Udinese 0-2 AC Milan: Five things we learned – bold choices pay off to ease pressure
AC Milan needed a win to bounce back from the midweek setback in Bournemouth, and they got it against a struggling Udinese side.
With Ruben Amorim battling an injury crisis, the starting line-up still raised some eyebrows. Christian Pulisic got the first of the night early on as he collected a ball over the top from Luka Modric with a great first touch and finished past the advancing Okoye.
Omari Hutchinson pounced on a rebound from an Ardon Jashari shot in the second half to get his first Milan goal to provide a bit of breathing room. There were late chances to make it an even wider margin, but the Diavolo got an important three points after a testing week.
It means that the Rossoneri jump back into the top four, occupying fourth place, one point ahead of Como. The next game is Bologna at San Siro on Wednesday, before Saturday’s big derby. Below are the five talking points Ivan Stoev has picked out.
1. Stealing the show again
In the absence of Adrien Rabiot, Milan really needed someone to step up and guide them to victory and Pulisic was that guy on the night.
The American has had an up and down start to the campaign, but against Udinese he ran the show. He managed to get on the scoresheet just six minutes into the game giving his side an early lead after a wonderful run, first touch and finish.
He was very lively after the goal as well providing several brilliant through balls and he could’ve easily picked up a couple of assists if Davide Bartesaghi was a tad more clinical in front of goal.
Pulisic was also very crucial in the transition between the midfield and attack as he wasn’t shy of the ball and constantly dropped deeper to link-up with his team-mates. A really solid performance, from a man who now has six goal contributions in six games against Udinese.
2. Barte steps forward, literally
Bartesaghi started in a more advanced role on the left side of the midfield this time around. Whilst that raised some eyebrows before the game, you would have had the impression that he had done it countless times before.
His runs were a constant threat for Udinese and he found himself in the box and in dangerous positions on a few occasions but was let down by his finishing, which for a natural full-back is always unlikely to be his strength.
Finishing aside, he was also good in the defensive phase as he recovered quite a lot of balls that started off a counter-attack. His overall movements looked much sharper and more explosive compared to last season, for example.
It was a really refreshing performance by the young Italian, and it’s also nice to see Amorim getting the best out of what he has in times of crisis. Will it be repeated on Wednesday night? We’ll have to wait and see.
3. Much better
This performance against Udinese was really good for Hutchinson’s confidence. He got to start the game and was quite lively on the right hand side making good runs and emptying space for Fikayo Tomori to run into.
The Englishman then topped it off with a goal before which started off the sequence by passing it to Ardon Jashari, who shot the ball from just outside the edge of the box. Hutchinson gambled on the rebound and was on hand to slot it in, showing good instinct.
Other than the goal we could’ve seen a bit more directness by the Nottingham Forest loanee but as mentioned he did well to open up the space for his team-mates even if he wasn’t on the ball as often as he would’ve liked.
Speaking of Jashari, the Swiss midfielder started the game rather slowly again but he grew it, so much so that by the full-time whistle he might have delivered his best performance of the season. The timing couldn’t have been better given Rabiot’s absence.
The decision to play with virtually two registi in the double pivot was something Amorim must be praised for. Once again it was an encouraging performance by Jashari when playing next to Luka Modric, so he may well be learning on the job.
4. Bend don’t break
We have to be honest and point out that Udinese have been a very poor side this season, and the win was a must. They had lost five on the spin going into this, but there were some concerns given the absentees Amorim had to deal with.
Not only that, but the Stadio Friuli has at times been quite an unhappy and hostile hunting ground. That being said, the coach got his choices at the back right. He opted to go with effectively four centre-backs (plus Bartesaghi on the left for added cover), which is something Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal have done.
The result is that Milan didn’t allow much space for their opponents and they were quick to close them down. Mike Maignan also did well when he was called into action on a couple of occasions. What seemed obvious though is that the Rossoneri didn’t want to cede their box, allowing the hosts to have as many shots from 25-30 yards as they wished.
It was also nice to see Diawara in action from the start. Despite him being played out of position in his first Serie A start, his physicality allowed the Rossoneri to neutralise the threats down the flanks that Udinese’s wing-backs provide.
5. Pressure cooled
We have already praised Amorim for his bold but successful selection decisions, which yielded three points that were absolutely needed following the debacle against Bournemouth on Thursday.
There will likely have been a half-time conversation between the coach and Goncalo Ramos, as the striker looked like he was very wound-up and was heading for a red card, but then got back to playing the game rather than his opponent.
Towards the end we also saw Milan keep the ball and not rush things too much, which the substitutions also helped with as they brought more energy. It was an efficient and professional finishing of the job, with an eye on Bologna on Wednesday and Inter on Saturday.
Again, a win against this Udinese side was a must, really, but Amorim got it in a controlling and efficient manner and for that he deserves credit.
