AC Milan 3-1 Inter: Five things we learned – individual and tactical success

AC Milan clinched a massive victory in their home derby against Inter on Saturday, with several positives to take from the game as a result.

There wasn’t exactly an excess of optimism before the game among the Milan fans, following what was a poor mid-week defeat and a so-so start to the season. However, we didn’t see much of this in the big game, with two goals scored after just ten minutes.

It’s almost as if Gerry Cardinale manifested the win before the game and he certainly got to celebrate afterwards, even brought to tears in the mixed zone. He probably learnt a lot from this game and so did we, with several positives to highlight.

1. Moreira steals the show

Without Diego Moreira, Adrien Rabiot and Mario Gila, Milan and Ruben Amorim struggled a lot in the mid-week clash against Bologna. Fortunately, the trio was back against Inter and the difference was clear as night and day.

All three played a big role, but the true difference-maker was Moreira, who was elctric from the start after bagging an early and lovely assist for Christian Pulisic. Six minutes later, in the 10th minute, he picked up a second from a corner kick, setting up Rabiot.

Inter got back into the game a little with their goal, making it 2-1, and it was a delicate moment in the game when Milan needed to stay focused. And yet again, it was Moreira who brought them out of trouble with a fantastic free-kick just before half-time.

San Siro erupted and the Belgian certainly showed that he has several tricks up his sleeve. On top of the attacking contribution, the Belgian was relentless throughout the game as he helped a tonne defensively until the final whistle.

Milan seem to have a game changer in their hands and it was fitting that he delivered this type of performance in his first Derby Della Madonnina. Especially since Ricky Kaka was in the stands, the player who made Moreira choose the No.22 shirt.

2. You shall not pass

Milan did an outstanding job up front, being as clinical as they could be, but Inter were always going to create chances on the other end. So, it was even more impressive how the Rossoneri managed to contain them, especially in the second half.

There were some struggling moments in the first half, but in that period, Mike Maignan came up big with multiple good saves. One of them was just phenomenal, as he had little to no time to react and it was all about the Frenchman’s reflexes, which didn’t let him down.

That was a crucial moment in the game, with the result being 2-1 for Milan and with an equaliser there, the game could’ve been a lot different.

In the second half, the Rossoneri were a lot more compact and it was more about the players in front of Maignan. Strahinja Pavlovic stepped up a tonne after the half-time mark as he was a tad shaky in the opening 45 minutes, especially against Spence who was bursting down that flank.

Gila was also very solid on the right-hand side and especially when he was on the ball. It’s a completely different team when he’s on the pitch.

Diawara, Musah and Modric also did a very fine job closing down the spaces and handling Inter’s press well, with the Croatian rolling the years back as he was relentless throughout the game.

It was a very impressive defensive performance and especially in the second half of the game, as it seems Amorim’s instructions at the break limited Inter even further.

3. De Winter bullies Thuram

I purposefully left out Koni De Winter from the previous point because I think the Belgian deserves a section all for himself.

In the absence of Lautaro, Thuram was always going to be the main threat. Not just because he has five goals and four assists in the opening eight games, but also because he has done very well in the derby before.

So naturally, if Milan were to win the game, they had to neutralise the Frenchman and it was clear from the beginning that De Winter’s instructions were to stay close to the striker and not give him breathing space.

De Winter deserves all the praise here because he won almost all of the duels against the striker, effectively frustrating him and getting him out of the game completely. The only memory I have from Thuram was when he dropped almost into his own half towards the end of the game to try and make something happen, but that was not nearly enough.

Aside from his battle with the Frenchman, De Winter also did well with his passing and overall game and was arguably the best Milan defender on the night.

Really positive performance and he needs to keep it up, because conceding silly goals has been a problem for Milan and they clearly have the quality to prevent them.

4. Clinical precision

We already mentioned the brilliant work at the back and the saves Maignan made, but it’s only fair to praise the attack too as they also did a fine job. Milan had three shots on goal until the 90th minute and had scored three goals, which is impressive considering how wasteful the Rossoneri have been in attack in the last few games.

The team started off with the right mindset and put pressure on Inter early on, with some great individual runs such as the one from Moreira. All of the chances were finished with clinical precision, which is exactly what you need to win in the big games.

We already praised Moreira, but Pulisic was also very good as he found the empty space on the opener and buried it to give his side the lead. He then continued playing well between the lines and he was smart about controlling the game after his side was ahead.

Rabiot came in clutch again with yet another goal and a positive performance overall, even if he had to do a bit more running in the second half and focus on the defensive aspect of the game.

I know he failed to score or assist again, but that doesn’t mean Goncalo Ramos was necessarily bad. He pressed quite a bit and he opened up spaces for his teammates. You can clearly see on Milan’s second goal how he pushes Sucic towards the byline so he can’t charge towards Rabiot after Moreira’s corner.

Again, he absolutely needs to be more involved in the box but he’s still a very valuable player on the pitch.

5. Amorim masterclass

There was obviously a bittersweet feeling coming into the derby after losing to Bologna in such a frustrating manner, but the availability of Moreira, Rabiot and Gila gave Amorim and the fans some enthusiasm prior to the game.

To Amorim’s credit, he picked the correct starting eleven and his team had the right mindset from the start. The coach was aware of Inter’s fragile defending and instructed his team to raise the intensity from the start and apply pressure, which worked a treat with two goals in the opening ten minutes.

Inter then tried to come back into the game and created a few chances, it’s fair to say, but Amorim again tweaked something at the half-time break. His team was more compact and more aggressive after that, which almost completely neutralised Inter.

The coach also waited with his subs, which I think was correct given the team was playing well and there weren’t obvious signs of fatigue. When the changes did come, I think they were spot on.

More importantly, the whole game management was impressive. The game started off with Milan playing in Amorim’s style, which resulted in the goals but also exposed his team and then in the second half, Milan were more compact and not eager to press or attack as much.

On top of that, there were numerous times when the Rossoneri kept the ball, were patient and avoided risk and I think the tempo was dictated by Milan despite Inter having a bit more possession towards the end. Excellent from the coach.