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Milan Player Ratings: Milan 1-0 SPAL

Milan bailed out by some Suso magic

AC Milan v SPAL - Serie A Photo by Emilio Andreoli/Getty Images

Coming off a tough loss against Roma, Milan faced Spal mid week. A revised starting lineup saw Piatek, Bennacer and Castillejo get the start for Milan. The first half of this match was fairly boring and uneventful as Milan or Spal failed to create any real chances. A few times Milan had a decent attack going forward but it ultimately lead to nothing. Milan were unconvincing and after 45 minutes they needed a change in their plan of attack.

Much of the second half continued as status quo as Milan failed to create any chances and Spal were content with sitting back. Finally Milan got a chance when Piatek was fouled outside of the box, setting up a perfect free kick for Suso. Suso stepped up and buried it in the back of the net putting Milan up 1-0.

Now let us look at the AC Milan player ratings!

STARTING LINE-UP

Gianluigi Donnarumma: There wasn't much to do for Gigio in this match but he made the saves he needed to make and didn't make any glaring errors. 7/10

Leo Duarte: Duarte was fairly decent for being played out of position at right back. Yes he wasn't perfect but he was in better form then both Conti and Calabria. However at times his pace was not enough to catch the Spal attackers. 6/10

Matteo Musacchio: Musacchio wasn't bad at all in the first half for Milan and it was surprising when he was taken off for Davide Calabria. But in my opinion Duarte did look better than Musacchio in the first 45. 6/10

Alessio Romagnoli: Not really sure what else I can say about our captain that hasn't already been said. He comes in every game and is solid managing the Milan back line. 6.5/10

Theo Hernandez: This wasn’t one of the better matches for Theo Hernandez as much of his attacking runs were stopped by Spal defenders. However even in one of his worse matches he still looked to be one of Milan’s best player on the pitch. 6/10

Franck Kessie: Kessie has been straight up awful and this game didn't help his case as every time he touched the ball he was poor. Almost every pass by Kessie was disastrous and didn't find its target. Thankfully Kessie improved his passing a bit in the second half. 4.5/10

Ismael Bennacer: Finally Bennacer was given the starting nod over Lucas Biglia. Like the rest of the Milan team Bennacer wasn't outstanding but compared to Biglia I would take Bennacer any day. Bennacer continually tries to play the ball forward which is something Milan is missing. 5/10

Lucas Paqueta: Paqueta is an offensive minded player and it is clear to anyone that watched that he is always looking to make a through pass to open up the defence. On few occasions do the passes reach the target but without his ideas Milan would be lost in attack. 5.5/10

Hakan Calhanoglu: I’m not sure if Calhanoglu is bad or just unlucky. Almost everyone of his passes get blocked and the passes that do get through the defender are wild and almost never hit their intended target. 5/10

Krzysztof Piatek: Another game where Piatek starts and another game where Piatek remains isolated up top. Piatek is a poacher in every sense and doesn't bring really anything else to the squad. Another thing about Piatek is that is diving has gotten out of hand and he should be trying to stay on his feet. 5/10

Samu Castillejo: One thing we can say about Castillejo is that he runs and presses when he is needed. His blistering pace has yet to be shown at Milan and this match was no different. Before arriving he was touted as a great offensive player but it hasn't clicked at Milan. 5.5/10

SUBSTITUTES

Davide Calabria: To me Calabria is still unconvincing on the right side. Too many times does he make mistakes that lead to scoring chances by the other team. Right back might be a priority buy in January. 5/10

Suso: Suso came in and did exactly was he was tasked to do, make an impact. Suso was gifted with a beautiful spot for the free kick and he made no mistake giving Milan the lead. 7/10

Jack Bonaventura: N/A