AC Milan’s winning run came to an end this evening as Roma came out on top in the first leg of the Europa League quarter-final. Several players failed to deliver, especially Olivier Giroud, 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 couldn’t do anything about the goal and made a couple of good stops, while he was also good with his feet. Of course, it’s never nice for a goalkeeper to concede but the defeat isn’t on him.
Calabria (6): The captain got done once by Spinazzola, which could have been costly, but aside from that he actually played well in both phases of the game. His position in the second half at least helped Milan give it a go.
Thiaw (5.5): While he did have some good blocks, he struggled way too much with his positioning and above all staying close to his man. Granted that the defence was stretched a lot tonight, Gabbia did much better on this front and the German must do better.
Gabbia (6.5 – MOTM): He didn’t win every duel against Lukaku, but he won a lot of them. He used his physicality in a very smart way and wasn’t afraid to make interceptions high up the pitch. The fact that he got Lukaku upset as well says a lot about the impact.
Hernandez (5.5): Probably more so a Pioli problem, but we barely saw the Frenchman in the first half and even in the final 45, he struggled to find attacking paths. We saw a few trademark runs, but we need to see a lot more.
Bennacer (5.5): The Algerian had the right idea on several occasions but the execution was lacking, unfortunately yet again for him this season. He usually makes up for that with hard defensive work but that phase was questionable from him tonight as well.
Reijnders (6): He was the only Milan player who actually got into good positions in the first half, whilst constantly driving the team on. However, while the shots were not necessarily bad, they certainly could have been better.
Pulisic (6): Since Milan basically only played on the right flank, he had an important role and did have some good moments. But it’s nothing more than a pass here, especially considering what he’s capable of (just take the Lecce goal as an example).
Loftus-Cheek (5.5): He lost his man on the corner and while Theo had the zonal marking, the Englishman is the one to blame. He did help some in the attacking phase but it didn’t make up for the mistake.
Leao (5.5): Similarly to Theo, Pioli deserves half of the blame as Milan almost never put the winger in good positions. It was truly very strange to see even if you would expect the Rossoneri to attack on the right a lot too. In the second leg, he must be exploited a lot more.
Giroud (4.5): Strikers, and especially strikers like Olivier, have one job and that is to convert the big chances. Today, he missed an absolute sitter and truth be told, he was really poor before that as well. His mind was seemingly already in LA.
Substitutes
Adli (6): He added fresh energy and nice passing, which was exactly what Milan need at the stage of the game. After his performance against Lecce, he perhaps should have played from start as the Bennacer choice wasn’t exactly super successful.
Chukwueze (6.5): When you create such a chance, and in that manner as well, you deserve an assist. You even have the right to demand an assist. It’s moments like that which truly highlight the potential of this player, and what a game-changer he can be.
Okafor (N/A): We didn’t see enough to give him a rating.
The manager
Pioli (5.5): Milan were very poor in that first half and while the changes made in the second improved the situation, there are so many question marks still. Why was there always a gap in the midfield, and why did we never play on the left? Some of the stuff we saw today was mind-boggling.
