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A thumping of Bologna means AC Milan remain undefeated for another week, but they may also start to set their sights on a higher ending.
Before the game, there were certainly a few questions about whether Milan could continue their unbeaten run. Whilst the Rossoblu were struggling, the Rossoneri were without a number of key players, meaning it would be a pretty different starting XI.
Nevertheless, it did not matter. Massimiliano Allegri’s selections worked, with both parts of his unconventional strike partnership getting on the scoresheet, whilst Adrien Rabiot proved his class once again, as the Diavolo won 3-0.
Here are five things we learned:
1. No Leao, no Pulisic? No problem
It’s probably fair to say that when you see a Milan lineup where Rafael Leao and Christian Pulisic are on the bench, your confidence as a fan drops significantly. On top of that, Niclas Fullkrug, who has had a very positive impact since joining in January, was also on the bench.
That meant that an unlikely duo was up front, in the form of Christopher Nkunku and Ruben Loftus-Cheek.
Whilst the Frenchman has somewhat improved in recent weeks, the same couldn’t have been said for the Englishman, who hasn’t really found his form this season. As a result, it seemed both could leave in the mercato last month.
Nevertheless, against Bologna, the duo did their jobs well. The Englishman opened the scoring, whilst Nkunku won and then converted a penalty. It’s also worth mentioning that both were involved in the goals that pretty much sealed the deal for the Rossoneri.
On top of that, the striker looked a lot sharper, showcasing his dribbling skills, at last, and his hold-up play wasn’t half bad either. So overall, nothing negative to point at as Milan’s depth did the job tremendously this time out.
2. De Winter’s uptrend continues
What can we say about Koni De Winter? He had a disastrous game against Napoli in the Supercoppa Italiana, whilst not really getting much playing time in the first half of the season either. But then he responded on the pitch.
If the last time you watched him was against Napoli, then you’d think you were watching a completely different player.
In the last few games, the Belgian has been commanding at the back, using his physicality well, alongside showing good defensive awareness, with him seemingly in the right places all the time.
Thanks to his positioning, he blocked several crosses and was quick enough to step up on multiple occasions to intercept the ball before it went to the attacker.
He also seemed more confident on the ball going forward, and there’s not much more you can ask for from a defender, especially one who still has plenty of room to grow.
3. Midfield duo run the show
How many times have we made this point? The answer is not enough, apparently, since Luka Modric and Adrien Rabiot keep impressing us.
The Croatian sat deeper and dictated the game well, and with Milan trying to build out from the back, it also resulted in Modric being in some tricky situations and tight spaces. However, his technique, and more importantly, his composure, allowed him to get out of trouble, helping his team beat the press.
A masterclass of a performance.
Then we have Rabiot, who just keeps on impressing as well. The Frenchman got the assist for the opener after a composed pass to Loftus-Cheek. Then, early in the second half, he was aware enough to make the most out of Bologna’s mistake and get his goal after a tidy finish.
His fourth goal of the season, in addition to five assists in just 16 games. How’s that for a midfielder, eh?
Aside from the goals, Rabiot was a calm presence in the middle and helped his team keep the ball and get the clean sheet, and you can’t really ask for more.
4. Jashari’s moment might be around the corner
It hasn’t been smooth sailing for Ardon Jashari since he joined Milan last summer, as he got injured after the Cremonese game and then was out for about three months before slowly starting to get up to speed.
From what we saw against Bologna, he might be at full speed pretty soon.
Jashari looked really sharp off the bench in both phases of the game. He used his body well in defence, getting the ball back on a few occasions. Additionally, he was pretty good on the ball, although he wasn’t required to do anything extreme, given the Rossoneri were trying to preserve their energy and keep the clean sheet.
There were a couple of nice moments where his talent was clear as day, one of which was a perfect long through ball for Fullkrug, which should’ve resulted in an assist, but the German wasted the opportunity.
All in all, it’s fair to say that we’ll be seeing more and more from Jashari as he keeps getting better with each game.
5. Masterclass by Allegri
To say that Allegri has had to deal with difficulties might be an understatement.
The coach hasn’t been able to rely on Pulisic and Leao at the same time since the start of the season, and when both were indeed available, they weren’t really fully fit, or fully recovered for that matter.
Against Bologna, the attacking duo was rested so that they can hopefully fully recover and be crucial in the final third of the season.
However, that raised some eyebrows because with Fullkrug also on the bench, it seemed like there was nobody on the pitch to score the goals. Not to mention, Alexis Saelemaekers was also out of action.
But contrary to all the doubts, the Rossoneri dominated the game from start to finish, scoring three goals in the process, and really, they could’ve scored some more. This is all while keeping a clean sheet and allowing no big chances to their opponents.
A pure masterclass by Allegri, who again managed to surprise everybody as his team continues to be unbeaten and, more importantly, continues to be deadly in these big games against sides in the top 10.
The Rossoneri now have 10 days to prepare before their next game, and the Italian will be hoping to have more firepower in the games to come. If Bologna was anything to go by, then we’re in for a treat in the Scudetto race despite Max himself refusing to state that as a goal.
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