It certainly wasn’t pretty, but AC Milan got away with the three points once again, beating Hellas Verona way from home by the odd goal. However, despite being one man up for most of the game, the Rossoneri really struggled to get their game plan across.
Both sides got off to a bright start, striving to advance every time they got on the ball. However, this also resulted in some sloppy and hasty play, with the game not really settling down. Donnarumma was called into action quite early on, making two strong saves.
After just 20 minutes of play, Stepinski of Hellas Verona was sent off after a challenge with Musacchio. The Argentine defender got to the ball first but was subsequently hit by the Polish attacker’s studs. Initially, the referee handed out a yellow card but changed it to a red after consulting with VAR.
Surprisingly, however, the Rossoneri continued to struggle up front. Perhaps, it got even harder for them as the hosts decided to sit back for most of the game, betting on counter-attacks. In fact, Verre got close to giving his side the lead after catching Musacchio and Romagnoli off guard.
As the scores remained 0-0 heading into the half-time break, Giampaolo decided that a change was needed. After a rather quiet performance in the first 45, Paqueta was taken off in favour of Rebic, who thus made his debut for the Rossoneri.
The second half looked a bit more promising, at least in the early stages of it, as the ball was moved around with more pace. In the 56th minute, Rebic made a great run into the box and received the ball as well. However, he failed to get a proper touch on the ball for what should have been a certain goal.
Just one minute later, Calabria picked up the ball outside the box and decided to have a go on the volley. For a fraction of a second, it looked like it was going in, but the effort hit the inside of the post. At this point, you could feel that Milan were getting closer to an opener.
Indeed, their efforts paid off, but not before Verre hit the post for the home side after Rodriguez lost the man at the back post. In the 65th minute, Calhanoglu played a nice one-two with Piatek before firing a shot towards goal, which was blocked by the defence with a handball.
The referee awarded the penalty and after discussing the matter with VAR, which took a few minutes, Piatek was ready at the spot. Despite the long wait, he put it past the goalkeeper with a confident strike, and for the first time this season we got to see the famous celebration of the Polish striker.
After that, both sides had a few half-chances, but Milan looked to have the game pretty much under control. Then, in the last minute of play, Calabria brought down an opponent on the edge of the box, which resulted in a free-kick and a straight red card for the right-back.
Fortunately, Veloso hit the wall with his effort, and the Milan players ran off in celebration for the hard-fought victory. Even though they should have done better to begin with, you can’t fault the passion which was displayed at full-time. In other words, there is a lot to work on for Giampaolo ahead of the derby.
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