Milan Player Ratings: AC Milan 2-1 Spezia

AC Milan beat Spezia 2-1 with a last minute winner from Olivier Giroud. Milan struggled with the referee yet again in this fixture as there were multiple VAR calls and also some missing VAR checks. Milan were stung by Daniel Maldini who scored for his loan club at the San Siro. An important three points for Stefanie Pioli and one that allows us to leapfrog Atalanta and keep at our chase with Napoli.

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STARTING LINE-UP

Ciprian Tatarusanu: Shaky as ever. He does not inspire confidence at the back at all and was easily beaten on the goal due to his poor positioning. 5/10

Pierre Kalulu: He barely put a foot wrong but he seems to fit better as a centre back. He does not push up as much as Calabria does from right back and this slows down our play. 6/10

Matteo Gabbia: He was playing ping-pong not football. He needs to be sure in his movement and focus on actually clearing the ball. 5/10

Fikayo Tomori: He played further up the pitch. It’s not clear what was driving his high position but it did leave gaps on the counter attack leading to a few sweaty moments. Otherwise solid. 6.5/10

Theo Hernandez: A brilliant performance where he was a constant threat download win an amazing to see him get back on the scoresheet. He will be looking to make a massive impact in the final game he has available ahead of the World Cup. A leader’s performance. 7.5/10

Rade Krunic: A great game where he was unlucky not to get a goal he showed his ability to slam in all of the reborn as he hit the post once and had a goal line block once. 7/10

Ismael Bennacer: He is the most important player on the squad we saw the drop-off after half-time when he was withdrawn. He has the ability to get the ball flowing and without him the attack loses its potency. A great assist for the first goal. 7.5/10

Junior Messias: A terrible performance where he was unable to create anything from that right wing and moreover was responsible for the opportunity for Spezia score. His constant slipups in defence are starting to cost us especially in games where we struggle to score the second goal. 4.5/10

Brahim Diaz: As expected he struggled physically in this game getting pushed around by Ekdal but he still managed to create some good passages of play going forward it was a shame to see him withdrawn because he still offered more than CDK in this one. 6/10

Rafael Leao: Another performance full of close calls and missed opportunities. He needs to stop hitting the post before this becomes an issue but otherwise still a threat down the left wing in the first half but faded slightly in the second. 6.5/10

Divock Origi: A massive missed opportunity for the striker, he would’ve at least got an assist if Tonali’s goal was not chalked off but otherwise seems unaware of his position and his role in Pioli’s system. He will have to play 90 minutes in the next game so hopefully we can see him grow into his role then. 6.5/10

SUBSTITUTES

Sandro Tonali: The pace of the game dropped when he joined as the midfield was struggling to get the ball out of their feet. But on the flipside his individual brilliance contributed directly to the win, he should’ve had a goal but provided that crucial assist for the Giroud winner. 7.5/10

Ante Rebic: Out of place in the scheme. He didn’t seem to understand his role and showed why he is sometimes abrasive to playing as a right winger. 5.5/10

Charles de Ketelaere: Another stinker. He had a few opportunities to make a good run or a good pass but constantly struggled with the decision-making. He is too much in his head. 4.5/10

Olivier Giroud: What a week for Giroud. He has shown that he is the clutch player. What a goal in what an impact or three points or thanks to him. 9/10

Malick Thiaw: A brief one, not much of note. N/A

MANAGER

Stefano Pioli: He got caught out by Maldini’s goal. The team selection was good the chances were there throughout the game and he managed it well but sometimes it’s just luck. His substitutions were perfect yet again. 8/10