Match Review: AC Milan vs Inter Milan

For some fans the highlight of the day was not the first leg of the Champions League matches in Barcelona and in England, but it was the long awaited Milan Derby which will likely define the remainder of the season for either Inter or Milan.

The first half featured a slow and hesitant start from both teams with Inter testing Donnarumma with two efforts from Brozovic and Candreva but neither of them led to the goal. The game started off a bit physical and rightly so Milan were awarded a free kick at the 20th minute which was almost converted into a goal but an impressive stop from Handanovic kept the scored tied at 0-0. The downside of the first half was that the Milan side looked nervous in possession and I would like praise Gattuso’s inclusion of Montolivo who helped maintain the composure that we needed in midfield. Some good build-up play was started by Milan on minute 27 but still no opener to the match.

Sloppy play from Milan at the back led to an Inter counter-attack where Perisic missed the finish. We had a good chance of counter-attack on minute 30 but Calhanolgu failed to make the right play which makes us remember Gattuso’s remarks in the game against Juve which were made on Calhanoglu.

In the first half Inter looked calmer, and why wouldn’t they be, a draw suits them very well as they are ahead in the standings; and unfortunately, that calmness paid off as an error in offside trap helped Icardi find the breakthrough. 1-0 for Inter on minute 37. But wait !! VAR saved the day, back on level terms, thank you for the video replay! As a Milan fan, I was thankful to watch the first half end on level terms where hopefully Gattuso can knock some spirit into the players.

Second half, not a very good start, Inter attacking and an error from Donnarumma could have made this night tragic for us. Minute 51, a beautiful through ball from Suso found Cutrone in the box who missed his chance of getting on the scoresheet. The game kept going downhill, another chance for Inter where Icardi missed a wide! Open! Goal! So far luck was on our side for most of the game. Personally, I was a bit disappointed with the first hour of the game. 3rd counter attack break for Inter, third missed chance thanks to good pressure from Rodriguez. Cutrone almost had the lead, a beautiful overhead kick was correctly ruled offside and so the game refuses to let go of the draw. Gattuso decided to make his first changes on minute 70 to try and control the game better. To be honest guys the chemistry was a bit off up until minute 75, Kalinic was fighting to try to get a clean shot on goal but Inter defense was tight and made his mission tough. Minute 92, beautiful chance for Inter again, and Icardi again missed the open goal, the boys gave up too soon. The ref blowed the final whistle, the game ended scoreless.

Player ratings:
Donnaruma 7.0
Calabria 7.8 (best)
Bonucci 7.3
Romagnoli 6.9
Rodriguez 7.1
Montolivo 6.3
Kessie 6.8
Bonaventura 7.1
Suso 6.2
Calhanoglu 6.8
Cutrone 6.1