In the first game of 2023 against Salernitana, AC Milan played so well that I don’t know how to sum it up.
The goals of Leo and Tonali in less than 15 minutes almost allowed the Rossoneri to score three points easily and happily, but Ochoa, who ushered in his Serie A debut, abruptly saved the tragedy from suspense.
The conceded goal at the end of the game caused the red and black fans to experience a heart-pounding 15 minutes, but the 2-1 score was enough to earn three points.
Early games, bad luck and a long absence from the official game, looking for changes while insisting on oneself, although the process is not perfect, the first victory of the new year can still give Milan a temporary reassurance.
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Pioli’s team played three warm-up matches during the World Cup in Qatar. The opponents were Arsenal, Liverpool and Eindhoven. As a result, Milan lost, and Liverpool 1-4 and Eindhoven 0-3
The score is pretty ugly.
Although the warm-up match that will not go all out is not very representative, the state of the Rossoneri is still worrying.
Before the arrival of the first game in 2023, Milan’s prospects seem to be full of unknowns.
Since the World Cup is held in winter, Serie A has a 50-day truce after mid-November. Milan, which has been plagued by injuries, originally expected to use this window to wait for players to return, but the injury list has not changed significantly.
Maignan’s return date is still undecided, Florenzi, Mesias, and Origi are still out of the list, and Krunic, who "can play except for the goalkeeper position", is temporarily unable to play the role of "what needs to be filled".
What Oli can play is still the old card before the World Cup.
(Milan started against Salernitana)
But facing a team with limited strength like Salernitana, the same old routine is enough.
In this campaign, Milan set up an unshakable 4231 formation, with Giroud sitting on the front line, Leo, Dias, Sale Markles ambushing behind him, and Special Olympics, Tomori, Kalulu, and Calabria.
The line of defense is lined up, and Tonali and Bennacer are the key double midfielders.
Although Tonali’s starting position is the midfielder, after the start of the game, he became the biggest change in Milan’s tactics.
Portugal’s "Lazy King" and Milan’s "Laughing King"
After the whistle blew, Salernitana, who was playing at home, was very aggressive and kept putting pressure on Milan’s defense, which was exactly the rhythm Milan liked.
In the away games of the past two seasons, what the Rossoneri feared was never the pressure of the opponent’s soldiers, but the enemy who was weaker than their own and retreated into the penalty area.
Sure enough, Milan, who had a counterattack explosive point, quickly found a lot of space to create excellent opportunities.
Last season’s Serie A MVP Leo is now Milan’s top card. He has limited playing time in the World Cup, and he has the posture of reappearing the "lazy king".
The demeanor of laughing man".
In this campaign, Leo tried 7 times and succeeded 4 times, and sent 3 key passes. As before, he showed the ball quotient that is proud of the audience, and Milan’s first few chances to break the game were related to him.
In just 7 minutes of the opening, Leo got the ball and staggered the defender to get a single shot, giving Ochoa the first chance to perform brilliantly in this game.
Only 3 minutes later, the Portuguese got the ball in front of the penalty area and faced "Mexico Wu Zhenyu" again. He strode past the goalkeeper, found the only goal line from a small angle, and calmly pushed to break the deadlock for Milan.
.
(Leo passed Ochoa and scored)
From twisting the ball, dribbling to shooting, Leo showed the quality of an excellent attacker. His choice of ball path and shooting accuracy are still online, supporting half of Milan’s offensive.
But looking back at this goal, Tonali, who sent him an assist, contributed a lot-the role played by Milan No. 8 in this game is the most exciting part of Pioli’s tactical change.
(It is Leo’s habit to score goals in the first game of the new year)
Attacking Tonali on the line
The daily paralysis of the right side and the sharpness of the left side are the daily routines of Milan’s offense. Since the staffing cannot be changed for the time being, Pioli made a big fuss based on the original tactical routine.
Facing Salernitana with limited offensive ability, Milan only played the role of the midfielder most of the time in Milan’s actual games.
Received winger".
(Tonali’s position when holding the ball in the first half was even higher than Dias)
The purpose of this arrangement is to reduce the number of Special Olympics and allow the French blaster who has just finished the World Cup to focus on defense. The second is to expand the width of the attack in parallel with Dias, and at the same time attract the defense of the opposing defender.
, to open up space for Leo.
Through the fine-tuning of Pioli’s offensive routine on the left, Tonali’s offensive talent was fully stimulated. He almost became the center of Milan’s offensive and achieved quite good results.
Leo’s first scoring goal was an assist from Tonali, and shortly afterwards Milan launched a continuous attack, and Tonali got two opportunities near the penalty area line, relying on a strong shot to expand the score.
Contributed a pass in less than 15 minutes, and Tonali was awarded the highest score of the game without any suspense.
Not only that, but he also sent three key passes, and also relied on enough physical fitness to contribute when defending. If he can perform like this for a long time, it will greatly enrich Pioli’s tactical options.
(Tonali’s continuous attack to expand the score, Leo’s left breakthrough is also very critical)
When score becomes 2 ratio