CUTRONE SENDS US THROUGH TO THE QUARTERFINALS

In the end, Patrick left his mark. After a tough match in which both sides cancelled each other out, it was Patrick Cutrone who was the star of the night at the Marassi. A brace from the number 63 sent Milan through to the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia where the Rossoneri will face the winner of the match between Napoli and Sassuolo. The match against Samp gave Gennaro Gattuso some information to ponder ahead of a crucial period of the season. Cutrone is definitely central to that after his extraordinary display off the bench as he came up with two vital goals following his entrance in the first half of extra-time. Paquetá also made a good impact and he was involved in some interesting passages of play, especially in the second half. Conti also performed excellently after coming up with the cross to set up the first goal. Finally, Pepe Reina was magnificent in goal, making vital saves at three or four key moments of the game. It’s all valuable information for the Coach ahead of the match against Juventus in Jeddah when the first piece of silverware of this season will be on the line. Keep it up, lads!

ALSO LOOK AT THE BEST PHOTOS FROM SAMPDORIA v MILAN

THE REPORT

Gattuso opted to play Paquetá from the start in a three-man midfield alongside Bakayoko and Kessie. Higuain was the lone striker. The home side started aggressively with Quagliarella calling Reina into early action. A few minutes later, the Milan goalkeeper was involved again as he came off his line to save from Ramirez. A cautious Milan got further up the pitch with time running down in the half and there were two big chances. First, Higuain was played through by Kessie but he fired just wide from a good position. Then Castillejo headed over from a great Abate cross. The Rossoneri were dangerous after the break, Calhanoglu popped up at the far post but couldn’t keep his left-foot effort on target. In the 73rd minute, Paquetá burst through the middle and got a shot away from the edge of the area but he couldn’t keep it on target. Four minutes later, there was a chance for Sampdoria as Quagliarella hit the side-netting. In the 79th minute, Saponara had Reina worried but his right-foot effort went just wide. The match went to extra-time and Samp started to apply more pressure. There were chances for Saponara, Ekdal and Praet but Reina was superb in stopping them all. Just as the hosts seemed to be on top, Cutrone struck. Conti played in a brilliant cross from the right for the number 63 who beat Rafael with a side-foot finish. The Rossoneri were not done there. In the 108th minute, Patrick scored his second on the volley after getting on the end of a magnificent ball from Calhanoglu. The 2-0 scoreline was enough to secure the win and progression to the next round.

MATCH DETAILS

SAMPDORIA 0-2 AC MILAN

SAMPDORIA (4-3-1-2): Rafael; Sala, Colley, Tonelli, Murru; Praet, Ekdal, Linetty (21' Jankto); Ramirez (77' Saponara); Quagliarella (95' Kownacki), Caprari (90+4' Defrel). Subs.: Belec, Andersen, Ferrari, Leverbe, Regini, Tavares, Vieira. Coach: Giampaolo.

AC MILAN (4-3-3): Reina; Abate (99' Conti), Zapata, Romagnoli, Rodriguez; Kessie, Bakayoko, Paquetà (84' Borini); Castillejo (91' Cutrone), Higuain (111' Laxalt), Calhanoglu. Subs.: A. Donnarumma, G. Donnarumma, Simic, Strinic, Musacchio, Bertolacci, Mauri, Montolivo. Coach: Gattuso.

Referee: Fabrizio Pasqua from Tivoli.
Goals: 102' Cutrone (M), 108' Cutrone (M).
Booked: 24' Ramirez (S), 32' Rodriguez (M), 56' Kessie (M), 68' Praet (S).

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