A GOALLESS AFFAIR AT SAN SIRO

A luckless match for AC Milan. A combination of refereeing decisions and bad luck meant that Milan were forced to settle for a 0-0 draw with Sassuolo at San Siro. The Rossoneri played well and created plenty of chances, wasting several and perhaps one too many. Hernández had a goal disallowed by VAR, Bennacer fluffed his lines in front of goal, Leão hit the woodwork twice, and that’s not even all of it. The result at full time may not have been the desired one, but it was still an afternoon to remember due to the atmosphere in the stadium. The fans, who were almost 60,000 in number, were once again a twelfth man on the pitch for the Rossoneri. Coach Pioli’s team were desperate to win and celebrate our 120^th anniversary in the best possible manner, but it wasn’t to be. Emotions yes, but goals no: a brief summary of the contest. A tough result for Milan who were looking to win at home after their victories over Parma and Bologna. The tightly-fought draw yielded only one point, which puts the brakes on Milan’s charge towards European qualification. AC Milan are on 21 points at the end of matchday 16 of Serie A. Next up is an away trip to face Atalanta, as the team look to end 2019 on a high.

CHECK OUT THE GALLERY FROM THE MATCH

AC Milan v Sassuolo, Serie A TIM 2019/20

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MATCH REPORT 

The first side to look dangerous were the Neroverdi, above all in the eighth minute when Caputo fired over from close range. After that, the Diavolo started to come into the game with Pegolo saving from Bonaventura in the 13th minute before Çalhanoğlu stretched to shoot in the 28th minute but he couldn’t keep it on target. In the 31st minute, Hernández found the net by pouncing on a loose ball and finishing with a great deflected left-foot effort but it was disallowed after a VAR check for a prior Kessie handball. In the 35th minute, Kyriakopoulos failed to test Donnarumma before Bennacer missed a great chance in the 41st minute. He broke through and rounded the goalkeeper but the shot was blocked by Berardi. After the break, it was against the visitors who had the first chance with Boga missing an opportunity in the 49th minute. Then, Milan had various sights of goal from the 52nd to the 58th minutes but no luck for Çalha, Jack or Paquetá. There was another massive chance for Bonaventura in the 70th minute as he hit it clean from inside the six-yard box against Pegolo. Good fortune also failed to smile on Leão who hit the bar in the 83rd minute and the post in the 87th. The final assault on goal made no difference and it finished goalless.

MATCH SUMMARY

AC MILAN 0-0 SASSUOLO

AC MILAN (4-3-3): Donnarumma G.; Conti, Musacchio, Romagnoli, Hernández; Kessie (56' Paquetá), Bennacer, Bonaventura; Suso (85' Castillejo), Piątek (78' Leão), Çalhanoğlu. Subs: Donnarumma A., Reina; Calabria, Caldara, Gabbia, Rodríguez; Biglia, Krunić, Paquetá; Rebić. Coach: Pioli.

SASSUOLO (4-2-3-1): Pegolo; Toljan, Marlon, Ferrari (75' Romagna), Kyriakopoulos; Magnanelli, Locatelli (79' Obiang); Berardi, Djuricic (68' Traoré), Boga; Caputo. Subs: Turati; Muldur, Peluso, Rogerio, Tripaldelli; Bourabia, Duncan, Mazzitelli; Raspadori. Coach: De Zerbi.

Referee: Manganiello from Pinerolo.
Booked: 10' Toljan (S), 29' Hernández (M), 39' Magnanelli (S), 40' Musacchio (M), 42' Kessie (M), 72' Locatelli (S), 72' Bonaventura (M), 80' Marlon (M), 92' Paquetá (M).

The official PUMA match kits for the 2019/20 season are available in the AC Milan Online Store!