Player Ratings: AC Milan 2-2 Pisa – Saelemaekers and Leao with big misses

AC Milan failed to clinch all three points against Pisa, despite being heavy favourites, as composure was lacking from several players. Below are the 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.

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Starting XI

Maignan (5.5): He couldn’t do much about the first goal, as it came from the spot, but the feeling is that he was caught a bit off guard on the second one. Just like his teammates, in other words, but it wasn’t a brilliant finish that could have been saved. Also some poor moments with his feet.

De Winter (5): It’s unlucky, seeing as he was just handing off his man when the shot was fired, but he still needed to do better in keeping his arm in. On top of that, I thought he could have won a few more duels, especially in the first half.

Gabbia (6): He managed to find the right positions throughout the game and as a result, he had quite a few clearances and crucial interventions. Questions will be asked whether he was fouled on Pisa’s second goal.

Pavlovic (6): You could perhaps argue he should have done better on the second goal, but Athekame needed to keep much better track there. The Serbian was already in an advanced position, so it was difficult for him to get back. In attack, we also saw the usual good runs forward.

Saelemaekers (5.5): He was a little bit too quiet in the first half for my liking, but improved in the second half with a great shot from long distance and a nice pass for Leao. That said, the big moment was in the dying seconds when he squandered a great chance to give Milan all three points. He needed to score there.

Fofana (6): It wasn’t always brilliant in attack from him, but he should have had an assist for Leao with a lovely nutmeg flick. Furthermore, he was one of the players who won back many balls by actually tracking back, so he did enough to get a pass for me.

Modric (6.5): A couple of misplaced passes at the start of the game from him, but after that, he controlled a lot for Milan and certainly made himself a key part of the attack. If anything, we saw that in the final 15-20 minutes or so.

Ricci (5.5): Truth be told, it wouldn’t be wrong to describe it as an average display. There were good moments, but he also could have done better in some situations. He was almost always involved in one way or another, and that’s a good trait, but we can absolutely demand more from him in terms of output.

Bartesaghi (6.5 – MOTM): It’s a shame that he was subbed off because Milan might have won the game with him still on the pitch. Defensively solid, but above all with intention in attack and some good crosses to show for it. He’s growing more and more, that’s for sure.

Gimenez (5): We can talk all day long about a lack of service, but the Mexican also didn’t shine when he did get on the end of the ball. It was certainly different from the Fiorentina game, when he caused issues immediately, so there’s no reason to give him a good rating here. Let’s remember that there were a couple of good crosses, but he was never first to the ball.

Leao (6): Milan’s first goalscorer of the evening, finding the back of the net with a smart finish as the goalkeeper couldn’t dive too early. However, he then missed a big chance from close range (hitting the bar) and also wasted a chance by trying to get a penalty with a silly dive. For a player of his calibre, despite the goal, tonight wasn’t anything to brag about (maybe a 5.5 can even be argued?).

Substitutes

Nkunku (5.5): One good chance fell at his feet, but his effort was blocked. Aside from that, we didn’t really see much from him and that was the exact opposite of what Allegri wanted from the substitution.

Athekame (6): Great strike from distance, which saves his rating here, but the defending on Pisa’s second goal was incredibly poor. Even if the pass was strange, he just left his man. The goal somewhat made up for it, but not entirely, so he could have been a 5.5 here too (similarly to Leao).

The manager

Allegri (6): Given the result, and the opponent, you might be surprised to see the gaffer getting a pass here but there’s a good reason for it. First of all, he made the right choices with the starting XI, but the players have themselves to blame for not taking the task seriously.

In the first half, Milan easily could have scored 2-3 goals if they had just put their foot on the gas. On top of that, multiple good chances were squandered and the goals conceded, frankly, were very silly. The Athekame substitution can be discussed, but otherwise good from Allegri.