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Needless to say this was an important match for AC Milan. Not only was this their first home match of the season but they needed to capture points after their disappointing performance against Udinese. If I were to describe this match in one word, I would say it was promising. Milan started very active and it looked like the squad had a clear idea of what they wanted to accomplish. Milan was rewarded with twelve minutes in when Suso crossed the ball in with his right foot and found the head of Hakan Calhanoglu who buried it in the back of the net. Sadly the semi hot start for Milan didn't last as the team did not continue to create chances. After 45 minutes Milan maintained the one goal lead.
3 points, job done! ⚫@hakanc10 ci regala la prima vittoria! ⚫#MilanBrescia 1-0 #ForzaMilan pic.twitter.com/fAEQkDFPMA
— AC Milan (@acmilan) August 31, 2019
Coming out of the break Milan continued their mediocre play and did that for much of the second half. Later on in the match coach Marco Giampaolo decided to make some changes to the team. He brought on Piatek and Paqueta who made immediate impacts. Once these substitutions were made Milan had a flurry of scoring chances with Piatek and Paqueta being directly involved. Sadly Milan failed to capitalize on these chances with Paqueta hitting the post and Piatek unable to put it past the Brescia keeper. Milan secured the three points in this match and showed much improvement compared to their disaster against Udinese.
Now time to look at the player ratings for AC Milan. Leave your thoughts on the match in the comments below and follow us on Twitter @SBNRossonero!
STARTING LINE-UP
Gianluigi Donnarumma: For the second week in a row Gigio put in a great performance. He looked comfortable on the ball when in possession and made crucial saves to keep the clean sheet for Milan. 7/10
Davide Calabria: It seems as if Calabria has shaken off his poor pre-season form and is finally looking like himself. He was solid defensively in this match, making great tackles and getting Milan out of danger. 6.5/10
Alessio Romagnoli: Romagnoli was back to his usual form in this match. Again and again he bailed Milan out as he was the last man on the defensive line. Without Romagnoli in this squad Milan would have major defensive issues. 7/10
Matteo Musacchio: Well Musacchio didn't play all that bad. He did have a few errors that caused scoring chances by Brescia but thankfully that didn't cost Milan. I still believe once Caldara comes back he will take Musacchio’s place. 6/10
Giampaolo’s AC Milan get their first win of the season with a first half header from Calhanoglu ⚫️ pic.twitter.com/xHg0YLqHCx
— Italian Football TV (@IFTVofficial) August 31, 2019
Ricardo Rodriguez: Rodriguez had a similar game to Davide Calabria as he was solid and didn't cause any problems for the Milan defence. It will be interesting to see who gets the starting job once Theo Hernandez fully recovers from his injury. 6/10
Franck Kessie: As per usual Kessie was all over the place on the pitch. He was tackling well and making great forward runs, however Kessie continues to struggle in the final third. On many occasions Kessie was unable to put the pass to free up a Milan attacker. On one occasion Kessie had Andre Silva wide open but failed to get the ball to his feet. 6/10
Ismael Bennacer: Finally Milan have found the regista they have been missing for years. Bennacer really impressed in this match. He was stout defensively and his link up play was superb. There is no question that Bennacer should be in the starting eleven week in and week out. 7/10
Hakan Calhanoglu: Earlier on in the week Calhanoglu did a interview with Milan TV where he said he wanted to get back to scoring and in this game he did exactly that. His lone goal secured the important Milan victory. 6.5/10
HAAAKAAAANN! pic.twitter.com/zt8pfkF4FR
— MilanGifs (@MilanGifs) August 31, 2019
Suso: Many times during this match Suso drifted to the right side where he is more comfortable. This switch in formation worked well for Suso as him playing directly behind the strikers last week didn't work well. It seems as if Suso is now more comfortable using his right foot which could be extremely beneficial for Milan. 6.5/10
Samu Castillejo: In my eyes Castillejo should not be in the starting eleven of this team. There is no place on this team for a player who constantly losses the ball. During the pre-season and in the past two games of the season Castillejo hasn't showed much of anything. 5.5/10
Andre Silva: To say it was surprising to see Andre Silva get the start is an understatement. Silva’s surprising start actually benefited Milan, yes you heard that right, Andre Silva played well in this match. His movement was great and compared to what Piatek did last week it was night and day. 6/10
⚫️ Well done lads, on to the next
— AC Milan (@acmilan) August 31, 2019
⚫ Bravi ragazzi, vittoria e tre punti #MilanBrescia #ForzaMilan pic.twitter.com/TDU0UGQcIf
SUBSTITUTES
Krzysztof Piatek: After last week’s extremely underwhelming performance Piatek improved against Brescia. He was in position and had many chances to try and secure a goal. Sadly Piatek couldn't bury any of the chances but he did improve. This could be another position battle in Milan. 6/10
Lucas Paqueta: Once Paqueta came on he made an instant impact. Like I've been saying throughout the pre-season Paqueta brings added flair to the team that no other player can imitate. Similar to Bennacer, Paqueta needs to be in the starting eleven every week. 7/10
PAQUETA
— CIRO Luis Nazario Borini (@CIROALEROBY1) August 31, 2019
pic.twitter.com/GFqlnxtZDh
Fabio Borini: Well Borini worked hard and there isn't much else to say about his performance. Borini should never get the starting nod for this team but he can come in occasionally when Milan are up. 5.5/10