we need both to work together in harmony.We need Thiago Silva or even Ramos to play with this type of formation with peace of mind,Tomori is trying but Is not a veteran and consistent player, conceding such goals against top 5 teams in the league will almost impossible to have a comeback,I was hoping yesterday only after looking at Torino recent record
Lol that is by far the worst take i;ve seen on this. Leao is very streaky and is a diva. Puli is a benefit to any team and has the team first mentality. Not to mention, Over the last 3 seasons, i’mtaking Puli of leao any day
Diva? Stop making things up. You don’t even know what the word means. Leao isn’t an issue. He’s our most talented player. There’s no scudetto without him.
I thought Musah was the biggest talent on this planet… So, which is it? 🙂
“There’s no scudetto without him.”
There has been no scudettos with him after Zlatan, Kjaer, Kessie, Tonali, Rebic, Giroud etc. left.
If Leao was the key to the scudetto, why no more scudettos?
bb, you really have the most low iq takes every week, doesn’t it get embarrassing? It is a team sport, 11 players. You can have Messi and a bunch of bad defenders and you’ll see how it goes. I mean you can check Inter Miami and how they did the past seasons. Didn’t even reach playoffs. But same is valid for Pulisic or Leao or whoever. Still, Leao is by far the most talented and probably most creative (Modric messed it up a bit) player on this team and Pulisic is the most lethal (and 2nd and 3rd). Both things can be true at the same time if you don’t have such a small brain that you have to work with. So, not your fault, but embarrassing…
Olumighty a delusional fanboy. Pulisic has more goals and assists than Leao in the last 3 seasons, yet somehow Leao is the better offensive player and “the real game changer”. Not the guy who literally comes in and changes games every time. I guess if the only thing you are judging it on is speed..
That’s not even bringing into the equation all of the off the ball work that Pulisic does, that Rafa does not do. It doesn’t have to be a competition between the players but if you are going to make it one, you lose badly. Pulisic has been by far the superior player.
Those assist and goals land us in 8th position the last I checked and no European football, while the other REAL superstar Rafa won a scudetto
You don’t understand football. Compare the scudetto midfield and strikers to last season’s midfield and strikers. That is the difference. Not Leao, or Pulisic, or the defense. In any case, wasn’t Leao on the team last season? Bizarre logic.
“while the other REAL superstar Rafa won a scudetto”
WHy only only scudetto then? Rafa has played many seasons after the scudetto THE TEAM won but last season he “skippered” us into 8th place. Why didn’t he do his scudetto-magic if he won us the scudetto all by himself years ago? He’s more mature and in his prime age now. Back then he was younger and “less ready”. So… Being better player but still not getting us scudettos? Why?
BB, your argument is as stupid as his. In that case you’d also write why didn’t Milan win anything since Pulisic came. Buy some brain guys, it is embarrassing.
We don’t need a game changer. We need a game winner. And that’s Pulisic.
Big brother is not consistent nor as productive as Pulisic. He does have talent but it is not always seen. No matter who the contributor, as long as someone or multiple players step up that’s all that matters. Remember, it’s the team effort that counts to make this successful.
Its not even close my friend. And Leao has been playing better.
If pulisic has been healthy without Injury he is far better than a healthy Rafael leao
No doubt about it. Puli is world class, one of the best in the league right now. Not just scoring, but combining and opening up the attack for teammates.
It might not be a popular take, but honestly Leao hasn’t looked good for many weeks now. His dribbling is off, his passing isn’t really there, and his finishing isn’t at Puli’s level. He was poor against Lazio in the cup and poor today. He did score the goal against Lazio in the league, and that was a great play, but for the rest of that match he did little.
We DO need a healthy, confident Leao to have a chance at the scudetto. But at this point, I’d like to see an experiment of Nkunku with Puli as the attacking tandem for a few matches.
Rabiot clearly
Pulisic is the main star of the team.
No competition
For me, Rabiot is our unsung hero. He deserves more praise than anyone in this team
We actually attacked today and ditched the low block, and it’s all thanks to Torino’s early goals.
I wonder what Tomori was thinking on that handball.
Pulisic is the most important attacking player in this team and other players should learn a lot from him.
I’ll say it for the 5th game in a row, the management should report SERIA A for malicious officiating. We can’t have bad VAR decision or indecision game in and game out.
The foul on Saelemaekrs was a straight red and even the coach knows and sub the player out, but somehow VAR missed the memo.
Just glad we won this one.
it wasnt a straight red it was a very debatble red card, the coach probably subbed him off because he was useless and on a yellow.
A nasty challenge, I hope an AC milan player doesn’t make that kind of challenge because if any does, he’s off. Mark my words.
I don’t know why the foul on Saelemaekers didn’t even deserve a video review by the ref….the player stomped on his foot as he was advancing towards the goal.
Once I saw Pulisic at the touch line with 20 minutes I knew he’d take the bag. Other moments were Rabiot’s shot from distance and Saelemaekers rolling around on the pitch 🤣🤣🤣. Pulisic is the only front line player that can figure out where to go and find space. Even KuKu looked better with CP11 on the pitch.
Yes even I have to admit Ghost Rider looked better in second half with Pulisic on…
Ghost rider 🤣🤣🤣🤣 Nkunku is Nicholas Cage now.
Ghost Rider is from Top Gun, isn’t it?
Ghost rider is a movie title but yes in top gun ghost rider is used in maverick and gooses communication so we’ll need dejan10 to fill in the missing piece but I’m thinking you are correct in the reference.
There it is.
Nkunku and RLC were much more effective with Pulisic on the field. It’s uncanny.
Not sure how Nkunku gets a pass when hai “better” second half included him through on goal and fluffing it twice.
I want this guy to succeed but he is just a more expensive Chukwueze at this point. (Tho Chuk ran his arse off while looking lost at least)
Yes, but that is compared to nothing. He still did quite bad, just better than nothing.
“You had one job [stay onside] to do, one job!”
– Don Cheadle were he to comment on Nkunku’s being offside on what would have been a hat trick for Pulisic. [Although Nkunku did make an unselfish square to the American.]
Nkunku’s lost his mojo but hopeful he gets it back. I see flickers (nice backheel on goal) of him breaking out.
Pulisic for ballon d’or. He is the leader on this team. He is the best player in the League. He is two moves ahead of everyones else. He reads the game better than anyone, anticipates where the ball is going to go and always puts himself in the most dangerous position. It’s not by accident, it’s not coincidence, it’s not luck that he is always in the right place at the right time. And he’s a brilliant finisher. He should be the Captain of this team.
I wouldn’t mind seeing RLC continue to start in Fofana’s place, I thought he did well.
The 7 rating for modric is a little absurd. Not bad but not a great performance either.
3 huge points thanks to Captain America!
Calm down enough of the excitement, we all know who is the real game changer. Fantastic performance by captain America, almost flawless we need more of this week in week out
Yeah, we know who the real game changer is, you’re the one that seems to be clueless about it.
Pulisic is by far the heart and soul of this team. The fact that you don’t see it is truly embarrassing
We don’t need a game changer. We need a game winner. And that’s Pulisic.
“we all know who is the real game changer”
Leao on the pitch: 0-2. Pulisic comes on and 10 minutes later it goes from 1-2 to 3-2. That’s how you define GAME CHANGER. 😀 😀 😀
I hope your not suggesting leao is more important than puli, cuz Rafael cant even put 3 good performances together without falling off. There’s a reason nobody has come in for him, nobody is willing to risk anything on him
Going down 0-2 because of their own mistakes, come back to win the game showed the character qnd mentality of the team.
Pulisic, best player in the league. Glad he is back and hopefully he stays on the pitch.
Rabiot. What a goal, what a signing. Thank you again Jonathan Rowe.
Very good 2nd half by Ricci. Good things happen when you run towards the other teams goal. Nice backward pass on the 3rd goal.
Nkunku was awful in the 1st half but very good in the 2nd. Hopefully he can build on that.
Another good game by Saelemaekers but he needs to stop with the diving, just like Nkunku. I wouldn’t have blamed the ref if he allowed that goal that Torino scored in the 2nd half. There was no foul there.
Tare, give me Zapata in January and Milan will win the scudetto. The exact striker Milan needs.
On to Sassuolo.
Pulisic is a winger with a goal instinct of Filippo Inzaghi 😄
You should watch some Andriy Shevchenko highlights. He was a 2nd striker, like Pulisic, and had much better goal instinct than Inzaghi.
Pulisic is much more Shevchenko than Inzaghi in this Milan.
Yeah , good comparison
Agree 100%👍
Not sure about that. Inzaghi could score goals with his a$$, and he literally did. That’s instinct. Sheva was a regular center forward who was simply a better striker and all-round athlete than Pippo. And at Dynamo it was Rebrov who played as the second striker. Pulisic is his own thing.
Pulisic is nothing like Pippo or Sheva. Insane comparisons really. What’s next, comparing him to the original Ronaldo? 😀 😀 😀
I should have quoted this “Pulisic is his own thing.” to highlight that we agree on this.
Pulisic, nothing to add. Absolutely amazing, getting us the three points with his bare hands, and not the for the first time. And coming off a fever no less. World class superstar. After him, Rabiot and Ricci were great, as well as RLC at times.
But Allegri also deserves credit for changing the game around from the stands. All his substitutions were spot on.
Nkuku, on the other hand, looked scared and weak. Even in the disqualified goal of Pulisic, you think he would go for the shot himself. There’s a very good player in there, but he somehow needs t o gain his confidence again.
Overall, very good effort by the boys, in a very difficult pitch. Bravo.
Yep I’m getting CDK energy from Nkunku… unlike the Belgian I think there’s hope he’ll shake it off..
Yeah, he really had a chance to step up with Leao’s injury. And I agree, potentially he can be much better than CDK (whose not that great anyways). But he is running out of chances.
Maignan: Good game overall. Can’t stop every penalty and the defense didn’t help him in Zapata’s goal.
Tomori: My man, you’re not supposed to do a T-pose to control the ball. You can’t count on Maignan to bail us out each time.
Pavlović: I feel like he should have done a better job closing in on Zapata.
Gabbia: Perhaps the only defender who didn’t make a mistake, or at least a massive mistake.
Bartesaghi: Not a good game today. Allowed in too many crosses, was beaten too easily at times and didn’t provide enough offensively. I felt like he should have been subbed out sooner, but we won so…
Saelemakers: Or I should say “Troublemakers” because he’s been making all sorts of trouble for Torino. I lost count of how many fouls he won. And also a neat assist that found Pulišić in a good spot.
Rabiot: well about that article which claimed that he isn’t scoring enough…
Modrić: I feel like he’s not as dominant and precise as he was earlier this season, but this is a good performance by almost any metric, except perhaps Modrić’s metrics.
Loftus-Cheek: Probably his best performance in a long, long time. Helped offensively and defensively. I think he’s more comfortable higher up the pitch.
Ricci: the player many complained about for his backwards/lateral passes got an assist with…. a backward/lateral pass.
Leão: didn’t play long enough to pass a judgement, but the few minutes he played didn’t look good IMO.
Nkunku: falls way too easily and while he moved more and provided more action this time around, it’s still not nearly enough to qualify for a decent game.
Pulišić: What can I say ? What can anyone says ? He quite literally took matters into his own hands and didn’t make us wait. Great performance in an overall great season so far.
Now onto Sassuolo that we should win, then we’ll have this stup!d supercoppa stuff and hopefully we can fix some issues by january.
Tomori got a weak a$$ graphic card 🤣🤣 and power source in his set up.
A few thoughts
1. There is something about this team that is so much more likable than teams of the past few years. They pass well, they defend as a team (albeit with some errors today) and they run hard
2. Saelemaekers is totally the guy you love if he’s on your team but hate when he’s on the opposition. Flying around, flopping around, all over the pitch. He to me has done as much as Modrić and Rabiot setting the tone for this team
3. More of this Ricci! I really thought he played well today. His most aggressive offensive performance to date.
4. I can’t be the only one who already sees a dip in form for Modrić compared to the start of the season. Nothing terrible. Just a few more errant passes, not as good of touch on the dribble….it just seems like he needs more than a 1/2 game rest.
5. Two strong performances in a row for RLC. I don’t think it takes much, he just needs to get the ball off his feet quickly and he’s a force. When he dribbles deep into the box we are sunk. Today he played well.
And looked for outlets.
6. Maybe the goal of the year today from Rabiot
7. I think Nkunku moves better playing off of Pulisic than he does Laeo….so does Gimenez.. It is hard to have two shrimps playing up top, but with Rabiot and RLC on the pitch maybe that’s negated a little and the speed and vision could be good together.
8. Can you say anything more about Pulisic? The guy looked like he lost weight, he was white as a ghost, and he pumps in two quality goals on two shots! Made a third goal on offside by Nkunku, and set up Nkunku with a breakaway. Good Lord!
9. This game did not have to be made this hard. But what an entertaining match to watch!
Hahah wow look at my comment. We definitely watched the same game!
Great minds think alike
A few thoughts:
1. Modric was ok, but I thought RLC had more impact with his signature rushes. He even tracked back. In this form I take him over Fofana in the advanced role any day of the week.
2. Wtf does Gabbia need to do to earn a 7.5 or higher? I can’t shake the feeling you base these ratings primarily on goal involvements.
3. Same story as point 2. but why a 6.5 for Ricci? He was everywhere, provided exactly the kind of grit and energy that Milan lacked in the first part of the game and topped it off with an assist. I think he was brilliant. 7.5 at least.
4. You can clearly see a player like Nkunku is way better in an attacking oriented team & with a versatile player like Pulisic next to him. He kinda lit up in the second half. This goes for more Milan players. In the end we’re on top so that means Allegri is right. But damn I like it so much more when Milan plays offensively and intensively. Playing the ball around in that 532 with isolated strikers, it just invites mistakes like today. But I guess that’s just what it takes to be top of Serie A? Your thoughts?
Knowing the selling magic of Tare we need to offload Tomori. Sure he might be great some games, but then his disastrous performances that nearly cost us.
Time to move on. Sell him for 25-30 million. Find someone better.
I like Tomori, he’s quite a character. Besides he’s only 27 & you would not find a proper replacement easily that will fit right in.
Pavlovic – Gabbia – Tomori is a great trio that should not be taken apart anytime soon. It’s just the first season they play with 3 CB’s also.
All credit to Pulisic but 10 that is preposterous and I would also turn Modric’ rating down a notch as he also had some bad calls that inadvertently started some counter attacks that could have been costly. Not a bad game from him but not a 7 in my book.
Overall a great fightback of a match but was absolutely livid until we reduced the score.
Two goals in 30 minutes while coming off an illness doesn’t deserve a 10?
8.5-9 sure but if we talk about score I would say 3-4 goals or assists or some otherworldly performance. Pulisic was fantastic but 10 just demands more that’s at least how I percieve it, Another factt could be doing something unseen before in the sport combined with a great game. Sorry thats my view and not meant as a jibe at Pulisic who had a great game.
Did you watch the match?
CP11 put a third goal in the net but unfortunately Nkunku was offside in the build-up, AND he set Nkunku in all alone with the keeper on a break, but Nkunku couldn’t finish the chance.
I don’t give 10s easily, but this WAS a 10!
I did and already explained myself and still stand by what I said.
Martin, turn off your computer by unplugging the power chord.
Goku ive always been on good terms with you but how about you go snuff it if you wanna be rude with me.
Hey it was just friendly advice lol. Giving someone with a heavy flu who had a temperature of 39C anything less than a 10 when he scored twice giving us three points to the top of the table… is rude lol
😀 Fair enough I just didn’t like your attitude 😀 but you definitely also have a point there 🙂
Modric isn’t looking amazing for a few games now, if we’re being honest.
I’d definitely give either Ricci or Jashari some gametime if possible against some oppositions. Maybe even play 4-3-3 against some teams as we seem to struggle against lesser teams.
Yeah, although I also understand why Allegri keeps starting him, locker room politics also play a factor here as well I guess. Hopefully he can become as effective as in his first matches
Yeah there is a stability factor there to consider.
“All credit to Pulisic but 10 that is preposterous”
LOL!!! The guy PLAYED A PERFECT MATCH AND DIDN’T PUT A FOOT WRONG ONCE and you complain he “didn’t deserve 10”?!!! Wow!
If that had happened to Leao, half of the people here would have jumped in and called you a hater! 😀 😀 😀
If turning a 2-1 defeat into a 2-3 victory single-handedly in THAT condition doesn’t warrant a 10, then it shouldn’t be ever given to anyone.
Still stand by what i said and explained and if people wanna call me a hater or worse so be it 😛 I neverthlesss applaud him for his magnificent performance so it cant really be hate can it 😀
I agree with you Martin, but it’s really a question of how you interpret the 10 score. And given that these scores mean absolutely nothing, who cares. This is not a comment on you, but more on everyone who was triggered by your comment
I appreciate your comment Baresis Dream
but people can have their views just as I can have mine and anyone on this website who knows me well enough will know that I doesn’t bash players maybe minus Musah but yeah the scores will just be individual opinions. I also saw some football sites giving Pulisic 8 so people can chew on that one 😀
From the top of my head when I think the score of 10 I think of Van Basten scoring 4 goal and one of them a bycycle kick against IFK Gothenburg at least something in the vein of that.
No, being ill or injured doesn’t increase your rating. That is not how it works. On a Milan fansite yes, but usually no. That should never be considered. Realistically he deserved a 9, but 10 is ok since we are Milan fans. That should be clear to anyone, but nobody outside of Milan fans thinks it was a 10 performance. As it wasn’t really.
What a win.
Allegri has truly unlocked Pulisic. He is amazing this season.
In 550 minutes in all competitions he has 9 goals and 2 assists. 11 goals contributions in only 550 minutes and none of them is a penalty.
Only if he can stay healthy for the rest of the season.
Congrats to the boys and Allegri.
I think the difference this season is Pulisic has way way less defensive responsibilities and therefore has more energy in the tank for relentless movement in and around the box.
He still works hard on the defensive side of course, but he seems to be able to stay higher as the 2nd striker rather than tracking runs all the way into his own box constantly like previous seasons.
While you are correct that Puli has been amazing this season, I’d say that he’s been amazing every season since he joined Milan. Sure, Allegri is using him well, but his quality preceded Allegri.
There are levels.
Pulisic is averaging a goal contribution every 50 minutes this season. He was good the last 2 years but he is much, much, much better this season
It’s because he’s playing more centrally and closer to goal. It’s a bit further away when you’re on the wing.
I wrote maybe 50 times that he is a second striker, not a winger. It was obvious to me but until Allegri came he was wasted on the right wing. If Pulisic played with a player like Giroud he’d score even more…
Which is exactly why they played together so well at Milan and Chelsea. They have a knack for quick 1-2 combinations that either could start or finish with a goal.
And this brings up the current hot issue. What happens if we bring in a “proper” no. 9? Who sits? For me the implication is that a good real no. 9 and Pulisic in a two striker system would be devastating. But could this club possible bench Leao OR Pulisic? Or perhaps we do neither and just play Leao and Pulisic, albeit in an attack that is not perfect in terms of the complementary qualities of the players. TLDR, maybe we don’t have to rock the boat in January at all, and just play Leao and Pulisic who are enough vs spending another 40M on another potential dud. In fact, what we might need more than a “Haaland 2.0” is a “Jovic 2.0”. Someone who can come off the bench for Leao or Pulisic, bring a different aspect and also ability to score.
A sick Pulisic is more effective than a fit Leao. I think it’s time Milan cash in on Leao if we are going to be to stick with a 352 formation. I would even take Chiesa and switch to 3421 with Chiesa and Pulisic behind a striker.
Do we really need Leao in 352? I doubt it since he’s not a striker. However, we should go for Duvan Zapata as a low cost option in January though.
What a comment, one match wonder as a substitute means we should throw away the real match changer?
Who won the derby?
AC Milan. Not sure why do you people keep hating on one player to prop up another one. They are both AC Milan players – you id*ots.
I’ve already said many times I like both players. But see the hate that comes from this other dude that he still shades Pulisic when comes off the bench and scores a brace in 10 minutes. Imagine what he writes when Pulisic has an off match.
Yep the leading scorer in Serie A is a one match wonder.
Sort of like you are a one trick troll.
Make sure you buckle up when you ride the short bus home from the Internet after school.
” one match wonder as a substitute”
AND WE HAVE FOUND THIS SITE’S BIGGEST PULISIC HATER!!! HATER!!! HATER!!! 😀 😀 😀
Stop living in a denial. It wasn’t his first “coming off from the bench to salvage the game” for Pulisic. “One match wonder”. FFS. The stupidity is strong in this one, for SURE. 😀 😀 😀
He is no worse than you. You just focus on other players.
The lazy leao? Lol zip it up when your done bouncing buddy
Was never a fan of leao no matter how many goals he scores. He just makes too many mistakes and kills the chemistry of the team.
Ricci, Loftus-Cheek a 6.5?? How?? I even understand Nkunku who grew into the game , though very sloppy early on. Rabiot kept us in the tie ngl and he’s been crucial overall. But man Pulisic was insane today!! A brace off the bench, huge doubts about fitness, apparently had fever. Crazy work! Let’s hope Leao can recover quickly. Seems like Puli and Leao keeps swapping spots on the treatment table
Good win, 3 valuable points for 4th spot!
The game:
First 30 minutes, disaster. Next 65, lots of soul and effort by mostly everybody, and we deservedly turned things around. We hadn’t won at the Torino stadium in four and a half years, so, the team is to be commended; with the short roster and collecting still another essential injury (Rafa), with Puli out of a fever, and we still collect the 3 points coming from behind, that was not short of remarkable. We’re back at the top of the table and most importantly, 6 points clear of 5th place. The distance to 5th place is increasing which works for our main objective this season, that is, going back to the Champions League. So far, so good, even though our roster is so short.
Maignan – He almost stopped the PK. He touched the ball but it was shot too strongly so it ended in the net anyway; obviously not Maignan’s fault. In their second goal I thought he could have done better although Pavlovic blocked his view. Still, I don’t think we can say that Mike earned more than a pass, tonight. 6.
Tomori – Look, I don’t fault him so much for the PK. First of all, he was a bit bumped a fraction of a second before, and it is natural to open the arms to recover equilibrium. The ball went up and hit his arm on its way down. It’s not volitional and I wouldn’t even say it was a silly mistake. I’d have said that if Tomori had opened his arms all on his own, but like I said, human bodily physiology often involves involuntarily opening your arms when you’re off balance. Then, Tomori actually had a pretty good game afterwards, and was instrumental especially in second half, stopping a promising Torino shot. I’ll give him more than a pass here. 6.5.
Pavlovic – I actually would deduct a bit more from Pavlovic than from Tomori. He really allowed a lot of space in their second goal and let the ball go through his legs. Given that Tomori’s failure was fortuitous and involuntary, and Pavlovic’s was more like a real failure, I do think it’s fair to give him a lower grade than Tomori’s. Then, like Tomori, he did better afterwards so I’ll give him a pass but nothing more. 6.
Gabbia – Impeccable as usual. The best defender tonight; calm and solid, no mistakes. 7.
Saelemaekers – Let’s first remember that he’s been playing almost the entire time in all games. He must be exhausted. So, he’s been a bit less brilliant than at the beginning of the season. Still, as usual, great effort. He bothered Torino a lot and they had to foul him repeatedly. He produced an assist. Good game, Alexis! 7.
Bartesaghi – He was less good than in other games. He couldn’t really solve the low block in first half and his usually great crosses were blocked. Like everybody else, he improved in second half and almost scored with a great header that wasn’t a score only by merit of Torino’s goalkeeper. 6.5.
Modric – I agree that it makes a huge different for this current Milan if Modric is there or not. We were flat and more fragile against Lazio without him, and a lot more composed with him. No, I don’t think that 7 is too much. Yes, 7.
Rabiot – Phenomenal. What a golazo!!! And not only, he almost scored again, and he was running all over the place again, disorganizing Torino and organizing Milan. 8.
RLC – Yes, not having Fofana means a lot more balls that end up being useful attacks rather than lost opportunities. Even though RLC did not have a great game, he certainly did better than Fofana has been doing, and had a hockey assist. Still, he fell to the ground a bit too easily several times which is one of his shortcomings. But overall he was more useful than detrimental, so, 6.5.
Rafael Leão – I’m concerned; he’s been injury prone. That’s his third injury this season. Maybe something is not properly healed and keeps recurring. It’s hard to rate him in these circumstances but while he was on the pitch he did nothing wrong, so, a pass. 6.
Nkunku – This was actually a better game from him as compared to the previous disasters. Nothing brilliant, still at times with his back to the goal, falling down too easily (some would call part of these falls, dives) and in great part responsible for their second goal. Still, for the first time in many games he wasn’t invisible. He actually did run a lot and did participate in several plays. He did bother Torino’s defense and did open spaces. One would have to deduct a bit for his failure losing the ball in their goal, though, so it’s still hard to give him a pass. I’d say 5.5, and while it’s the smallest grade I’m giving tonight, it’s also not 3 like I gave him before so that’s an improvement.
Subs
Ricci – his best game with the Milan jersey. For the first time I can say he was not shy. I think he is slowly growing and that’s encouraging. He even bagged an assist tonight! He was really instrumental in second half, then being one of the best players on the pitch. 7.5
Pulisic – A player comes in at minute 66 and transforms a defeat for zero points, into a victory for 3 points. How can anybody rate this any lower than 10? Yes, it’s a 10, and this, with his high commitment to the team, coming out of 39 degrees of fever and told to stay behind in Milano, then he makes a point of traveling to Torino to join the team and earns 3 points for us. Spectacular. Thank you, Christian!!! Without any doubt, he’s our best player and a top 3 player in the league. Is there any doubt that he was the MOTM? Nope, there isn’t.
Estupiñan – Very little time to do anything but still, did stop Torino’s offense a couple of times, so I’d give him a pass. 6.
The mister(s)
Landucci on the sideline / Allegri on the phone
The subs were very good. First, bringing in Ricci who had a huge impact on the game, and with this, freeing RLC up was the right move. Bringing Pulisic in without taking out Nkunku or RLC was also smart because we had more volume upfront, with even Nkunku helping with creating spaces. Shifting Alexis to the left was also smart. Our coaches outcoached Torino’s and had a clear impact on the final result, so, 8.
👏
I think you need to write articles yourself. On point.
Thanks, Goku and dejan10
I only disagree on Tomori and would give him a 5.5, but it’s a fair point. Everything else was well written I think.
I agree. I don’t post often but I look forward to Luigi’s comments. They are spot on. Keep up the great work brother
I read them too and I generally find them spot on. Well done Luigi.
Thank you Goku and Stove
“It’s hard to rate him in these circumstances but while he was on the pitch he did nothing wrong, so, a pass. 6.”
You must have missed the moment in the 1st half when Leao, prior to his injury gave up the ball just like Nkunku. Just like in the Nkunku situation Torino went on the counter attack, but unlike in the Nkunku situation the defense, Tomori, intercepted one of their passes and saved Milan from conceding another goal because one of their forwards gave the ball away.
Also, why are you rating Leao based on if he did or didn’t do anything wrong? Did he do anything right while he was on the pitch?
I gave him a discount because he’s been playing out of ideal physical fitness the entire season, since the Bari game. He never properly healed thus the recurring injuries. Still, has scored several goals and has been trying hard, unlike last season.
OK, I must have missed his lost ball. I’ll take your word for it. But it’s the rare player who loses no balls at all in a game. Losing one ball is often not a reason to lower one’s score unless it directly results in a goal for the opponents. I probably missed that play but you said it yourself, Torino didn’t score from it. They did score out of Nkunku’s lost ball so it’s more damaging. Sometimes the screw up is so big that there is no rescuing it; smaller screw ups can be rescued.
Look, Modric had the biggest number of touches and the biggest number of completed passes tonight if you look at a good stats site such as FotMob but even Modric lost a couple of balls. I feel like some fans are too demanding when it’s Rafa. The hatred against Rafa is uncanny. Every thread there is someone saying we should sell him, when stats show that EVERY SEASON in the last 6 Serie A seasons, Rafa finished the season either first, second, third or at worst fourth best (in goal contributions) among all 600 professional Serie A players. And he’s still heavily criticized. Amazing.
As for not anything wrong, not anything right deserving a 6, that is, a pass, that’s how I grade. I think all players start a game with a clean slate or a 6. If they do something really good they earn points that push their score above 6. If they do something really bad their score falls below six. If they do nothing great but nothing really bad then they remain a 6. If you disagree with this method of grading, I encourage you to post your own grades. But every person has a criterion. It’s important to be coherent.
If you read my posts game after game you’ll see that it’s not just Rafa; I’ll grant a 6 to other players who do noting great but also nothing terrible.
Also when someone does something great but also something bad, one upside may cancel the downside and there will still be a grade of 6.
When one predominates over the other then the grade goes up or down, like I said of RLC tonight, more helpful than detrimental therefore a 6.5.
Cool, you disagree with me on Leao. I can respect that, but I won’t change my grade for him. It’s my criterion and I stand behind it, while respecting the right of others to disagree.
“I gave him a discount because he’s been playing out of ideal physical fitness the entire season, since the Bari game. He never properly healed thus the recurring injuries. Still, has scored several goals and has been trying hard, unlike last season.”
First of all Leao has been back since the Napoli game which was 2 and a half months ago. He was out for a month not for a year. Where have you read or heard that he hasn’t been properly healed or not in an ideal physical condition, or is that just another excuse?
2nd , what does what Leao has done in previous games has to do with your rating of him in this game and getting a discount for that? Shouldn’t the grades be solely just for this game?
If he didn’t do anything wrong, which he did, and he didn’t do anything right, than he was a non factor.
I just think that people should expect more from a player than just not doing anything wrong and giving him a pass for it. It would makes sense if a defender didn’t do anything wrong, but not a midfielder or a forward.
I think ignoring you is the perfect way to go. Nkunku lost the ball many more times, but you aren’t complaining about his rating? It is evident what this is about. 😀
Recurring injuries. That suggests he never fully healed from the first one. Experiencing pain which was evident several times in several games from his face. You don’t want to see that Rafa hasn’t been in ideal physical condition just because you hate him.
Look, I couldn’t care less if you disagree with how I rate players a 6 when they aren’t that positive nor that negative. I tried to be polite at first, and to respect your opinion. Given that you don’t respect mine, I am actually at no obligation to respect yours.
And no, physical circumstances do influence ratings when they carry from one game to another or manifest in the days prior to a game. Big example, not only me, but several other posters, and several professional journalists in Italian newspapers, said Pulisic is to be commended for his outstanding performance and graded EVEN HIGHER because he was coming out of two days of fever. So, why wouldn’t Rafa benefit from the same? Oh, he wouldn’t in your opinion, because he is Rafa, and you hate Rafa.
I’m done with you. I’d suggest that you go do something to yourself that I won’t detail just because I’m still somewhat polite but you probably can guess what I mean.
Well written, and agreed on all points.
Your “match reports” have become much better since you opened your eyes and stopped blindly praising Leao. Your texts used to be love letters to him but not anymore. Now there is “common sense” in these and everything you wrote was spot on. 🙂
I was never in love with Leão in the detrimental sense you suggest. I criticized him NUMEROUS times when it was warranted, over the years. I’ve graded him high at times, and low, even very low, at other times, depending exclusively on his performances, good or bad. It’s just that you usually would only highlight the times when I praised him and ignore the times when I criticized him.
Sometimes the praise was in RESPONSE to unwarranted criticism by some posters who CLEARLY hate him, which I actually suspect has a bit to do with his race (not necessarily from you, but from some). You know the stereotype, “blacks are lazy.” The insisting claim that Rafa is “lazy” is suspect. He is a player with certain characteristics; mostly bursts of speed, then periods of rest before the next burst. He was actually told by Pioli NOT to track back and NOT to try to defend, but to wait for counters and then spring forward with his speed. But even when he was following his head coach’s instructions, people said he was “lazy” because he was not tracking back. When coaches started to ask of him to track back, he started tracking back (although unfortunately he is not good at it, but that’s another story).
People even complained that he likes rap music and fashion. Again, pretty stereotypical. They said he was neglecting his career in favor of music, when there was NO EVIDENCE WHATSOEVER that any Milan official ever complained that Leão was late to training, absent, or less than dedicated to training, in favor of music or fashion. Obviously Leão did those things in his FREE time, because if he didn’t, Allegri who is a disciplinarian would not tolerate it, and would speak up against it. See, Jimenez was berated by Allegri for being late to training at Milanello, three times (and ultimately Allegri didn’t want Jimenez to stay, for that very reason; thought he wasn’t serious enough, because of his lateness). Leão on the other hand was NEVER accused of the same, by Allegri or by anybody else from the club. Still, people spouted here with annoying “certainty” that he was neglecting training because he liked music and fashion. They just assumed, with no evidence. Why??? Did they assume the same of other (white) players, for example, Theo or Adli, who are said to also enjoy music? Nope. They only assumed it of Leão. Again, that sounds racist to me. So no wonder I defended him. He was unfairly targeted. I will defend ANY Milan player who is unfairly targeted. But if the criticism is JUSTIFIED not only I will agree, but I will actually criticize that player myself, including Rafa.
Rafael Leão is one of the best players for the club I’m passionate about for decades, so when he is unfairly targeted, yes, I will defend him, and that’s what true fans do.
If you can recall, many times you and others called me a Leão “fanboy” I said that he isn’t even my very favorite Milan player and has never been, as evidenced by my last two Milan jerseys and how I personalized them. Neither one has Rafael Leão #10 on the back. The previous one had Tonali #8 when he was still with us. The current one has Pulisic #11.
You may observe that I ALSO defend Puli when he is unfairly targeted because he is American, and did so twice in this very thread.
Should I then be accused of being a “fanboy” and writing love letters to Pulisic? It actually would be closer to the truth than what you and others said of my opinion of Rafa, because unlike Rafa, Puli actually is indeed my favorite Milan player. Still, I’m not a Pulisic “fanboy.” I just like him, and I think he is our best player. He helps the club a lot so I like him a lot for that. For me, club > player.
Frankly I think that calling someone a “fanboy” because the person praises players who play for his beloved club, is silly and infantile. I’m not a “boy” – I’m actually an older adult and likely older than most people here. So, that “fanboy” insult is actually laughable.
Look, if people hadn’t posted repeatedly with wildly unfair accusations regarding Rafa, I wouldn’t have felt the need to defend him.
Nobody ever (or very rarely) makes wild accusations of Modric, for example. Therefore, I do not feel the need to defend Modric. Still, if someone does say something unwarranted against Modric, then I will counter it. It happened again, this very thread. Someone said Modric did not deserve a grade of 7. I then said, “look at his touch and completed passing stats: they were the best of all 30 players who played in the Torino-Milan game.” “Compare our performance with and without Modric in the Lazio games (league and Coppa). If you do, you will understand that his grade of 7 was justified.”
But I guess you won’t call me a Modric “fanboy” because my advocacy for him is rare, given that unwarranted criticism of him is also rare.
So, the bottom line is, it’s just because unwarranted criticism of Rafa was so frequent, that I defended him more often. Period.
Do you get it now?
“Rafael Leão –. It’s hard to rate him in these circumstances but while he was on the pitch he did nothing wrong, so, a pass. 6.”
This is not a serious rating. You could have just left it as “he did nothing.”
As a defender your job is to do nothing wrong. As a forward/striker your job is to do something. Create something. And he did not. No pass.
I have explained it already. This is the criterion I use: ALL players in ALL positions start the game with a clean slate, with a grade of 6. Then if they do something right, I increase the grade. If they do something wrong, I decrease the grade. If they do neither, are just OK, just decent, nothing great but nothing really bad, I simply conserve the grade of 6.
I do that for goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders, and attackers (and also head coaches and assistant coaches, when warranted).
If you disagree with this, fine, use your own criterion and do your own rating. But do not call my rating “not serious.” I try to rate these players as seriously as I can and I try to maintain coherence regarding how I think of the ratings, and 6 (a pass) for me is appropriate for those who are not great but are not bad, are not that helpful but not detrimental, in ALL positions, and that for me includes attackers.
Let me further explain. If an attacker tries, moves around, tries some dribbles and some passes but is not very successful, but also does not miss a sitter, does not give away dangerous balls that result in damaging counters for the other team, does not commit a huge foul that earns a silly yellow or even a red that then short-staffs the team, I will keep the 6 (pass but nothing more). If an attacker completely disappears for 90 minutes, does absolutely nothing, doesn’t even try, then I WILL indeed lower the grade, like I rated Nkunku low certain games, for being a total ghost we couldn’t even notice that he was playing. That is much worse than just not succeeding and not being very creative.
Rafa played for 30 minutes then got injured. I believe his recurring injury indicates that his physical fitness hasn’t been great. He tried to get involved in plays. He even tried to track back at times. He wasn’t very successful. But he committed no big blunders (someone said I missed ONE ball that he lost; probably I did. I don’t pay attention to all players 100% of the time and yes, I didn’t notice that ONE ball Rafa reportedly lost – I still think that even geniuses of ball control and pass accuracy like Modric sometimes miss ONE or two balls – it is very rare for a player in ANY position to not miss not even ONE ball and as long as it doesn’t result in a damaging advantage for the opponents, I won’t necessarily fault a player for losing ONE ball).
For me, Rafa’s 30-minute performance was not good, not bad, and a 6 (pass). I stand behind my opinion. If you have a different opinion, fine.
Nkunku, another attacker, while I praised his 2nd half, I did deduct half a point for him for losing the ball that resulted in Torino’s counter that ended up in the back of our net.
Rafa did not do that, so, 6, while Nkunku I rated 5.5. I would have rated him (Nkunku) a 6.5 for his good improvement in the second half that actually helped with opening spaces, including for one of Pulisic’s score (no direct assist which would have rated higher, but 0.5 more for doing something useful), but I deducted 1 point for the blunder that contributed to Torino’s second goal, so, 5.5.
“Not serious” is when people rate without putting some coherent thought behind it. That’s not what I do. You may disagree with my criteria but I do follow them coherently, so that’s not “not serious.”
“I have explained it already. This is the criterion I use: ALL players in ALL positions start the game with a clean slate, with a grade of 6. Then if they do something right, I increase the grade. If they do something wrong, I decrease the grade. If they do neither, are just OK, just decent, nothing great but nothing really bad, I simply conserve the grade of 6.”
That’s a silly ratings system then. By that logic a player could start the the match, just stand by the sidelines and do nothing the entire match and get a 6. Did nothing wrong, no mistakes.
A forward’s job is to create something. If you do not create anything you are not doing your job and don’t get a pass.
And saying you are “giving him a discount” because in your head you have decided that he is not fully fit when the team doctors have declared him fully fit and he has been starting matches for over a month since returning from a minor injury is a big cop out.
If you are going to come here and post your own ratings after every match , people have a right to call out your bias.
You are employing selective quoting. I ALSO said this:
“If an attacker completely disappears for 90 minutes, does absolutely nothing, doesn’t even try, then I WILL indeed lower the grade, like I rated Nkunku low certain games, for being a total ghost we couldn’t even notice that he was playing. That is much worse than just not succeeding and not being very creative.”
You conveniently ignored that part and insisted with the “just stand by the sidelines and do nothing the entire match and get a 6” when I SPECIFICALLY addressed this issue.
Rafa was NOT standing by the sideline and doing nothing, like Nkunku often does. If Nkunku does that, yes, I’ve rated him a 3, before. Rafa was trying; just, not very successfully.
Oh, the doctors have declared him fully fit? The same doctors who completely botched the first lesion at Bari, calling it not serious and then later it was clear that they had misdiagnosed it and it was a lot more serious than they declared?
Clearly, due to the short roster, Rafa was forced back prematurely. This is the THIRD lesion he collects this season. Starting matches for over a month: yep, while under less than ideal condition.
Just look at his face. He’s obviously in pain. He’s sacrificing himself.
Remember Gimenez? Crucified by everybody. Turns out that he was playing for WEEKS under pain while the doctors wouldn’t acknowledge it. Then he posted that notice that it was time to stop because he had been playing under chronic pain. THEN Allegri confirmed it, and Santi hasn’t recovered, since.
Sorry but I don’t currently trust Milan’s doctors. That’s two clear blunders.
The truth is, the managers thinned the roster too much. Yes, the squad was bloated before and they had to thin it, but the remedy was too strong and now we are left with a situation of players playing through injury and aggravating injuries.
I feel that we have a rather decent group and can challenge for the Scudetto but I think what will doom us is the short roster. Even playing just once a week, our roster is too short. We’ve seen our offense decimated, with Rafa, Santi, and Puli all collecting injuries and apparently Nkunku taking forever to reach acceptable fitness. That’s not good.
Sure, call out my “bias.” I’m just a passionate Milan fan, currently worried about our situation although we’re still doing well and on top of the table; I just fear that this situation is not sustainable unless the managers act in January, and there rumors that they won’t as RedBird apparently (could be just a rumor) has said that they do not want to invest in January.
It’s not a pro-Rafa bias. I’m equally concerned for Pulisic and for Santi; we also had recent injuries suffered by other essential players in international duty (especially Rabiot). Too short a roster makes us vulnerable to this.
Rafa has obviously not been well. OK, you don’t see it, fine. I do.
Regarding the second goal, obviously Nkuku was very weak on the ball, Pavlovic could have done better, and Mike was very weak as well. But you cannot leave out the midfield, Modric in particular, who allowed Torino to literally stroll towards our box with no interruption. Very positioning, ala Pioli’s late days (Sassoulo 6-2 comes to mind).
Uh what? I did not notice any failure by Modric during their goal. Nkunku, Pavlovic, and Mike? Yes, I agree, and said so in my post.
If Modric failed too, I didn’t see it. Nobody else in any threads I read, and nobody else in any websites or any Italian sports newspapers seems to have noticed it either, so I won’t berate myself if I failed to see it.
As far as I know you are the ONLY person I saw that is calling Modric co-responsive for their second goal.
Torino fans must feel sick, they been infected by the Pulisic!
Pulisic = Legend
Allegri ball is catching up to us, we are blessed we went down 2 early so had time to recover
Both goals were more like primavera ball than Allegri ball. I imagine he wanted to kill somebody watching them
C’mon Isak! Your ratings are becoming suspect.
A 5 for Tomori but a 6 for Nkunku? The penalty call was unfortunate and not something he did on purpose. And subsequently the was quite decent. Made many interventions and I daresay better than Pava fair bit.
Conversely Nkunku was excruciatingly timid tonight. I can think it’s several instances where all he needed to do was remember that he’s a forward and attach the goal. He always kept looking for the backward pass, including that almost 1v1.
Good comeback win! was hoping to get a look at Jashari, but the season is long. Milan has good momentum going into the next few matches. Hopefully Leao’s injury isn’t too bad, he and Pulisic are handful for defenders. You may be able to stop one of them, but not both.
And to think…he was considered a ‘flop’ at Chelsea. The Chelsea fans must be like, WTH?
Pulisic just isn’t made for the Premier League. And, he was even less well suited for Chelsea, and for Tommy Tuchel at the helm. Tuchel’s favorite was Mason Mount, a guy who ran all over the field for him, and didn’t like Pulisic because he wasn’t great at defense.
The EPL is a much, much more physical, almost like mixed martial arts at times in terms of what the refs allow, and as we all know by now, Pulisic’s slight frame doesn’t take physical punishment well.
The English refs made it especially hard for Pulisic after his first breakout season, because, as far as I could see, they favored the English players, protecting them on fouls, and almost NEVER called a foul against players who fouled Pulisic.
And so, it became Standard Operating Procedure in the EPL, after his brilliant performance in his first season at Chelsea, for the opposition to stop Pulisic by just kicking him in the feet or legs. No foul, and it was the easiest way to stop him.
I could go on and just list the times that I saw this happen, but there you go.
Agreed. The bias against American players remains in force in the Prem. Even after Reyna, Dempsey, Donovan, and, yes, Pulisic. Will Tyler Adams and Chris Richards change things? Who knows. Maybe some day.
Pulisic had a great season in the Prem during the Pandemic when the effect of the fans and refs were less pronounced. Now, he is better in Italy for many reasons, including his own development as a player, the pace and style of play in the Serie A, and the consistent playing time, but also because Italians have no bias one way or the other about American players. Pulisic gets a fair shake from the fans and referees here.
” Even after Reyna, Dempsey, Donovan, and” Donovan bad player. Reyna who? The kid? If you are talking about the retired guy he was below average. Clint Dempsey was an actually good player. And also Brad Friedel was a really good goalkeeper. If more players were like those 2 US players would be valued much more…
Disagree with the “mot made for the EPL” comment but for sure he was not Tuchel’s boy (that goes back to their time at Dortmond). You are overlooking the critical role he played in helping them secure the UCL title. The biggest issue he had in the EPL was the lack of consistent playing time at the proper position. Im not sure there was a bias from the refs and look at Aaronson – same build and we don’t here the same complaint.
He isn’t made for EPL, the league is to physical for him and he was injured a lot for a reason. It is obvious.
Agree and laughed at your mason mount comparison. It’s so true.
Nkunku looked a bit better to me.
.
Pulisic from the sickbed had a 10 game. That’s fair. I’d give Salad 7.5 for making the adjustments successfully, his assist and killing off the game,. And Adrien Rabiot an 8 for the nicest shot and goal of the season, which kept us from flatlining. These 3 players had something asked of them, and they answered.
He ägot better and better during the game. His running into the box opened up for pulisiccs third goal. Without tvat run there would be bo goal.
Although when Nkunku gets the ball himself he is too slow. Defenders always catch up to him as he’s trying to get into a better position. I think either he needs to get quicker in his feet or his decision making. Maybe shoot at first opportunity sometimes to at least get a shot away.
Torino are a tricky customer, Nevermind the table.
They have 3 wins this season. Cremonese, Roma and Napoli!
That knucleball from Rabiot omfg!
I told my son (that is also a Milanista) when we were 2-0 down that if we come back to win this one we will get the scudetto. Prove me right Milan. Second star ** this is our year
A few thoughts:
– There’s no need to trash Leao when bragging about Pulisic. Pulisic is the overall better player of the two but Leao is a great player also and has been the only other consistent goal scorer this season.
– RLC played pretty well today but man for someone his size he hits the ground all the time.
– The only thing I hate about this sport is flopping!!!!!! Alexis was rolling around like he just got hit by a bus!!!!!!
– I really think Nkunku was trying to get Pulisic his hat trick. Pretty unselfish of him. He played better in the second half. Hope he turns it around.
Excellent thoughts. Someone who gets Rafa’s quality and everything else you said was also spot on.
The one thing I partially disagree with: while Nkunku dives, Alexis falls when he is actually fouled. Every time (or almost) he fell down tonight, the foul was real. Sometimes the ref didn’t grant it but for me those were real fouls.
When he was rolling around, if you look at the replay, the Torino player stomped strongly on Alexis’ foot with his cleats. That hurts like hell.
He definitely got fouled. I didn’t state it right. I should have said when players flop around like they’ve been hit by a bus whether it’s a foul or not. That whole idea of flopping around(foul or no foul) to get a certain result from the ref is the one thing I can’t stand about the beautiful game. He might have been in pain but if he was in the pain he was trying to convince the ref of then he wouldn’t have been able to continue the game.
Also thank you Ryan for your kind words above
You bet
About someone who complained that Modric was not deserving of a score of 7: 100 ball touches; 78 completed passes. Both were the highest total considering all 16 Torino players and 14 Milan players tonight. Yep, for me a 7 is right.
In all seriousness, does that mean that out of his 100 touches of the ball, 78 of them were a pass? That sounds crazy when you think about it!
Wow, Isak Moller FINALLY gives in and realizes what a GREAT player Pulisic is.
Only took two and a half seasons for him to stop slagging Pulisic off.
LOL, right!!!
There is a troll here (not Isak) who keeps badmouthing Puli just because he’s American and saying he’s just lucky to be in the right place at the right time. He doesn’t understand that when you are REPEATEDLY in the right place at the right time, that’s called having high football IQ. That’s a skill, not luck.
Since he joined Serie A, Puli has been either the biggest or the second biggest goal scoring contributor in the entire league.
That is, he’s one of the 2 or 3 best players (this season he’s slightly behind Nico Paz and tied with Lautaro Martinez) in Serie A which is one of the three best domestic leagues in the world (together with the EPL and La Liga). Also he has a Champions League victory to his name in which he was instrumental (scored a winner in the semifinals). That’s the VERY definition of a World Class player.
Still, because he’s American, some won’t acknowledge his greatness.
Puli is also an extremely nice guy according to every teammate who has played with him. He is also humble, loyal to the club, and extremely hardworking.
What a gem of a player! We’re very lucky to have him.
Just look at how he set up for the 3rd goal and how he moved towards the penalty box finding the right spaces (kudos to Ricci as well, I think it’s his best game so far for Milan, acted like a true mezzala). Just a pure beautiful thing to see (for those who understand).
Anyone who can’t see the importance of Pulisic on our team, more over if they’re Milan fans, well I really don’t know what to say anymore.
I think CP is playing better than Paz and Martinez, both of whom are having great seasons.
Paz has started all 14 of Como’s matches while Martinez has played in all 14 of Inter’s matches, starting 13 of them.
By comparison, CP has only played in nine matches, only five of them from the start. He’s tied for the scoring lead even though he was out for a month and has played less than half of the available minutes.
Best regards
Absolutely right! And best regards to you, too.
Back to Conceicao days. I guess we will always wish we go down 2 goals so Allegri can throw the kitchen sink. lol.
Pls fans do not run Nkunku out of this club yet. We have to learn how to be patient with these players sometimes. He’s in a new league and came back from a crazy injury. Give Nkunku sometime and he will turn out good. Patience my friends.
Allegri ball is holding him back but he’ll come good.
I think I agree with you 100%. We are quick to condemn our players. This guy moves are okay, and am sure he will improve and get some goals in the course of the season
Maybe Landucci should coach Milan during games against the minnows.
The two best players on the field today were Pulisic and Rabiot in that order. Low Fever… High Fever… Don’t matter – Puli deliver! And The Frenchman was absolute class today. What a goal and midfield control.
We’re complacent in most first halves… almost like PTSD shocks from Pioli/Fonseca/Conceicao… Allegri needs to beat that out of them. Came on with a lot more purpose in the second half. So whatever Allegri tells them at the break works every time. He just needs to start having those stern talks before games so our first halves look like second.
Bro this was Pulisic’s Jordan flu game 🤣🤣🤣
All the commentators just keep talking about pulisic penalty miss. I think this game allows him to be forgiven for missing a penalty
Exactly what I was thinking. A little slower on his feet, but locked in and not going to be denied. Legendary!
We shouldn’t condemn Tamori over one or two games. Those criticizing him are not being fair. Every player experience bad days, but he’s been outstanding this season and a key part of our success so far. Playing at Torino hasn’t been easy in recent years, so let’s enjoy the victory and give the whole team the support they deserve. Forza Milan
WHAT A ROCKET! That goal just gets better and better. I’ve quite honestly not seen such a strike in a decade or so, that was a vintage goal.
Tomori makes 1 error, and he’s been condemned forgetting everything else he did after or before…
Leao is good player
Pulisic is by far our best player, the team is faster, more dynamic and hungrier with pulisic than with leao, leao cannot bring out the creativity in our loads of technical midfielders like modric n rabiot, but pulisic brings it our of everyone including backpacking ricci due to his movement and footballing IQ!!!
Great to see Rabiot get his first Milan goal. What a strike. The keeper had no chance.
As for Pulisic, the settling of Saelemaekers’ cross to set up the shot was magic. The cross from Ricci was excellent and the volley saved the day.
Ratings are about right. What I’ve noticed is that most people have a need to compare Milan players and talk about who is better. Well, it is a team sport clowns, they are all good in their roles. Leao and Pulisic are 2 completely different types of players and we need both. They aren’t competing each other, only in your small empty heads. Wtf. If you want to compliment Leao or Pulisic you don’t have to be a fu*king re*ard and insult the other. We have enough players that are actually doing bad to talk about them, maybe not insult the only 2 guys scoring goals?????? 😀
There is more people talking bad about Leao or Pulisic in the comments than Nkunku. You should know you’re a complete re*ard if you are one of them.
Right!
Kudos to d boys they all tried pls it was all team work In my own view tomori is a good befender & his pace helps alot on d penalty it can happen to any body & pls let us just support d team rather Dan judging Dem football is not easy game too the team is playing better Dan previous seasons
DAmn what happened to the comments here.
Guys we won. And both Leao and Puli are in our team… The same team. One plays predominantly on the right and the other the left, even though this season has been a bit different in terms of positions. They both make things happen. The both score and assist 🤦♂️🤷♂️
Just loan out/sell nkunku, that boyo can’t score to save his life.