Milan Player Ratings: Milan 2-0 Hellas Verona

AC Milan came into this match with a slew of injuries and given their recent form it seemed likely that Milan would drop points in this match. The injury crisis gave Diogo Dalot and Rade Krunic chances to prove their worth. For the first 14 minutes or so both teams didn't muster up much offensively, in the 15th minute Davide Calabria sent in a cross that found that head of Rafael Leao but the striker headed it over the goal. In the 27th minute Milan were given a free kick outside the box. When Rade Krunic stepped up I am sure every Milan fan questioned what he was doing. Well, Krunic struck the ball beautifully in the top corner giving Milan the 1-0 lead. At the half Milan were comfortably up 1-0.

In the second half Milan came out absolutely on fire, controlling the match and creating chances. 5 minutes into the half Milan scored again to double their lead. This time it was Diogo Dalot who scored a rocket for his first Serie A goal. After going up 2-0 Milan looked comfortable to sit on the lead and defend any Verona attack. It seemed as it Milan settled into a back five with Alexis Saelemaekers converting to wingback. Milan held strong for the rest of the match even with Verona threatening in the final minutes. This was a big 3 points for Milan, next is Manchester United in the Europa League.

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STARTING LINE-UP

Gianluigi Donnarumma: Gigio didn't have anything to do in this match. One thing I have noticed about Gigio is how much is distribution has improved and become a key aspect for Milan. Now Gigio has the ability to pass out of dangerous situations. 6/10

Davide Calabria: Calabria was good in this match on both ends. He has shown some more quality on the ball this season and had a great cross to Rafael Leao which almost ended up in the back of the net. 6.5/10

Fikayo Tomori: Tomori continues to impress. There were one or two instances where his communication and positioning was off but overall a solid performance. His pace is something that Milan lack at the centre back position and with playing such a high line pace is vital. 6.5/10

Alessio Romagnoli: Much better from the captain in this match. It seems that the benching lit a fire under Alessio and against Verona he was a brick wall. Usually Lasagna gives Milan some trouble but for this match the Milan defenders shut him down. 6.5/10

Diogo Dalot: This was one of Dalot’s better matches for Milan. He didn't make as many mistakes and wasn't a mess on the defensive end. Dalot even scored a very nice goal to secure the Milan victory. 6.3/10

Soualiho Meite: Surprisingly Meite played well in my opinion. He made tackles in the midfield but most importantly he carried the ball very well. His ability to make runs with the ball put a bit of pressure on the Verona defence. 6.3/10

Franck Kessie: Franck is Milan’s best and most consistent player. His improvement under Pioli is insane to see. Now Franck looks calm on the ball and even plays the role as distributor at times. Of course we can't forget how disruptive he is the oppositions attack. 7.5/10

Alexis Saelemaekers: Alexis was ok in this match but still had his wasteful moments. There were a few occasions that Alexis received the ball on the outside of the box and decided to just shoot and of course he shot it way over the net both times. 6/10

Rade Krunic: Well I don't think anyone expected Krunic to step up when he was given the start. Krunic was fine but the free kick he scored was exceptional and really lit a fire to give Milan the confidence they needed. 6.4/10

Samu Castillejo: Castillejo wasn't amazing but neither was anyone else offensively for Milan. His work rate his fantastic and he runs every second he is on the pitch, now if he had the offensive ability he would be an elite player. 6/10

Rafael Leao: Leao was better in this match and you could tell that he was fighting for it more. He had a golden opportunity to score a header but failed to capitalize. His pressing was better and was a bit improved with the limited hold up play he had. However, his dummy play on the Dalot goal was very smart. 6/10

SUBSTITUTES

Jens Petter Hauge: Jens came on later in the match and didn't have any real opportunities to shine as Milan were content to sit back and defend. 6/10

MANAGER

Stefano Pioli: Pioli didn't have much flexibility in this match given all the injuries. Pioli did show some tactical adjustments in this match overloading the right side with Samu and Saelemaekers when attacking. Another thing I noticed was that Milan fell into a back 5 going up 2 goals having Calabria tuck in and transforming Alexis into a wingback. In this match Pioli got it right.