Milan Player Ratings: Napoli 0-1 AC Milan

AC Milan took on Napoli on the road as both sides sat on equal points. Milan put in a dominant and gritty performance to come away with all three points in a 1-0 victory. The win was extraordinary because it brought forth some key milestones such as Giroud’s first away goal, Pioli’s first win over Spalletti and the return of Ibrahimovic after over a month out. Milan are currently top but Inter Milan have a game in hand. The title race remains open.

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STARTING LINE-UP

Mike Maignan: A good game where he was called into action quite a bit for awkward saves but he always stood his ground and dealt with Osimhen with ease. 7/10

Davide Calabria: A fantastic performance from the captain whose wild shot bags him a crucial assist. He looked better in his approach play in this game and covered much more ground which helped to limit Lobotka. 6.5/10

Fikayo Tomori: He was non stop. He completely destroyed Politano and Insigne whenever they tried to find that angle cutting in. His method of pressing high just works so well in Serie A. Dominant. 7.5/10

Pierre Kalulu: A MOTM performance where he shut out a very difficult striker to manage. He was faster than Osimhen, he showed his strength against him and was practically unbeatable. 8/10

Theo Hernandez: A great attacking performance from him, he finally got the last pass right and released a good number of players into space. 6.5/10

Sandro Tonali: Constantly working and consistently solid blocking out the attackers. His delivery on the set pieces was a massive creative force in this game. 7/10

Ismael Bennacer: Stunning performance from him as he managed to be everywhere and really pressure them with his interceptions. Moreover, he should have won a penalty. 7.5/10

Junior Messias: A strong game from him where he showed he can be dynamic switching positions with Calabria. His constant nagging at Mario Rui threw their defence off and helped mount the pressure. 6/10

Franck Kessie: An immense performance from him reminding lots of Milanisti how good he actually and how much he will be missed. His strength is unreal. 7.5/10

Rafael Leao: A good game where he broke the lines with his dribbling but he kept rushing the final shot or pass leading to a lack of conversion in the final third. 6/10

Olivier Giroud: A poacher’s goal and boy did we need it. He is the big game player in 2022 with goals against AS Roma, Lazio, Inter and now Napoli. 7.5/10

SUBSTITUTES

Ante Rebic: Added that much needed pace and directness on the left wing. Still rusty but getting back into it. 6/10

Alexis Saelemaekers: He just gets worse and worse. How can you miss such a sitter in such a crucial game. 5/10

Rade Krunic: Tidy performance to keep the midfield locked up. He is becoming an important bench player this season as he fully understands his role. 6.5/10

Alessandro Florenzi: The right back is settling in very well now and making a real case to be bought out permanently. He adds experience and technical quality off the bench. 6.5/10

Zlatan Ibrahimovic: A sight for sore eyes. His presence can always be felt when he steps out and he used his strength to help close out the game. N/A

MANAGER

Stefano Pioli: He got the subs just right. Kept the intensity up and kept the side focused. 7/10