AC Milan Month in Review for September
By Angelo Zarra
The month of September for AC Milan could be best described as bittersweet. The month felt like a tale of two seasons. Milan has looked like Scudetto contenders so far into the domestic season but has yet to transfer to Champions League success.
In Serie A, Milan has played four games, winning three. Milan’s two victories ended with a score line of 2-0 versus Lazio and newly promoted Venezia. At home against Lazio, Milan looked unstoppable.
It was the most dominant game we have seen them play, from the first minute to the 90th, Lazio had no chance of winning . Milan didn’t give Lazio a chance to play “Sarri-ball” at all and their counterattack was nonexistent.
The game against Spezia (2-1 win for Milan ) was a game that gave me flashbacks of the Milan of old, leading late in the game only for an error to cost them the win. What we saw was the opposite with an inkling this club has something special.
No matter the circumstance, they have that fighting spirit and play until the final whistle no matter who is in the starting 11 or coming on as a sub. Milan’s draw against Juventus was a game in which the Rossoneri could have gotten three points but came away with zero. Juventus looked great in the first half, but Milan turned it on in the second and Juventus looked a like team hanging on trying not to lose.
Champions League is a different story for AC Milan
It was a mixed bag in Milan’s first appearance in the Champions League since 2014. At times, they looked like a veteran club who wouldn’t be fazed by the bright lights of the most popular club competition in the world. Other times they looked star-struck and the lack of Champions League experience seemed to catch up to them.
After seven long years, Milan finally got to hear the Champions League anthem blaring through Anfield. Up to about the half hour mark, Liverpool took it to Milan with their fast-paced attack minded play.
Then Milan started to gain some possession and settle down. Out of nowhere, Milan had a 2-1 lead heading into halftime thanks to goals from Ante Rebic and Brahim Diaz. In the end, Liverpool were just too much to handle and Milan lost 3-2. Milan didn’t roll over, they just got overwhelmed with pressure and Liverpool are simply a better club at the moment.
Milan’s second game was their first Champions League at San Siro since Feb. 19, 2014, oddly enough against the same opponent – Atletico Madrid.
There was something magical about the evening and felt right that Milan was back in the tournament. It was a great start for Milan and they had Atletico playing on the back foot.
Rafael Leão got Milan on the board and almost forged a two-goal lead with an insane bicycle kick that rang off the woodwork. Nine minutes later, however, Franck Kessié got a red card after a suspect tackle, which, in most cases, would just be a foul.
It was a tough break for Milan after a blazing start, now forced to play the rest of the game down to 10 men. After Kessie’s red card, Atletico upped the pressure on Milan before Antoine Griezmann equalized.
The final nail in the coffin came after a controversial handball was given in stoppage time. Luis Suarez nailed the penalty to give Atletico the 3 points. It’s easy to blame the referee for the game and make him the scapegoat but, in the end, Milan only have themselves to blame for the defeat.
Next. Reports of Juventus’ demise greatly exaggerated. dark
During the month of October, Milan play five Serie A matches and one in the Champions League as they look for their first win in Europe.