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AC Milan properly kicked off their 2025 preseason preparations with a friendly against Arsenal on Wednesday in Singapore.
In what was for large parts a glorified training session, the one goal in the game came early in the second half through Bukayo Saka. It was a game that the Gunners perhaps understandably dominated, given Milan’s absences and the fact they are further along in preparations.
Massimiliano Allegri named an interesting side for the game with a three-man defence formed of Fikayo Tomori, Malick Thiaw and Strahinja Pavlovic. Rafael Leao and Christian Pulisic were the two up front, with Yunus Musah and Ruben Loftus-Cheek getting a chance in midfield.
The result inside the 90 minutes may not have been anything to send a postcard home about, though the penalty shootout did provide a smile at the end. What else did we learn from the preseason tour opener?
1. A hero re-emerges
One year prior, during the tour of the United States, a young-faced goalkeeper called Lorenzo Torriani caught the eye with his performances. After a mixed 2024-25 campaign, he headed to the Far East with the senior team again, and he quickly made a name for himself.
Torriani came on with 25 minutes left of normal time, and it is thanks to him that the scoreline remained close. He denied Martin Odegaard and Reiss Nelson with fabulous stops, but the most impressive was a reflex save to thwart a Mikel Merino header.
As if that weren’t enough, the 20-year-old completed all of his passes – short and long – and then saved three penalties in the shootout to ensure that the Rossoneri at least had a little something to celebrate.
After a season mostly spent as the third choice or playing few minutes with Milan Futuro, it will prompt reflections on the best strategy for his development moving forward. Especially if he performs like this again versus Liverpool and Perth Glory.
2. Toiling without reward
The system change from Allegri meant that Milan played without a recognised centre-forward and instead went with the ‘split striker’ options, Rafael Leao and Christian Pulisic, normally the left and right wingers.
This might have been partly conditioned by the fact that Lorenzo Colombo is believed to be on his way to Genoa soon (though he did get some minutes), while Noah Okafor isn’t part of the plans either and came off the bench.
Still, nothing really clicked at all going forward for the Rossoneri. Barring a few chaotic dribbles from Leao or Ruben Loftus-Cheek bursting through the lines, there was little to get any of the many Milanisti present on the edge of their seat.
It has already been well established that Allegri wants another centre-forward, while Santiago Gimenez and Luka Modric – in theory the current scorer and creator – are on vacation. Still, you’d hope to see some patterns of play.
Not much came from the wide areas, either. The line-up showed a 3-5-2 but was more asymmetrical in possession, with Davide Bartesaghi tucking in and Alexis Saelemaekers getting involved when he could, which wasn’t often.
To expect Milan to be at their free-flowing best on July 23 after two weeks on the training ground would be misguided. That said, we hope to see more flair, cutting edge and cohesion in the final third across the coming games.
3. Ready for the fight
Among the positives to take from the game were two Englishman in Tomori and Loftus-Cheek, who ended up being almost forgotten men last season having struggled to replicate previous highs.
Tomori started on the right side of the defence and his focus was obvious from minute one. He made a couple of brilliant interventions, including one to bail out Yunus Musah after a giveaway with immaculate timing and reading.
Going into the summer there was a lot of speculation about the former Chelsea man potentially moving on after nearly half a decade at the club, but now that has gone quiet. Tomori would be the first to admit a need to raise consistency and this was a positive start. Perhaps Allegri too can help, given the way he has coached defenders in the past.
Loftus-Cheek meanwhile has been spoken about in the past few weeks as a potential asset for Allegri, despite such a complicated 2024-25 due to further injuries and a difficulty in finding form. The mezzala spots are back up for grabs – his natural position – and he seems ready to battle for one.
RLC was probably the most dynamic on the field in the game against Arsenal, showing his strength and power both in and out of possession. There were certainly some rough edges too, like the run in behind which he overran (although Saliba did an excellent job closing), yet the physical form is what matters for now and it left an impression.
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