Another draw, the second in a row. At least a 1-1 draw to Atalanta in Bergamo is not as shocking to the sensibilities as last Friday's draw with bottom of the table Pisa. However, it is becoming more clear just how thin this squad is and how much the injuries are impacting results. Ahead of the match, Tare said, "It wasn't expected that six players would get injured during an international break." But clearly, he has not actually followed Milan, or Allegri, for that matter, over the years. Injuries are the only thing that Milan has been consistent with over the past decade or two. Like the walking wounded or a bad zombie show, at Milanello, every day is like Halloween.
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| One moment of brilliance was not enough for those who were not injured. |
To be fair, with such a thin squad, and having just played on Friday, the players kind of were like zombies. Even Modrić, who had a tremendous performance vs. Pisa, managed to get his first yellow card and misplace a few passes by the end of the match. It started brilliantly, though. In just the fourth minute, Ricci scored his first goal for Milan, putting them up 1-0.
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| The face you make when you defy the odds and score your first goal. |
But then Santi Gimenez was shown a yellow card for a foul on De Ketelaere less than ten minutes into the match. And honestly, that seemed to affect his play for the rest of the match, as he could not be as fiery and take as many risks as usual.
Atalanta had some misfortune when De Roon was injured and could not continue, so former Milan Youth player Brescianini was subbed on for him in the 20th. This also saw former Milan player Pašalić given the captain's armband. Then the Croation put in a cross that saw Éderson took a shot that forced Maignan into a save.
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| We all felt like Bartesaghi watching this one. |
Ahanor and Zappacosta also made shot attempts that were unsuccessful, but in the 31st minute was yet another referee controversy. Lookman stepped on Fofana, digging his studs into his ankle/shin, and Fofana rightfully went down in excruciating pain. But there was no call, no card, no VAR review. This was absolutely a red card-able offense. However, it was against Milan, so Doveri did not whistle anything and Chiffi in the VAR room definitely did not ask him to look at it, either.
Of course, I had less of an issue with Pavlović shoving De Ketelaere a couple of minutes later, which seemed to surprise the former Milan player. But to be fair, De Ketelaere wasn't harmed in any way, unless it was just his ego. However, two minutes later, Lookman, who really should not have been on the pitch any longer, scored an equalizer for Atalanta. VAR reviewed it to see if he was offside, but Saelemaekers was shown to have kept him onside. 1-1 all. And it was a bit tough to swallow, particularly, I would assume, for Fofana
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| A visibly tired Modrić struggled against Milan's exes, like De Ketelaere, too. |
At halftime, Allegri subbed Nkunku on for Leão. This seemed very strange, but after the match, we learned that Leão had a minor hip issue. And the zombie narrative continued when in the 48th minute, Tomori went down with an apparent knee injury that was very disconcerting. While he played the rest of the match after receiving treatment, he then received treatment and did not train with the squad when they returned to training.
And yet one more injury issue in the 62nd when Santi Gimenez came off with an ankle issue and was replaced by Loftus-Cheek, who himself was just returning from injury. His influence was positive, he made a shot just minutes after coming onto the pitch. And heartbreakingly, Saelemaekers had a great shot that Pavlović inadvertently got in the way of. Fofana also took a shot that, of course, went wide. And that was about all for Milan's flurry in attack, then they returned to letting Atalanta create the chances.
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| Loftus-Cheek impacted play when he came on, but unfortunately, not the scoreline. |
In the 70th minute, Nkunku was fouled by Kossonou, but there was no call. While Doveri largely did a good job refereeing, Milan have already had so many big calls go against them this season, it is worth mentioning these non-calls. Speaking of calls, Modrić made the sacrifice and received his first yellow card for a foul on Pašalić.
In the 85th minute, Maignan showed yet again why this management are so foolish for not having renewed him. He made a brilliant save on Zappacosta, pushing the ball just over the crossbar. We saw Musah take a shot that, of course, went well over. Good luck with that, Atalanta fans. In the 90th minute, Allegri sent Athekame on for Saelemakers, a late sub from his very limited bench. And finally, Gabbia was shown a yellow card for fouling Lookman in stoppage time.
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| An incredible save from an amazing goalkeeper and captain. Renew him. |
Even if Milan fans are disappointed to drop two more points, given our injuries and the performance, the draw flatters Milan. Atalanta have not lost at home to Milan since the Scudetto season, it is a tough ground for Milan to ask all three points. Also, the seven former Milan players playing for Atalanta don't help, either. And even if most of our injuries came from national team duty, Milan are doing a great job of injuring new players just as fast as they return. With a squad this threadbare, it's like a recurring nightmare. At Milanello, the players are perpetually the walking wounded where every day is like Halloween.
Milan Futuro Are Knocked Out of the Coppa Italia Serie D by Varesina
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| A very young Milan Futuro side are defeated by the grown ass men of Varesina. |
After a redemption win on Sunday, Milan Futuro were defeated 3-2 by Varesina at home on Wednesday. This humbling loss also saw them knocked out of the Coppa Italia Serie D, which would have been a great competition for them to go deep into. However, with players out injured, Oddo was forced to start three Primavera players: Borsani, Ossola, and Castiello; and even call up Bianchi, a 17 year-old goalkeeper from the U19 team; and this youth and inexperience did not help when Varesina made their comeback.
Castiello opened up the scoring with a goal in the 15th minute with a cross from Ossola. 1-0 Milan Futuro. Varesina equalized just before halftime, but Magrassi put Milan Futuro back in the lead in the 53rd minute with a header assisted by Borsani. 2-1 Milan Futuro. However, Varesina answered with goals in both the 57th and 66th minutes, giving the visitors the win, 3-2 Varesino and ending Milan Futuro's Coppa Italia run. Brief Highlights are available. Oddo will look to get his guys back to winning ways on Sunday when they host Oltrepò in Serie D.