TIME MACHINE: ANDRÉ SILVA IN GENOA v AC MILAN

After missing a season, due to the Ligurians' relegation to Serie B, Genoa and AC Milan meet once again in the league. A match between Rossoneri and Rossoblù that, historically, never failed to provide big emotions and results seized at the last moment when everything already seemed decided. A recent example is the game from the 2017/18 Serie A season that gave Gattuso's squad an invaluable 3 points in their search for the European qualification spots in the table. The match on 11 March 2018 was decided by André Silva's first goal in the Italian league: until the afternoon in Genoa, the Portuguese player has scored (8 times) in the Europa League only.

The young Portuguese forward's first step into the Rossoneri world was a huge one, scoring a brace against Škendija in his first start for the team and a hat-trick in the away match against Austria Vienna that kicked off the Euros group phase. Less profitable, however, were his Serie A appearances: the forward pairing with Kalinić hadn't given him a goal, and the managerial change from Montella to Gattuso also did not wield different results. With AC Milan returning off the back of three consecutive wins, and the week without football due to the tragic death of Davide Astori, the game against Ballardini's team represented an important crossroads for the Rossoneri and their European cup ambitions.

The first hour was full of action with various chances for both sides: Bonaventura and Kalinić at one end and Galabinov and Zukanović at the other for a Geona side that also had a goal ruled out for an offside against Rigoni after being checked by VAR. In the 68th minute, Gattuso upped the Rossoneri offensive by replacing Çalhanoğlu with André Silva. The Genoa goal seemed impenetrable until the stopwatch read 93 minutes and 53 seconds. This was when the Portuguese attacker produced a beautiful twist to profit on Suso's cross, beating Perin and sealing AC Milan's 1-0 win with no time to spare. A goal worth three points, and the best way to break the deadlock in the league for the Baguim do Monte native.

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