Milan, move to Empoli, but the price is very expensive: Pioli loses (other) three players

You can remember being mean, cynical, angry and down-to-earth even in recovery minutes. Even if for eighty that wickedness has not been seen. In other words: it is never too late to remember that if there is that championship in the middle of the chest, it must mean something. For example, you can win even in the midst of a thousand difficulties – three players ended up in the infirmary within forty minutes – even when everything seems hopelessly compromised. Milan beat Empoli with a crazy match finale, where everything happens. The Tuscans who catch the 1-1 with Bajrami, remedying the Rossoneri advantage of Rebic, in the 92nd minute. some way to avoid making Hernandez regret too much: well, a largely successful mission. And the 3-1 signed by Leao when the clock says 97, with a solitary and irrepressible drift. But it is also a success that costs very high: Pioli in a single blow loses Saelemaekers, Calabria and Kjaer by injury. Three knockouts that are added to the six players already stopped in the pits. Clouds are gathering just as the tour de force begins, with the terrible Chelsea-Juve-Chelsea triptych on the horizon. The victory, however, confirms the great character and the winning mentality acquired in recent years by this team. Napoli is still there, three points up. And there are now five steps ahead of Inter.

The choices

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Zanetti shuffled the cards a bit in the median, preferring Grassi to Marin in front of the defense and flanking Henderson on his left, with captain Bandinelli (man of the match in Bologna) confined to the bench. In defense De Winter in place of the injured Ismajli. Attack entrusted to Lammers and Satriano, assisted by Pjaca. Pioli showed up at Castellani without his mothersantissima Maignan and Hernandez – on stage Tatarusanu, at his seasonal debut, and Ballo-Touré -, but he was able to rely on Calabria, uncertain on the eve. There was also talk of Pobega among the starting eleven, but instead Bennacer presented himself as usual. Behind, however, trust in Kjaer and Kalulu out. In front of Messias he raised the white flag at the last (inside Saelemaekers), De Ketelaere was placed behind the very squeezed Giroud and on the left Leao returned from disqualification. The first few minutes immediately delivered the imaginable script: Milan camping in the Empoli half of the pitch and Tuscans aware that the heartbeat would never drop below a certain threshold. Aware, above all, that it was not the case to take chances and it was advisable to try to better govern the defensive phase. An excessively renouncing attitude, however – partly out of fear, partly due to objective technical difficulties in getting out of the Rossoneri pressure -, which at a certain point made Zanetti very angry.

Right band disappeared

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In the first half hour of the game, Milan arrived close to the blue area with a certain ease practically every time they had the ball between their feet. And it is obvious that opportunities have also arrived. Two razor-sharp: the most colossal with Leao, who wasted De Ketelaere’s delightful assistance by hitting Vicario from a few meters, all alone. Serious mistake also on the part of Saelemaekers, who ruined a devastating action by Leao: flat right to the side from a decidedly greedy position. De Ketelaere gave the same sensations as the latest releases: soft feet, luxurious ideas, but alternating current. In the first 45 Empoli has seriously looked out from the parts of Tatarusanu only once, but Pioli got straight hairs: Henderson’s shot almost passed under the side of the Romanian goalkeeper, assisted by good luck. The Milan game, channeled on the right tracks net of the mistakes in the goal area, changed its face between minutes number 33 and 36: three cursed turns of the hand in which the Devil lost first Saelemaekers (knee) and then Calabria (thigh) . In practice, the entire Rossoneri right wing has disappeared, also considering the previous absences of Florenzi and Messias. Pioli has remedied as he could, or by inserting Krunic high and Kalulu full back. Problem in problem: Two of the three available slots were used for replacements.

Triple change

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Milan felt the double blow, in tactical terms but certainly also under the mental aspect, because it failed in intensity. Condition unchanged also in the approach to the second half, where Empoli took courage as the minutes went by. First a Marin torpedo that hissed a few steps from Tatarusanu and then a slightly high header from Lammers. And Milan? Always a widespread feeling of little malice on the part of the Rossoneri, who in fact became dangerous especially on an inactive ball. A free kick from Giroud ended up on the top of the crossbar, Tonali’s instead was deflected and called Vicario to a half miracle. Just before the half hour, Pioli also lost Kjaer and changed three: the Dane with Dest (Kalulu again central), De Ketelaere with Diaz and Giroud with Rebic. Empoli wasted Bajrami (careful Tatarusanu) with the newcomer and then he was scoffed at 34 ‘with a carelessness from hands in his hair: Tonali served Leao who yes, he was placed several meters beyond all the Empoli defenders, but the he served on a lineout. So no offside, Rafa thanked and put it easy on the feet of the current Rebic. One to zero and game downhill? Exactly the opposite, because everything happened in injury time. At the second Bajrami on a free kick he signed the same, while at the fourth Milan took the lead with those you expect less: Krunic’s tower and a flat on the fly of Ballo-Touré a few steps from the goal line. All incredulous at Castellani, on both sides of the stadium. The match was then definitively locked by Leao, who found the strength to go away on a solitary counterattack in the 97th minute and overtake Vicario with a dig. A victory that cost Milan dearly, but at the final whistle it was another crazy party.