Genoa 1-2 AC Milan: Five things we learned – battery life, the marksman and the core five
By: Oliver Fisher
AC Milan managed to get the win that they needed going into the international break, but they certainly made hard work of it.
Things were going very well at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris against an in-form Genoa side, with Alphadjo Cisse and Christian Pulisic giving Milan a two-goal lead with less than 20 minutes on the clock. Both goals came from the high press, with Ruben Amorim’s side looking full of energy.
However, as has been the theme this year, the Rossoneri were unable to turn it into a complete performance. The second-half drop-off saw Genoa build more and more pressure, with Ellertsson’s strike from range making it a nervy finish.
Milan held on to secure a win that gets them back into the top four for now, and the search for consistency can resume after the two-week break. Oli Fisher has five things were learned from the game at the Marassi.
1. The marksman delivers
We are running out of words to describe this debut season for Alphadjo Cisse. If it wasn’t certain from the sample size we had already, then the Bologna games and this one today were proof that he is a right-place, right-time player.
The young Italian was perfectly positioned for Rabiot’s pull-back in the opening exchanges, as he so often is. He ghosts into scoring areas and provides the killer touch, with the goal this afternoon being perhaps his most impressive so far: a first-time finish across his body right into the corner.
The cynical side of us wants to say that Goncalo Ramos could learn a thing or two about what spots to be in inside the box, though the defence of the Portuguese is that his movement often creates these pockets of space to attack.
Cisse is one of only three players born in 2006 or later to have scored 8+ goals across all competitions in Europe’s top five leagues. The others are Lamine Yamal (13) and Paris Brunner (8). He also matched Andriy Shevchenko’s eight goals in his first 13 games for the Diavolo.
Another remarkable stat is that the 20-year-old has scored his eight goals across all competitions from just 20 shots. Some might argue that kind of hit rate is unsustainable, but it shows no signs of stopping for now.
2. A matter of battery life
As mentioned in the introduction, the first-half performance from Amorim’s side was something that fans can really get behind. It was intense, aggressive and front-footed. The quality wasn’t always there to turn everything into danger, but the intent was there.
In fact, it was this tenacity that yielded the two goals. The first one came after Pulisic pressed and won back possession, allowing Rabiot to square for Cisse. Then, the press again forced an error from Genoa with Ostigard’s stray pass seized by Ramos, who squared for Pulisic to net.
It serves as categorical proof that something energy levels alone can be enough to get Milan into very good positions in games. Yet, we also saw the other side of things too: when the battery runs flat, the Rossoneri can lose control of games very quickly.
As a result of this, where more polished teams might see things out comfortably or even score more goals, Milan seem to sink into a hole of self-doubt, inviting pressure through a quite obvious inability to cycle the ball and keep opponents at bay.
Injuries are partly to blame for this, because not having versatile options like Fikayo Tomori, Samuel Chukwueze, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Alexis Saelemaekers to bring on is hurting things. The bench on paper looked very weak, and those who did come in didn’t really help the chaos.
This is what Amorim refers to when he talks about the team not being ‘ready’. For various reasons – from the treatment room being full to the team not being fully cohesive – Milan’s level fluctuates wildly both within games and from match to match.
3. The core five
There was a report in La Gazzetta dello Sport this morning which highlighted a rather remarkable statistic. With Luka Modric, Mario Gila and Pulisic all not in the starting line-up, Milan are yet to pick up a single point.
This is arguably the crux of the rotation issue; the idea that managing the conditions of certain players is a necessity but upsetting the spine of the team is running a big risk. We’d like to add Rabiot and Diego Moreira into the mix too, as the five players Milan cannot do without.
The Spanish centre-back, the Croatian and French midfield duo, the Belgian wing-back and the American forward are simply too important. Their presence is vital not just because of their quality and propensity to provide decisive contributions, but because they are among the select group who can actually play Amorim’s way.
Each of them had a positive performance for various reasons. Gila’s fierce competitive nature facilitates the high line, Modric is the only one skilled in ball management, Rabiot is so wise when it comes to taking up the right positions, while Moreira and Pulisic are the technical sparks.
These are the players to build around from now until the end of season, while then waiting to see what the windows bring. When any combination of those five are playing, Milan’s limitations are often brutally exposed.
4. A spectacle almost ruined
MilanNews described the performance from referee Davide Massa as a ‘disaster’, and we think that is being quite generous. The experienced official never once gave the impression of having control over a game where the pace and ferocity demanded it.
There is of course the one incident that everyone is talking about: the yellow card for Marcandalli after he brought Rabiot down. From our perspective, there are absolutely no doubts about it being a sending off.
The rules for DOGSO (Denial of a Goal Scoring Opportunity) take into account distance from goal, but the Frenchman and Cisse were about to have a two-on-zero attack with the entire half to run into. There is no way Ostigard was getting back to cover, and we question why VAR did not intervene.
To make matters worse, he then dished out a yellow card to Rabiot for rightfully protesting, and gave red cards to three of the Milan coaching staff too. In general Massa’s refereeing left a lot to be desired as there was no consistency in the fouls that he was whistling, and the five yellow cards the Rossoneri got felt disproportionate to Genoa’s two.
Thankfully the Diavolo were able to get over the line and bank the win, but if things had taken a more negative turn in the second half, we would be talking about that Marcandalli incident with a lot more venom.
5. Jekyll and Hyde
Koni De Winter showed up in a big way against his old club, putting in another top performance in a week where he has been linked with a move to three big Premier League clubs.
Yet, we have to question the highs and lows. To best illustrate this, here are our ratings for the Belgian from each of the last four games.
vs. Bologna: Where to begin? I think he could have done better positioning-wise on Bologna’s first, with no one else to mark in the box, and then he completely gifted the free-kick that made it 2-1 for the guests. Some good moments too, but too many mistakes tonight. Maybe a 4.5? vs. Inter (8): He absolutely won the battle against Thuram this game and it’s not like it was an easy one either. The two had several 50-50 duels and he always came out on top. Aside from his Thuram battle, he was very good overall and deserves a high rating here. vs. Ferencvaros (5.5): That backpass for Torriani should never be played in that way, even if Maignan is between the sticks. He admittedly got a bit unlucky with his clearance in the second half, but even then perhaps he could have done better. Anyway, for me it’s the pass which brings his rating down. vs. Genoa (7.5): The only poor moment came inside the first 60 seconds, when he was caught out a bit by a ball over the top, but he managed to track back and at least narrow the angle. After that, he was brilliant in his positioning, showing off with some great tackles and interceptions too. Really good.
Being the central centre-back is a position that carries a lot of weight and responsibility in Amorim’s system, and what is clear is that one game De Winter can look like the perfect man for the job, and in others he looks simply unplayable (and not in the good way).
One of the reasons for these wild fluctuations could also be because the former Juventus man simply hasn’t had a break. So, it is easy to see why the management are targeting a central defender ahead of January, someone who can give everyone a breather and help keep the levels high.
