After all the other Milan teams had played on Sunday and won, from the U15 and U16 teams, the U17 team winning their Derby, and the Primavera and Milan Futuro and Women's teams winning their matches, the pressure was on the first team. This match had all the beginnings of another disappointment, with a first half that was reminiscent of our opening match vs. Cremonese. And even after things picked up in the second half, injuries, the referee team, and Allegri all tried to steal focus. But in the end, you cannot ignore class, and Modrić was dripping with it in this match. Not only did he finally get his first goal for Milan after his big birthday this week, but a beleaguered Milan team defeated Bologna 1-0 and inevitably became the Modrić Show.
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| Magic from Modrić, destruction for Bologna. Theater. |
Modrić did threaten early, with a shot that went wide, and Santi Gimenez had a shot saved, too. But apparently, the players thought that wearing those yellow kits meant they were supposed to get yellow cards (or they struggled to contain Bologna's attackers, one of the two.) Estupiñan earned his card for a foul on Castro just ten minutes in. Rabiot stepped on Orsolini, but evaded a booking. Tomori earned a yellow in the 18th for stopping Cambiaghi, and Saelemaekers also earned his yellow card for a foul on Cambiaghi as well in stoppage time. Three yellows, all in the first half.
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| Rabiot probably making dinner plans with his good friend Mike ahead of his debut for Milan. |
Then there was Cambiaghi's early goal, in the 14th minute, that might have really taken the wind out of Milan's sails, but for the offside whistle and conformation from VAR that he was offside, so the goal did not stand. Orsolini also had a dangerous shot that Maignan managed to keep out, only for Lykoggianis to send the rebound just wide. But it was Estupiñan who came closest to getting an actual goal, when his shot across goal hit the post in the 24th minute.
There was more violence, as Saelemaekers took a hit to the back of his head and was down in the 25th minute. I get so nervous now about head traumas ever since Maignan's concussion last year and watching Camarda also suffer head trauma in Lecce's match vs. Milan before the break, but Saelemaekers was fine. And so was Rabiot about ten minutes later, when Heggem elbowed him as well. Things were pretty rough in the first half.
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| Saelemaekers with the assist, and praised by Allegri postmatch. |
Speaking of Rabiot, he made his Milan debut in the starting lineup. We also saw De Winter for the first time when Pavlović was subbed off at the half with a muscle issue, and the young Belgian defender replaced him. Then Terracciano also made his competitive debut when he subbed on, and Nkunku also made his first appearance for Milan, coming on late in the match as well.
The second half started eventfully. Tomori took a tough tackle from Heggem that looked painful, then Santi Gimenez was brought down after being held in the box, but there was not contact given. But at the same time as that, Maignan was down at the other end, holding his calf. It's been a while since that actually resulted in an injury, but he ended up limping off, and Pietro Terracciano was subbed on for him. Maignan was seen leaving the stadium on crutches.
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| Modrić shows leadership by taking time to acknowledge his Captain as he leaves the pitch injured. |
We needed some good news after that, and Modrić had us covered. Just five minutes after the substitution, Saelemaekers held up the ball just long enough, spotted Modric's run (for once,) and then sent the perfect cross in for the incoming Croatian, who did not miss. 1-0 Milan. The stadium, which was eerily silent again, particularly without the opposing fans this time as well, erupted with joy. Modrić's first goal with Milan. Even better, Modrić celebrated like a young boy who had scored his first goal ever, it was beautiful. He was awarded Serie A's Player of the Match award, and humbly thanked Saelemaekers for the assist, as well. So classy. No wonder that Milan fans also voted him MOTM as well.
Allegri subbed Ricci and Pulisic on for Fofana and Loftus-Cheek in the 65th minute. After Gimenez sent a shot just wide, Ricci hit the post, which was Bologna's best defender in this match. Ricci was immediately impactful, and fans are questioning why he is not starting over Fofana, who has not impressed as much yet this season.
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| Just like a young boy scoring his very first goal, you love to see it. |
Santi Gimenez had a couple of great chances, one where he hit the post, but the ball had gone out of bounds. Another where he dribbled around Skorupski, and another where he was 1v1 with Skorupski, but sent it straight into the Bologna goalkeeper. His finishing was not great, I think he hit the post three times, including once again in the 83rd. But, as Manuel Pascali, the Italian commentator on the English-speaking World Feed pointed out, he was a workhorse, doing all the "dirty work" for the team. Even Allegri commended him for how hard he worked for the team as he came off the pitch.
De Winter sent a header over from a set piece, then Pulisic was taken down in the box, and once again, no call from the referee. Nkunku came on for Santi Gimenez in the 85th, and then the real controversy began. He went charging into the box, drawing multiple fouls, and referee Mercenaro (yes, that does mean "mercenary" in Italian) immediately whistled for a penalty. He also showed Skorupski a yellow card, I assumed for something he said.
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| Nkunku debuts, and gets not just one, but two referees suspended. Chaos. |
But there was a VAR review on the play. I was not sure if it was to clarify which foul Mercenaro was giving the penalty for, but eventually, he was called over to the monitor for an on field review. The most important piece of information here is that Fabbri was the head VAR referee. Mercenaro was apparently only shown a clip in between the fouls, and thus, after three minutes had passed, came back and announced he was rescinding his penalty call because there was "no foul by Frueler on Nkunku." Even Gravina, head of the FIGC, with his questionable brain function, spoke out, saying "It was a clear error."
Not only were the majority of the fans in the stadium confused and upset, but Allegri was furious. And you know what happens when he gets furious. That's right, he approached Rapuano, the unfortunate fourth official in this match, then "very calmly took off [his] jacket and left the pitch." What actually happened was that he ripped off his jacket, sarcastically recognized Mercenaro, the head referee, who pulled out the red card, as someone else tried to drag him away from the scene. Then, he went back for one more comment to Rapuano and finally stormed off.
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| I wonder what Allegri's blood pressure is if that was him "calmly" removing his jacket. |
Hopefully, it's just the one match ban. That would mean he would miss the Udinese match on Saturday. He was already going to miss the Coppa Italia match vs. Lecce next Tuesday, as it will be the second of his two match ban he earned for his striptease routine at Juventus. That would mean he will definitely miss three of Milan's first six matches. And I have not heard of anyone being threatened to have both of their ears cut off, so with any luck, we'll have him back for the Napoli match.
Meanwhile, Mercenaro and Fabbri are both set to be suspended for their fealty to Marotta dreadful performances on Sunday. Unfortunately, Fabbri may still be able to referee on the pitch, just not on VAR, which is like a police officer handing a drunk driver the keys to his own car. But whatever. Milan are used to the AIA (Italian Referee Association) saying "Oops, we did it again," then possibly suspending their referees. Luckily, this time, it didn't cost us points. Or a trophy.
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| Hopefully we won't be missing our injured Beast long of this Beauty and the Beast duo. |
While there has been discussion about the blatantly egregious errors of the referee, and Allegri has desperately tried to play down his most recent half-striptease incident, there was good news on Monday in that Maignan and Pavlović's injuries do not seem as serious as previously believed after tests. Both are still at risk for Udinese, with Maignan almost certain to miss another meet up with his favorite not-racist fans. Such a shame that they won't whistle Terracciano every time he touches the ball, since he is Italian.
Hopefully, we will see the Curva Sud in Udine on Saturday, though. They have promised to be at away matches with their flags and banners, fully supporting the team. But after the match, they reassured everyone that their silence at the San Siro will remain indefinitely with a statement as to why. And, as I mentioned in the preview, other teams' Ultras are standing with them, as well. Because there is talk of silencing the Ultras at all the stadia in Serie A, and losing organized support would condemn this league for sure. They can't build stadiums, won't play young players, and don't know how to put together a profitable television rights deal to save the league's proverbial life. The passion of the organized fans is one of the main reasons people come to the matches, and the driving force behind the football.
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| Nice to have the joy back that a win like this brings. |
Despite all of the aforementioned attempts to distract from this match, everyone is still talking about Luka Modrić. Not just because he scored. Because he is an incredible player. Every time he takes the pitch, it is clear why he won the Ballon d'Or. Everyone, from the first team players to the Futuro and Primavera players, posts images to their social media accounts of them training with him, because they understand how special he is. And finally, his teammates are beginning to see him, to anticipate his brilliance, and I think this goal is just the first of many. This match was just one episode of the Modrić Show.
Milan Primavera Defeat Cagliari 2-0 Away
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| Ossola and Castiello, the goalscorers, celebrate. |
After two home defeats ina row, Renna's Primavera earned all three points and a clean sheet in their 2-0 win over Cagliari. Something about playing away has brought out the best in them thus far this season, while they have crumbled at home. This was a rematch of the Primavera Coppa Italia Final last season, which Cagliari had taken the trophy home from. But not on this day.
After a goalless first half, Ossola drew a penalty and also converted the penalty kick for the opening goal in the 55th minute. Just seven minutes later, he assisted the second goal, from Castiello, one of the new signings this summer. Perfect that Castiello's first goal for the Primavera also sealed the victory for Milan as well. Great to have Longoni back in goal this season after his injury at the end of last season, he has been immense already. Brief highlights are available. Milan Primavera host Frosinone on Saturday, when they hope to break their home pitch curse.
Milan Futuro Come Back with a 2-1 Win vs. Pavia
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| Milan Futuro's Starting 11 hold up a jersey for Bonomi, who suffered an ACL injury this week. |
Oddo's Milan Futuro have now won all three of their competitive matches this season, opening their league play with a 2-1 away to Pavia on Sunday. The club made an incredulously misguided claim in their preview for this match that "Dropping a division hasn't affected the project, which aims to nurture the growth and development of young adults." Sure. That's why 19 of our best Futuro players left this summer, most of them permanently and for free, after their "growth and development" needs were fully met last season by Ibrahimović and Kirovski, perhaps the worst directors of any youth project ever.
However, at least this season, they have a better manager, even if they are playing in Serie D. And after wins over Trevigliese and Gozzano in the Coppa Italia Serie D, their first league match was postponed due to having too many players called up for national team duty. So this was technically week two. Pavia being a newly promoted side, it would have been ideal to not be scoreless at the half. And then, to make matters worse, Pavia's Alfiero scored the opening goal just five minutes into the second half. Tragic, considering they had Torriani playing in goal for them, fresh off his "Rivelazione" (Best Emerging Talent) award at the Gran Galá del Calcio last week. But he would prove essential for the win with some decisive saves as well.
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| Perina and Branca, the goalscorers vs. Pavia. |
However, Milan Futuro persisted, and were able to secure the comeback with goals from substitutes Branca in the 79th minute, and Perina with the winner in the 89th minute. Milan also announced that they will be posting at least highlights, if not full Serie D matches, in the days following the matches on official Milan channels, as the matches are not broadcast live anywhere. The Pavia-Milan Futuro highlights are available on Milan's YouTube channel, and you can read Oddo's postmatch comments here. Milan Futuro host AC Leon on Wednesday at 15:00 CEST for their rescheduled week one Serie D match.
This post inspired by the music of Baby Lasagna's "Catch Me If You Can"
Reviewed by Elaine
on
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