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AC Milan closed out their 2025 preseason schedule with games against two Premier League opponents, and the results were mixed.
Firstly, Milan faced off against newly-promoted Leeds United at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin, and took the lead in the first-half through Santiago Gimenez. However, they would be forced to settle for a 1-1 draw in the Saturday afternoon game.
Then, the Rossoneri played Club World Cup winners Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, and were beaten 4-1. Youssouf Fofana got the only goal for the visitors, though it must be said that it was a weakened side and not helped by Andrei Coubis’ early red card.
What did we learn from the final two friendlies, which come just a week before the competitive curtain-raiser at San Siro against Bari? Rohit Rajeev picked out some tactical points, mostly from the Leeds game given what the Chelsea match turned into.
System switches and shape
Milan alternated between 5-3-2 and 5-4-1, with Musah tucking in as right wing-back and Magni slotting in as the third centre-back.
This gave them width in defence while keeping the central block compact. Makes me feel our starting formation was a 3-4-2-1 more than a 4-3-3.
High press: Milan pressed high with a man-oriented scheme, forcing Leeds’ goalkeeper Perri into chipped balls toward the wingers. The aim? Cut off central build-up and force play into the wide traps.
Flexible build-up: Milan alternated between 2+2 and 3+2 build-up shapes, adapting to Leeds’ pressing structure. This fluidity helped them find the free man and bypass the first press.
Milan looked to overload the wide areas creating 3v2’s and 2v1’s forcing Leeds to over commit men to the wide areas creating space in the inside areas.
Half-space exploitation: Milan consistently found pockets in the half-spaces to break down Leeds’ block, creating angles for progression and pulling defenders out of shape.
— Rohit Rajeev (@RohitRajee23232) August 10, 2025
The goal sequence: Milan’s goal came from Chukwueze’s smart positioning, with Musah staying wide to stretch the defence, space opened inside for Chukwueze to attack & finish.
— Rohit Rajeev (@RohitRajee23232) August 10, 2025
Magni’s freedom: Allegri repeatedly let Magni overlap and underlap, creating overloads in different zones of the pitch. This unpredictability kept Leeds guessing and disrupted their defensive shape.
Signs from the Bridge
Chelsea pressed high in a 5-3-2, so Milan countered with a 3+2 build-up shape. With Musah stretching the pitch wide, the progressive pass found him, while RLC positioned himself at an angle between two Chelsea players to break the press.
Milan continued to overload the Chelsea’s right side as Neto was seen as a weak link. Neto would jump out to press Bartesaghi and with Enzo not moving up quickly it creates space for Modric to pass to Saelemaekers who is able to play on Reece James in a 1v1.
Milan’s goal mirrored the build-up that created Giménez’s chance against Leeds. With Saelemaekers pulling wide, Chalobah failed to close the half-space, and with Andrey Santos occupied by Modric, Saelemaekers slipped the ball through to Fofana.
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