ROSSONERI FALL TO 2‑0 DEFEAT
Serie A
We produced lots of promising pieces of play, but it was our opponents who scored and won: a very brief summary of tonight’s defeat at San Siro. It was a good performance from an AC Milan side missing several players - and key ones at that - but that wasn’t enough against Napoli, who struck at decisive moments and ran out 2-0 winners. A tough one to take, especially in such a big match on home soil. Lukaku’s early finish and Kvaratskhelia’s strike shortly before the break proved to be the difference. To add further frustration, Morata found the net just after the restart - a goal that could have completely changed the course of the match - but it was ruled out for offside. We lacked ruthlessness in attack and, at the other end of the pitch, could have undoubtedly done better for the Napoli goals.
After the win over Udinese, the Rossoneri have fallen to defeat on matchday 10 and remain on 14 points in the table, eleven points behind league leaders Napoli but with a game in hand (against Bologna). The team now need to respond to move closer to the highest positions in the table as soon as possible. To do so, they’ll have to build on the spirit shown today and continue to work on the things that can be improved. With the home crowd pushing them on, Coach Fonseca’s men showed plenty of application, but they now need to put this result behind them and push on. The Rossoneri’s next fixture will be a Serie A clash away to Monza at 20:45 CET on Saturday 2 November.
CHECK OUT THE GALLERY FROM AC MILAN v NAPOLI
MATCH REPORT
The first sign of trouble came in the 3rd minute when Kvaratskhelia took a shot after a quick free kick and Emerson Royal stepped in to save the day. In the 5th minute, Napoli took the lead: Anguissa made a run for Lukaku who reacted well to a charging Pavlović to send the ball past Maignan. Loftus-Cheek on the restart and a shot from Terracciano was the immediate reaction; and in the 18th minute, Musah went close to an equaliser with a shot that whistled just wide of the post. AC Milan were fired up: in the 19th minute, Chukwueze forced Meret into a save and Emerson Royal hit the bar in the 23rd minute. An error in the 28th minute left Musah with an opportunity, he put the ball into the middle but no one was there to pick it up. From Okafor (a wonky shot) to Musah (stopped in front of goal), many chances went to waste: in the 33rd minute, Loftus-Cheek couldn’t quite connect with his head on Chukwueze's cross. There was no rest: in the 36th minute, Maignan was troubled and Politano shot wide; Fofana had a go from distance a minute later; and Maignan stopped a shot from McTominay at 38’. In the 43rd minute, the Azzurri doubled their lead through Kvaratskhelia who unleashed a shot from the edge of the box that caught our keeper off guard.
We made a good start after the break with Chukwueze crossing to Morata in the 47th minute, the number 7 headed home but VAR ruled Alvaro’s goal out for offside. Loftus-Cheek’s run in the 53rd minute was only missing someone to finish it off. The Rossoneri didn’t lie down despite allowing Napoli some space: Lukaku shot high in the 56th minute, McTominay couldn’t finish off a ball from Kvaratskhelia. Pulisic and Leão came on at the hour mark to shake things up, but nothing truly convincing came off. The game fell into a period of attacking monotony with the clock ticking down quickly. In the 80th minute, Anguissa shot across the box but nothing came of it. Leão unleashed a powerful shot in the 83rd minute but Meret tipped it out for a corner. We went wrong once again, in the 85th minute, Chukwueze to Pulisic who shot high from inside the box. In injury time, fruitless shots from McTominay and Musah concluded the proceedings. Full-time.
MATCH DETAILS
AC MILAN 0-2 NAPOLI
AC MILAN (4-2-3-1): Maignan; E. Royal (62' Pulisic), Thiaw, Pavlović, Terracciano; Fofana, Musah; Chukwueze, Loftus-Cheek (87' Camarda), Okafor (62' Leão); Morata. Subs: Sportiello, Torriani; Bartesaghi, Calabria, Jiménez, Tomori; Zeroli; Liberali. Coach: Fonseca.
NAPOLI (4-3-3): Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Buongiorno, Olivera (90'+4 Zerbin); Anguissa, Gilmour (90'+5 Folorunsho), McTominay; Politano (69' Mazzocchi), Lukaku (77' Simeone), Kvaratskhelia (77' Neres). Subs: Caprile, Turi; Juan Jesus, Marín, Spinazzola; Ngonge, Raspadori. Coach: Conte.
Referee: Colombo from Como.
Goals: 5' Lukaku (N), 43' Kvaratskhelia (N).
Booked: 73' Olivera (N).
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