Player Ratings: Sassuolo 1-1 AC Milan – French brilliance not enough
AC Milan squandered a 1-0 lead against Sassuolo and failed to make the most of individual quality to restore their lead. Below are the player ratings for the Rossoneri.
It was a roller coaster of a game for Ruben Amorim’s men, who invited Sassuolo back into the game after taking the lead. That led to an equaliser and while some of the Rossoneri players did well overall, there was no brilliance at the end to restore the lead.
If you haven’t already, make sure to check out how we decide the player ratings. From the scale to what affects the rating, we have compiled everything there.
Short Version
Rabiot (7 – MOTM): His powerful runs forward, especially when combined with the one-twos he loves, are very hard to stop for any opponent. We saw that on several occasions tonight and the goal, well, that was just a brilliant strike. He still could have done a few things better, but he was crucial.
Estupinan (5.5): In fairness to him, he did do really well to stop Berardi from getting in behind with an acrobatic interception of sorts, and there was one nice pass for Moreira. In general, however, he was wasteful in possession and failed to find ways out of tight situations.
Amorim (4.5): I’m not happy with the tactical approach at all. The first half was incredibly slow and despite the supposed formation tweak, to give more freedom, Milan didn’t have an easier route to create chances in the build-up.
The end of the first half and start of the second half were really good, but Milan just lost it after that. I’m not sure it was the right decision to move Moreira down to the defence either, as Sassuolo clearly created more on that flank after the goal.
And why was Musah the midfielder who dropped down in the build-up? Either get Rabiot to do it, or you play Jashari if you want to rest Modric. That’s not a dig at the American, but we all know that his strengths are in other areas of the pitch.
Starting XI
Maignan (7): The first half was pretty calm for him, but in the second, he delivered with a great save on Adzic and then another one on Bowie. Milan would have conceded earlier than they did if it hadn’t been for him. And of course, he could do nothing on the actual goal.
Gila (6.5): I think he nailed the role as a whole, finding the right balance between playing out wide and slotting into the centre. He also used his pace on several occasions to track back and win back the ball, i.e. not just to stop the attacks but also to regain possession.
Gabbia (N/A): Sadly, he was forced to leave the pitch after just 20 minutes due to an injury. It looked very serious too as he was stretchered off and appeared to be in tears. Anyway, the whole reason he got injured was that he mistimed a pass, but I will ignore that.
Pavlovic (6): I actually wasn’t sure whether to give a 5.5 or a 6 here, but I settled for the latter since he did do a lot of good in attack, while the defending overall was solid. That said, he had some moments in the second half, especially just before Sassuolo’s goal, that could have been much better.
Estupinan (5.5): In fairness to him, he did do really well to stop Berardi from getting in behind with an acrobatic interception of sorts, and there was one nice pass for Moreira. In general, however, he was wasteful in possession and failed to find ways out of tight situations.
Chukwueze (5.5): I might get stick for this, but at least in my view, he should have done more with the 1v1s and his crosses. He didn’t have to defend as much as in previous games but just didn’t make the most of that. He also missed a pretty good chance in the second half, even if it was a good save too.
Musah (6): If the rating had only been for the first half, it would have been a 5.5. He dropped down way too much and we all know that he’s not brilliant in that phase of the build-up. Maybe that was Amorim’s directive, but at least in the second half he played much better and got to focus on the right things.
Rabiot (7 – MOTM): His powerful runs forward, especially when combined with the one-twos he loves, are very hard to stop for any opponent. We saw that on several occasions tonight and the goal, well, that was just a brilliant strike. He still could have done a few things better, but he was crucial.
Moreira (6.5): In his more advanced role, he was incredibly lively with several good runs, dangerous crosses and nice footwork. However, there is no doubt that he faded a bit when Amorim moved him to left-back/left-wing back, and he had some very poor crosses there at the end. I’m torn though, let me know in the voting tool if you think he was a 7.
Pulisic (6.5): He was constantly on the move, running more than any other Milan player once again, and managed to pick up good positions. He often won the 1v1s and perhaps should have had an assist, when he played Chukwueze through. Not as flashy as Moreira, but the importance of his movement cannot be ignored.
Ramos (6): It was good to see a side of him that was a bit more selfish, even if that also resulted in wasting a chance that probably should have been a pass instead. More good than harm with his movement and combinations, that’s for sure.
Substitutes
De Winter (6): I was surprised not to see him start and the performance somewhat confirmed that. He won a lot of duels and displayed nice positioning overall, but he was the culprit for Dowie’s big chance not too long before Sassuolo’s goal. Frankly I don’t know what he was doing there, but he still did enough for a 6.
Modric (6): I mean, when you go from Musah as the main midfielder in the build-up to Modric, there’s going to be a positive effect. The veteran was by no means spectacular but just did his job well overall.
Jashari (N/A): I didn’t see enough to give him a rating.
Cisse (N/A): I didn’t see enough to give him a rating.
Hutchinson (N/A): I didn’t see enough to give him a rating.
The manager
Amorim (4.5): I’m not happy with the tactical approach at all. The first half was incredibly slow and despite the supposed formation tweak, to give more freedom, Milan didn’t have an easier route to create chances in the build-up.
The end of the first half and start of the second half were really good, but Milan just lost it after that. I’m not sure it was the right decision to move Moreira down to the defence either, as Sassuolo clearly created more on that flank after the goal.
And why was Musah the midfielder who dropped down in the build-up? Either get Rabiot to do it, or you play Jashari if you want to rest Modric. That’s not a dig at the American, but we all know that his strengths are in other areas of the pitch.
