AC Milan at the World Cup: Round 1

Three goals, one assist and one clean sheet. AC Milan players grabbed the World Cup by the neck on matchday one as they walk away with three wins, two draws and one loss. Here is a breakdown of their performances:

Fode Ballo Toure - Senegal (Netherlands 2-0 Senegal)

Ballo-Toure picked up a knock in the training prior to the World Cup so he missed the opening game and will likely not feature in the group stage. His side played well but were unlucky to concede both goals and lose the tie.

Sergino Dest - USA (Wales 1-1 USA)

Dest started for the US in a tight game against Wales. Decent performance with lots more of an attacking output.

Charles de Ketelaere - Belgium (Belgium 1-0 Canada)

The attacking midfielder was an unused sub in his side’s lucky win over Canada. The winning goal came against the run of play and they looked off pace.

Simon Kjaer - Denmark (Tunisia 0-0 Denmark)

The centre back captained his side to a hard won point against Tunisia as he played 65 minutes and helped keep a clean sheet. Kjaer looked slow and made a few mistakes echoing his performances with Milan so far.

Theo Hernandez - France (France 4-1 Australia)

Hernandez came off the bench early on to replace his brother after a tournament ending injury to his ACL. Hernandez added an attacking spark and was rampant down the wing. He managed to grab an assist for Adrien Rabiot’s goal and helped the side to a big 4-1 opening day win.

Olivier Giroud - France (France 4-1 Australia)

He had the best opener as he scored a fantastic brace hence equalling Thierry Henry’s all time goal scoring record for France. Giroud had a few acrobatic efforts but the two solid finishes from inside the box really sealed the win for the defending champions.

Rafael Leao - Portugal (Ghana 2-3 Portugal)

Leao was only used off the bench late in the second half but was crucial as he scored the winning goal for tournament favourites. Leao made a darting run down the left wing and curled ball round the keeper with the usual smile on his face. A big win and a first WC goal for the Serie A MVP.