AC Milan claimed three crucial points in their game against Fiorentina this afternoon, once again winning 1-0. Rafael Leao was the big hero with a late winner but there were also several other positive performances.
Starting XI
Maignan (7.5): He was crucial in the build-up phase as Fiorentina decided to almost cut out Milan’s midfield completely, forcing them to either drop down Tonali/Kessie or play to Maignan. They often did the latter. The goalkeeper also made a stunning save to deny Cabral at 0-0, which turned out to be decisive.
Calabria (6.5): It was a good performance from the captain, especially in defence, and he showed his importance in the dying moments of the game. For an even higher rating, he needs to be more concrete in attack but it wasn’t a bad display, that’s for sure.
Kalulu (7): Worked tirelessly throughout the game and stayed calm even when under great pressure. The fact that he used to be a right-back shows as he’s extremely good on the ball, which is a great feat.
Tomori (7): Just like his partner, he was very important in keeping Fiorentina as quiet as possible and notably made a great tackle-clearance in the second half. Another great display from the Englishman.
Hernandez (7): He had a few chances in attack that he failed to convert but his presence on the left flank was key, just like Leao’s. He often won the battle with his man and he was especially impressive in the defensive phase today.
Tonali (7): His passes are not always brilliant and we saw that tonight, but he certainly makes up for that with an incredible fighting spirit and above all ability to read the game. His presence is absolutely key for Milan and today was another example of that.
Kessie (6.5): He started the game very well and was important in the defensive phase in the first half. Faded a bit in the second half as Milan got more control of the game and it was right by Pioli to bring on Bennacer, whose passing ability is better.
Messias (5.5): He didn’t have an impact on the game tonight and failed to build on what was a positive performance against Lazio. He was subbed off after 56 minutes and it was the right decision.
Diaz (5): It was the same as Messias but Brahim’s performance was even more frustrating as he did well in the first phase but then failed to deliver the all-important final touch. And in his position, that matters a lot.
Leao (7.5 – MOTM): The Portuguese winger had an advantage over the Fiorentina defenders the entire game and caused real problems for them. He did miss a sitter, it should be noted, but he also scored the important winner with a smart finish. His rating would’ve been higher if it hadn’t been for that miss, though.
Giroud (5.5): Not the best of games from the Frenchman, who had a golden opportunity to find the back of the net but missed from close range. Unfortunately, that set the tone for the rest of his performance.
Substitutes
Krunic (6.5): He came on and added strength to the attacking trio, which was important as Fiorentina were determined to turn the remainder of the game into a scrappy one.
Rebic (6.5): He never stopped running out there and much like Krunic, he was important in preserving the pressure on Fiorentina. He had some good moves as well which shouldn’t be disregarded.
Ibrahimovic (6): He’s always an important man to have on the pitch but he wasn’t that involved in the play. Frightened the Fiorentina keeper enough, though, just before the goal.
Bennacer (6): He didn’t have loads of time on the pitch but did quite well, although he was also booked.
Congratulations to Pioli and the boys on the win. One step closer.
It was yet another nervy match caused by the boys profligacy in front of goal. It was painful to watch, and it only increased the pressure on us in the game. It wasn’t very far from another 0-0 draw.
Diaz had space to operate, and honestly he had a good game today bar some poor decisions made in the final third, this has to be his best performance in 2022, but it’s a little too late to sell himself.
Messias, our deadline day ‘Mr. X’, was his usual ineffective self on the pitch, he really should have been off sooner.
Calabria must be given more credit holding off Saponara, that was always going to be their one source of threat, and he did well to neutralize him.
Bravo Mike! He saved us from being Inter, against Bologna. It could have been a devastating turn of events.
Tonali needs to find his form going into the next games. Kessie had a good showing today.
Tomori and Kalulu held up well as always, although there were many awful decisions of back-passing in defence instead of playing it forward; It felt frustrating to watch.
It was obvious the game took a more creative dimension when the subs came in. We have certainly missed the grit of Rebic, no doubt.
Kudos to Leao for sparing us despair. He and Giroud should have been much more clinical in front of goal to put the match to bed early on.
Nothing more to say here, but we must start scoring goals and being less wasteful.
On to the next game guys, FORZA MILAN!!!
Crazy how some “fans” still think Leao is “lazy” and “uninterested” LOL. Where would we be without his constant threat/attack to keep the defense honest? Yes he has to be more clinical in the final 3rd – but IMO that will come – he’s still young (22) and has never played with a real CAM and RW setting him up – nor with a dominant in his prime striker. Give him time and he will repay the faith IMO. 3 games to go….
Yes, he looks lazy and uninterested earlier this season, hope to clear that out. I’m happy with the win and we are closer to the scudeto.
No he didn’t. I think you confuse lazy uninterested for exhausted from carrying the entire attack.
So one goal and everyone should forget the previous matches and the laziness? Naah, not gonna happen. He needs to perform EVERY night and not every 5th.
But kudos for the goal (even though he SHOULD HAVE scored from the sitter and not save it till the end).
I really never understand this sentiment. What do you mean by Lazy? because sometimes he walks? Do you know how much energy it takes to beat a defender by pace? You either never played football or don’t run very much.
It’s not laziness. If it is, then trust me, Messi, Ronaldo Nazario, CR7, Neymar, Mbappe all are Lazier than Leao. The best in the world according to you must be Borini and Saelsmaeker. lol Runs through the whole field except when it’s needed lol
You need to appreciate when a player is doing his best. There is no CAM in the team and no RW. He seems lazy because all of us are expecting everything from Leao Where we don’t have the quality needed in the other positions for him to be more effective.
And he’s only 22. So have some patience.
Forza Milan.
agree
@bb
Leao Lazy? Dude, you clearly don’t know how exhausting dribbling is while trying to get through not just one but two or three defenders for 90+ minutes and then scored with good accuracy! And Leao did it with that lightning pace which drains more stamina.
Leao isn’t a robot and while he deserves some critics for his decision making but to claim he’s lazy is just not making any sense.
Leao is still lazy: Ronaldo is 37, ibra is 41, dzeko is 35 and they all press far more than Leao. He scored today but he was useless once again without the ball and anyone blaming that on his dribble know nothing about football
That leao dribble is not an excuse, mbappe and chiesa are all dribblers but they still press…he is just simply lazy and don’t have the attitude in him.
He is like quaresma, balotelli and others, they have talent but will prefer to show their talent and not work….he is a good player but to be outstanding and Compete for individual awards(which I know he have the talent to be a word best), he will need to change his attitude.
Lazy attitude will only give you glimpses of class but never consistency and that makes being world class impossible
You’re not making any sense 🤦♂️
It’s a good thing there’s only a minority of clueless fans like you.
Yes he is, doesn’t change the fact. He is a bit better than previous seasons but with that talent you can’t really say that is it. Just look at some other players numbers on that position, compare dribbles per match, assists, key passes, goals. Not even close to the best, and not even close to Nkunku for example. Milan will have a much more competitive team in 1-2 years and what he is showing at the moment won’t be enough to play in it, whatever you say.
Your analysis is way off my friend. Remember he been Milan’s entire attack this year and doing so with a 16m lawsuit hanging over his head. To preform as he has shows maturity and commitment. Yes he’s not a perfect player yet but your acting like he was an established pro when Milan bought him. Not sure how long you’ve been following but he was a raw player when he arrived. I’m betting in 1-2 years time he’ll be a 20 goals a year player and be a top winger across the board.
LOL, I have been following Milan since 1994, you? We’ll see, but compare him to Vinicius Junior, Moussa Diaby or Nkunku. Not that good when you look at it like that, I could add another few players to the mix, without mentioning the top players in that position. Long term Milan needs to have a top top player in those attacking positions and I have a feeling that Leao will always be that talent that didn’t quite realize his full potential. He will still be a good player. Hopefully I am wrong.
1990 baby! And yes hopefully you are wrong. Idk what kind of point your trying to prove especially if those are the only names you can come up with that are better. Also you ever watch those guys play, they walk just as much!
Your essential trying to make the point that what Milan need to do is buy the current Real Madrid or PSG squads. That’s lazier than your accusing Leao of being. Sometimes teams have to develop their own talent. You can’t just buy your way to a title ask PSG.
3 more wins.
Happy for the win, but this grades are more based on high emotions after the game. Most of the players are graded way too high.
Man of the match should be Fiorentina’s GK.
Not a good game but often is better to be lucky than good.
Forza Milan
Nervous clash. I think we need to keep using Rebic on the right-wing. I like how he put pressure and aggression on Fiorentina’s defense lines. Messias and Saelemakers cannot do the same. They are too soft when it requires muscles.
Good job. I hope Udinese will do the job well tonight.
Yes, he looks lazy and uninterested earlier this season, hope to clear that out. I’m happy with the win and we are closer to the scudeto.
Diaz is done, just too ineffective. He’s probably better suited for playing in Spain. Seems like the line of Leao Krunic and Rebic is the most effective combo.
DID you watch the game??? He made poor decisions, yes, but overall his game was way better than previously(seemed too scared to shoot tho), and overall, for the first half anyway, he was better than tonali.
Our attack were frustating. Lucky win today.
A bit different with Inter’s attacking who seems very dangerous in every chances they get, we were so sloppy
It is time to drop Brahim and Messias out next time, and start Rebic, Leao, and Kessie behind Ibra, it would make much sense
Need to stop wasting first 45 mins doing nothing
Forza Milan! hope Udinese doing something towards inter today
We need a striker hands down if we win the scudetto this year it will be with a lot of luck on our side late Lazio winner, two Romanian goalkeepers and Giroud going beast mode versus Inter. HOWEVER an out and out striker thar will bang in 30+ goals a season is needed.
we also had poor luck many times with refs.
Stefan I think you are on drugs, Milan is on top of the league and have won their last two matches and you are saying it’s luck….why didn’t that luck go to Juventus or intermilan and keep on top of the league?????
Some fans here are so unreasonable and should be Banned from commenting here
We wouldn’t have won without Leao. End of Story.
It was a really good display in attack in the second half. But the first half was shaky, could’ve been played with a bit more urgency from our side.
Our management should do everything to prioritize Leao’s contract renewal. It would be a shame to lose a player like Leao next season.
He’s worth far more than 70Mil at the moment. Anything less than 100 mil for Leao would be a loss for us. He’s carrying the Entire Milan attack singlehandedly and he’s only 22.
If Osimhen is 120 Mil, Leao is much more effective and is a big match player. He should be worth more than Osimhen. Our management really need to learn business from Napoli and Lazio. God forbid if we have to sell Leao, the pricetag shouldn’t be anything less than 120 mil, specially if we win Scudetto, considering 120mil is pocket money for teams like PSG/Mancity.
Forza Milan.
Agreed @ Milan4lyf
“If Osimhen is 120 Mil, Leao is much more effective”
I don’t think Osimhen misses as many sitters as Leao has missed.
That is true. Osimhen is more clinical than Leao. That’s why is price tag is 100 mil+ and the pricetag is justified.
Most of the clear chances Milan creates is created by Leao’s singlehanded effort, a close second is Theo but he’s not in the form he was in last season. Can you say that about Osimhen? Not to mention Osimhen’s fitness history.
Why should Leao cost less than Osimhen after Carrying Milan throughout the whole Season at 22y of age, right? Can we say that Osimhen carried Napoli? Answer is no mate, I’m pretty sure it’s Mertens and Insigne that’s carried and carrying Napoli.
Shut up your mouth brother on that issue…leao is a winger and that’s what winger do.
Compare him to other wingers both in goals and assist, he is still not close.
Every player have given their own quarter….leao, benaccer, GIROUD, kalulu, mike etc have all saved us and won matches for us.
Today Mike won the match and not leao.
Mike kept us in the match. Leao Won the match. Know your facts before you run your mouth. Brother.
You don’t like Leao, that’s fine. But his stats are far better than every other LW. Only two LW are better than Leao ATM, that’s Mane and Son. Can you Guess how much they would cost?
So yes. I know my facts. I know the market value. Just because you have issues with a player doesn’t mean he is bad. You are not that special mate. Get over it.
Be serious, Osimneh scored more goals in 1 season than Leao did in 3. That is why he costs more.
NO. Last season Osimhen scored 10 goals. This season he scored 13. It that costs 100Mil, then Leao definitely should cost 120 mil if we win Scudetto without a ST, CAM and RW. There is a massive difference between the two mate.
Without? Are you joking? Leao won against Inter with 2 goals? I can give you 20 other matches when Leao had nothing to do with the win, literally nothing, not a key pass, an assist or a goal. That empty RW positions decided the match a few times as well, CAM also twice at the beggining of season. It is a stupid thing to say. And my bad, Osimneh scored that in 2 seasons, but still in half of the matches Leao played he scored more goals. He is clinical, shoots from all positions and scores. No one would pay 120M for Leao and Osimneh is allegedly getting offers of over 100M already. I mean Leao is good but to be a top winger he needs to be so much better and I don’t see it. You know Mane, Son, Vinicius, etc. Not even close yet.
Again you are wrong. Lol Leao played 27 matches.. Osimhen played 23. Simple math dictates that’s not half of the matches. Leao scored 10 osimhen 13 when Leao is a LW and Osimhen is a ST.
Somehow you are arguing Osimhen should cost more because you made up some random facts? Osimhen didn’t get a single offer of 100M. Napoli set his pricetag 100M. Again.. KNOW. YOUR. FACTS.
Mane, Son, Vinicus.. I agree they are better at the moment than Leao. Then again, how much do they cost? Do you know the price tag of Mane/VInicus/Son? To put your ignorance into perspective, VINICUS JR HAS A 1 BILLION EURO Release Tag. Is he really THAT Better than Leao? Go think on it.
I would sell him and get Moussa Diaby without even blinking an eye. That guy will be in the top 3 LW in the world very soon.
Winning scudetto would be great luck this season because of our wastefulness in front of goal..we lack qualities and precision in the final third..Poor decisions from Diaz..You can’t win championship if you don’t score..Our coach need to work on this seriously in the next 3 matches if we have any chance to win scudetto.
Outside Diaz and Messias didn’t played well, Pioli strategy works. Milan dominates for 90+ minutes, defense really well, and created a lot of important chances.
But sadly the finishing was really poor. I counted like four or five clear chances where Leao, Giroud, Theo, and Kessie could have scored and killed the game.
Yes, Milan biggest problem right now is finishing. Nonetheless this is another important three point and a clean sheet too! 👍
Big salute to Mike 🙇🏻♂️. If it’s Dollaruma down there, i doubt he can block Cabral header. Mike is the MVP for me.
Yeah i think like you too, Pioli tactic are above Vicenzo Italiano tactic , too bad we wasting too much shoot on target like Giroud on first half then leao and rebic in second half. Giroud not selfish by giving pass to leao that free in middle inside penalty box but .. the finishing are bad. If the result are draw maybe all comment here Will curse Giroud,leao,rebic that wasted shoot on target . Lucky we win because Fiorentina GK give assist to leao
Again and again our atacking player are weak,lucky we win because that asist from fio GK. Junior our mister x in last minute Mercato in summer become failure. Confident putting brahim,krunic ,daniel Maldini as AMF this season cost us heavy. This 2 pos always are weakest pos this season. We are lucky if we win Scudetto this season with lord saladmaker/junior in RW and brahim in AMF
Maignan probably should have been MOTM.
Mike is the MOTM
Leao scored what he should have scored earlier….leao have HUGE talent but his work rate will be his biggest enemy in making a name for himself in football.
If only leao can get chiesa attitude, if only……the world of football will shake, that guy have so much talent but works so much less
Kessie, Theo and Rebic ratings too low. They were all excellent. Kessie and Theo especially in the first half didn’t put a foot wrong. Kessie’s thru ball to Giroud was PERFECT and should’ve been an assist. Giroud HAS to score there. Kessie defended well, won tackles, dribbled in traffic well and passed well.
Diaz rating too high. He was a 2 or 3 at most. The Theo goal didn’t count because Diaz’s pass to Messias was WAY TOO LATE. Diaz is slow and poor with his thinking and passing in the final third. If he made the pass at the right time, Messias wouldn’t have been offside and Theo’s goal would count. 21:15, Diaz messed up another opportunity that should’ve been a goal w/ terrible decision-making/passing in the final third. 34:44 mark Diaz another terrible pass to Giroud — better pass and Giroud has a great chance to score. 39:08, Diaz terrible pass behind Theo when we could’ve had a 3 on 2 break with a good pass. Over and over and over again, Diaz messed things up. Messias terrible too and Rebic should absolutely 100% play on RW from the start. He creates danger and opportunities with his pressing and can make well weighted passes and make good crosses.
Maignan is a hero for that save and controlling the rebound. wow.
Leao has great skill; but he IS lazy sometimes. Watch Liverpool sometimes and watch a real superstar like Mo Salah who runs like he’s a player desperate to impress his coach like he’s fighting for his starting position. THAT is how you play. With effort all the time. When Mo Salah loses the ball, he runs like crazy to get it back. Leao doesn’t do that. Yes, he is still young and I sure hope he learns that he needs to work harder to be truly great.
CBS/Paramount+ announcer during the game said “Rebic has provided more of a threat in 5 minutes than Messias in 55” and Mateo Bonettie responded “that’s fair”
PLEASE PIOLI!!!!!!! PLEASE START REBIC AT RW! And maybe we will actually score in the first half and maybe we will actually win 2-0 or 3-0 instead of having heart palpitations and winning 1-0 late!
Why some people always complain that Leao is lazy while we are now in scudetto race… Milan now working as a team with lower salaries compare to other… I see Milan as a team now… Maybe even Daniel Maldini goal equal 3 points aganits Spezia have been forgotten… Or Florenzi wonderful free kick… Every player had their part in every 3 points we got… That why we are in the top now…. Forza Milan