THE ROSSONERI now face an almost impossible task in the return leg of the Champions League clash with spurs, after losing 1-0 at home to Tottenham. Spurs were the better side in the first half, as Harry Redknapp’s tactics were flawless, however the scores remained level. Milan had the better of the second half for the most part, but Tottenham delivered a crushing blow with around 10 minutes to go, scoring a breakaway goal to turn the game on its head. With one of the last kicks of the game, Ibrahimovic scored with a sensational overhead kick, but it was ruled out for a foul in the box.
Milan’s injury laden squad was boosted by the return of Ignazio Abate to face Spurs, meaning a back 4 of Abate, Nesta, Yepes and Antonini in front of Abbiati in goal, with Thiago Silva pushed forward in to the midfield 3 – alongside Gennaro Gattuso and Mathieu Flamini. In attack, Clarence Seedorf and Robinho were joined by Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Spurs made a very good start to the game, and Milan were called in to action within minutes. Spurs fans claimed a penalty as the ball was flashed quickly across the box – only for the ball to strike Nesta’s upper arm, but no penalty was given, and given the position the ball struck, it would have been a harsh penalty anyway. In truth, Spurs were the better side for the first ten minutes, and were it not for Abbiati’s excellent reading of the game to punch clear a diagonal cross, Crouch may well have scored.
AC Milan-Tottenham: The Rossoneri squad
Final training session before Spurs (Photos)
With just over quarter of an hour gone, Spurs’ system was working well, because they were exploiting Milan’s lack of width, and pressing all over – meaning Milan were struggling to create, and Spurs were still causing problems. Christian Abbiati was then forced off with concussion, which was a big blow after the Italian had made an excellent start to the game.
Approaching the half an hour mark, and finally Milan were beginning to settle – but still the Rossoneri had not managed to craft a real clear cut chance. Spurs on the other hand were losing influence, and had seemingly changed game plans since they’d only put 1 ball in to the box since Marco Amelia was brought on to replace Abbiati, which was not working very well for them as Milan were gaining more influence as the match progressed.
It was Spurs who were next to test the goalkeeper – this time Rafael Van der Vaart. Picking the ball up outside the box, the dutchman was able to take it on and shoot – but substitute goalkeeper Marco Amelia was more than up to the task, and was able to punch it wide for a corner (from which, nothing came) Spurs were allowed plenty of time on the ball by Milan, whilst the Rossoneri were given little to no time at all in possession, Tottenham were pressing well and Harry Redknapp had set his side up very well tactically, which was working brilliantly against Milan’s fairly narrow formation.
As the half drew to a close, Milan did finally create some half chances, firstly, Clarence Seedorf layed the ball off wide to Ignazio Abate, who took the ball forward before putting in an excellent cross – but Spurs managed to defend it well. Secondly, after some nice play from Clarence Seedorf, Robinho had the ball at the edge of the Spurs box, and played a brilliant ball straight across the face of goal – any touch would almost certainly have sent it in, but nothing came of it – and Spurs were noticably the better side at the end of the first half.
At half time, Massimiliano Allegri brought Alexandre Pato on for Clarence Seedorf – and Milan started the second half much better than they played for most of the first. Just moments in to the second half and the Rossoneri came close to taking the lead, a ball chipped in to the box by Gattuso was met by the head of the oncoming Mario Yepes, and forced a wondersave from Heurelho Gomes! It was also clear that the front 3 had all upped their work rate in the second half – and the difference was staggering.
With around 55 minutes on the clock, the Milan crowd was excited, but Mathieu Flamini was fortunate not to be sent off after a terrible two footed challenge on Vedran Corluka. Once again Milan were inched away from scoring – this time from a corner, as Mario yepes was again given a free run behind Peter Crouch, but the Colombian’s good header was met by an equally good save from Gomes, before William Gallas acrobatically managed to clear the ball away to safely.
Finally Milan were playing as the better side. It seemed Allegri’s decision to bring on Pato had really got the crowd going, and with the new found work rate of the attacking players, Milan were beginning to take control, and at last it looked as though it was Spurs were on the back foot trying to keep out Milan.
Milan were all over Spurs, but disaster struck around the 80th minute mark – as Milan conceded possession high up the field, Aaron Lennon had the ball with time and space to run at Milan. The Rossoneri had just two back, and as Peter Crouch hung back, Lennon took on (and beat) Mario Yepes before playing a simple square ball for the open Peter Crouch to tap in to an empty net against the run of play. A disastrous blow for Milan.
The goal had seemingly sucked the life out of Milan, and Spurs were the better side once more. In the dying seconds Robinho managed to secure a corner for Milan, and after some work outside the box, Nesta chipped it in to the box, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored with an overhead kick! However The Rossoneri hearts were shattered – as the goal was disallowed for a foul in the box before the Swede’s excellent overhead kick. And that was the end of the game.
Best Moment: The nanoseconds after Ibrahimovic’s excellent overhead kick, which was then ruled out.
Man of the Match: hard to pick one for Milan tbh, maybe Thiago Silva
By Hefin Davies, Rossoneri Blog
Hi HEFIN
You missed to point out some great drama by Gattuso
Thumbs up to you Abate your boss :)….seria a will fall if they dnt rock europe next season jus sayin :)….
Too bad for Gattuso he shouldn’t react like this he’s captain after all. For the man of the match i would put maybe Yepes he was the most dangerous man and he did good job in the back regardless of goal we got. Ibra was nowhere to see and he stood in offside all the time even when a ball was in his direction it’s like he was asleep there. It was ok i just missed that last touch in attack which would give us a goal. We r goin to come back stronger for sure and Boateng will be… Read more »
I am a die hard fan of Milan… But to be honest I was surprised last year but that was just the decline . Milan haven’t recuperated after 2007 triumph and honestly they need to revamp the squad . I really dont think so Allegri is a man who can bring CL this year or may be in 5 years for MIlan at least. Hopefully, they can win the Serie A . Pathetic to be honest the way they played, it was just sad to see them loose tonight. Loosing to Man utd is something but loosing to Spurs ..… Read more »
PLEASE REAM THIS COMMENT!!! READ IT PLZ!!! (OH GOD HELP ME!!! OR MILAN FANS HELP ME PLEASE!) PLZ SOMEONE TELL ME WHAT TO SAY IN SCHOOL!!! PEOPLE ARE GOING TO TAKE THE PISS OUT OF ME! BECAUSE THEY WILL SAY ” YO! MILAN IS FIRST IN SERIA A LEAGUE AND LOST TO SPURS WHO ARE 4TH IN THE EPL! SO THIS MEANS THAT SERIE A LEAGUE IS SHIT AND AC MILAN IS SHIT” THAT IS WAHT PEOPLE IN MY SCHOOL ARE GOING TO SAY TO ME! I NEED HELP CAN SOMEONE WHO IS REALLY GOOD AT MAKING EXCUSES UP TELL… Read more »
this was a disaster of a game
maybe in the future, when the team is decimated by injuries, the bosses will consider signing players that AREN’T CUP TIED
Does Allegri even know that he can make more than 2 substitutions? Where the heck was Merkel and Strasser? It’s times like these that make me miss Dinho, and i’m not even his biggest fan. Without Pirlo and Cassano, we just look so lost. Other than the two Yepes chances, we didn’t deserve to win at all.
It’s going to be hard to comeback from but I know we can do it I am positive now that allegri knows now not start seedorf and by the time the 2nd leg comes we will be stronger. Boateng should be back maybe pirlo too
what a great captain gattuso is, isnt he suppose to set examples for the team or guide the team? i dont why he plays or even made captain.hes so stupid why we would try to fight a coach or half the team. also thanks for creating their goal gattuso.
@AKA69 If we check history we know that milan has 7 UFC cups… While other teams have 4 or 3.. Madrid has 9 because that was the Kings team in their early years.. If someone says that Serie A sucks, ask them this.. Wolverhampton won against Man U, Right ?? Hercules won against Barca, right ?? So the best teams in the world are Wolverhampton and Hercules ?? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.. sometimes the best teams in the world have bad games.. Like this one…
btw im from Venezuela, so im sorry if my english is bad…
milan is overratted! seria a is shit, this match proves that EPL teams are better than ac milan e.g man utd 7-2 (on agg), arsenal 2-0 milan, (first leg) spurs 1-0 ac milan (second led, bale is gonna play): spurs 4-1 ac milan…….. (in couple of years): luton town 5-0 milan, bolton 6-1 milan, inter milan 20-2 milan, barcelona 223-0 milan…….. and soooo on….. i am not an ac milan fan anymore! hala madrid!!! fu*k ac milan!!!
it was a chance for spurs! Milan was better than them but they were so unlucky! hope to do better next match! Forza Milan <3
Arsenal fan in peace…
I hate Spurs, but Gattuso should be fined and banned for his disgraceful perfomance. He acted like a little baby and was lucky that ‘old man’ Joe Jordan didn’t smash him up. Let hope that super Arsenal win tomorrow against Barca!
All is not lost Boateng will be back to replace gattuso which i much prefer this shud give us that bit of connection between the mid and the attack cos to be honest gattuso dont really offer much in that department, pato shud have started and merkel shud have come on in place of flamini and @AKA69 just say there still remains 90mins of football to be played as for the excuse just say that was no where near our strongest side considering all the injuries and cup tied players so cont worry about it pal were all in the… Read more »
The dirtiest game of the year. unlucky for abbiati because he is such a good keeper. Tottenham were much better in the 1st and to be honest they deserved to win. Gattuso got really fired up in the 2nd. Flamini made a silly takle that was a red card we all know even if he got the ball (might of fractured corluca’s leg) . that got the game all dirty. Gattuso was all on the old guy and epsically crouch. Gattuso should of got a red as well because he pushed that guy, hit crouch in the face and was… Read more »
this was one of the heart-broken match for the last couple of seasons for milan fans.i think allegri should be SACKED! 1:why would you field seedorf when you have merkel or strasser? 2:why did we buy didac vila if we don’t use him?antonini was awful!he cannot block lennon from delivering crosses and prevent the ball coming into milan’s penalty area. gattuso,seedorf should retired.if ambrosini,cassano,pirlo,van bommel,boateng and inzaghi were here,then totttenham would be TEAR APART!!! in the summer,milan should promote or buy italian player.gattuso was an absolute disgrace for milan! my nest year cl formation for milan: ——————-marchetti———————- —-abate—t.silva———albertazzi—de vito– ———–andrea… Read more »
oops my second comment that i typed up….. i dont mean it, im just angry…. sorry :( milan fan 4 life dosent matter about the ups or downs….. FORZA AC MILAN… AND I MEAN FUCK MADRID!!!
@ AKA69 I don’t know what got into u or if u r just making somekind of a weird joke here but looks like u ain’t a fan at all. Not Milan fan not any other club fan. And u are worried bout what others think of ur club… A real fan is defined by standing with the club in good or bad. Supporting in every situation. My opinion is that Milan is in a slight crisis right now but every club has that and after it they rise even higher. It takes time. I think u ain’t gonna last… Read more »
Do any of you remember that old guy Gattuso headbutted actually played for AC milan? His name is Joe Jordan, he’s a bloody scottish psycho and in his day would have made Gattuso look like a boy??? Did anyone notice that for the final whistle he expected that confrontation and removed his glasses?????? Very pleased with the result. Have to say for the first 20 mins of the second half I could not see anything other than a AC win. This game is not over. Despite the fact that Spurs have a fantastic record at home, with a fanatical crowd… Read more »
@SupaPippo I’M SOOOO SORRY, I WAS JUST ANGRY PLZ FORGIVE ME :( SORRY last year when man utd beat milan 7-2 (on agg) people were taking the piss out of ac milan soo much that i started a fight with all seven on the boys who were taking the piss out of ac milan! and i’m sorry of what i said about my second comment and i mean it i’m really really really sorry if i could delete my second comment then i will but i cant. And yes i started a fight with all seven of those boys and… Read more »
TERRIBLE FORMATION FROM ALLEGRI, WHAT A VERY POOR MIDFIELD!MERKEL WAS NECESSARY IN THIS GAME HE SHOULD START EVERY GAME! ALLEGRI MUST BE MORE BRAVE! IF WE DON’T ATTACK IN SAN SIRO WHERE CAN WE ATTACK?! ALLEGRI IS THE RESPONSIBLE ONE! VERY BAD MATCH MANAGEMENT! HE SHOULD SUBSTITUTE GATTUSO BUT HE HAS A WEAK PERSONALITY! BUT IT’S A SHAME FOR GATTUSO, NEVER BE A MILAN CAPTAIN AGAIN! FORZA MILAN!
Not a good Game Milan but Still !!!
Serie A ! … FORZA MILAN !!!
This game was very painful to watch, and I’m gonna be depressed now for at least a week. So, Seedorf was bad and if there is still a place where he can contribute, is sure as hell isn’t the second leg. We were completely lacking creativity in the attack, and Pirlo, Cassano and even Prince were greatly missed. Robinho was also bad, losing possession all the time and holding the ball for too long, only to make a shitty pass. T.Silva felt wasted a bit as a DM, although Yepes wasn’t bad at all, still can’t help but to think… Read more »
@sperm at lane
hahaha FU*k YOUR SELF you bloody bastards got soo lucky with that goal. sperm the football team got soooo luckly because gattuso was about to brake those 7 foot legs of peter crouch and put it up Redknapp’s wrinkly old ass of his! hahahahahahahaahah
@ AKA69
admit the loss, smile and don’t act like Gattuso that’s it. It’s not about braging how good ur club is it’s about being positive with the club in good or bad and support. Believe that Milan will shine again in all of its glory it just takes time
ac milan don´t deserve a captain like gattuso,it´s imberased to say i am a milan fan,because a captain don´t make that!SHIT-it´s hard to be a ac milan fan in the actually,just lose and lose and lose.
the team deserves players like GANSO, LUCAS(SAO PAULO),young talents like simone verdi!SHIT of club.I´m this time i am really hangry.
PS:game back: ac milan 0 vs 4 tottenham
sad..really sad.they have already started the epl serie a comparison..i made a point in an earlier story abt our tactics and subs and was lambasted bcos we won against parma.. reasons for the lost.. 1, starting seedorf was a disaster 2, play the ball to ibra tactics doesnt work in champ lge 3, if antonini cud play like abate we would have been fine.lenon tore him apart so i ask, why did we sign didac vila 4, ibra is also ahuman being and if he is havin an off day can be changed 5, why make only 2 subs? 6,… Read more »
GO FUCK GATTUSO,GET OUT AC MILAN!
Aka69…! oh dear little boy…. I suggest you go back to your mothers womb to understand what life is all about. Gattuso was an absolute embarrassment to AC and to Italian football in General. Petulant little boy. who couldn’t deal with the situation. VPayne, you are just as bad trying to play down the terrible tackle of Flamini and praising Gattuso for his “Spirit”. Next thing you’ll be praising AC Milan fans who rush the police or opposition fans with baseball bats and knives…! Fortunately not all AC Milan fans have knuckles that bleed from scraping the floor as they… Read more »
when Milan won 4-0 against Parma, Allegri’s fanboys were all over the blog with their so-called undying positivity and holiness. now i hope you know that we (who criticized Allegri constantly) are true Milan fans, we just HATE his stubbornness and stupidity. for the last time: WHY ON EARTH DID HE START SEEDORF (with 3 DMs) AGAINST FAST ATTACKING TEAM LIKE SPURS???????? I don’t hate Seedorf at all, but it’s a fact that Milan wasted the hell of the first half 99% thanks to Seedorf.
I don’t know what to say any more, at the moment i can’t get sleep cous of that game.I love milan and it hurts to see tham play this way. I’m going to say it!! sorry but even my grandmother could see the f….. diffrence and Alegri didn’t!!!! I don’t blame the players, i’m mad with the fact that Alegri didn’t change the formation. He knew that this wasn’t going to work cous we did play 4-1-2-3 with Gatuso and Flamini in the midle and Sedorf, it just doesn’t work and why the hell wee didn’t use the lust sub?????????… Read more »
@AKA69
wtf…after typing that comment and you said sorry?!?! F UUUUUUU!!!! that is your true nature. You are not a Milan fans, but a Madrid fans!!!! F UUUUUUU!!!! GTFO KID!!!!
@white hart lane
this year may be yours.that’s true you beat us.but we still the 7 times winner.tottenham still have the lead in the second leg,but remember, there is a second leg.dude,you are so noisy!!!did you win the cl already?
I think it was terrible that the hotspurs were trying to get a reaction out of gattuso…and after his yellow who cares what his reaction to the coaches are…they were probably being assholes too. So they need to screw off with that dirty stuff. It was dumb…i thought milan played well but i absolutely hate how the announcers always slander milan on everything and how any english team is a team from heaven and they make NO mistakes…effin dumb.
Well that’s what happens when you play Seedorf at first and when you put Thiago Silva as your playmaker…bravo!!! btw it’s always good to see Gattuso kick sb’s ass:) Fan since 1998 and I’ll carry it till I die!
Hi Milanista93…! Yes this year maybe ours but I doubt it in all honesty. There are stronger teams to overcome to win the CL this year than AC and I’m not trying to offend you but it’s a fact. You know history means nothing, especially today. Who are you today? A washed up team of old and slow players with an inexperienced coach trying to win the CL and the league? I was chatting with some of your fans on this site on the team announcement forum. Good banter and I respect those that respected me and my opinion, but… Read more »
We should go to White Heart Lane with the mentality that we will beat them on their ground like they did to us! What happened to Milan never being beaten in the San Siro??? We have been beaten at home by Juventus Roma, Ajax and now this club – lets face it, all these teams we should have beaten!! Flamini for me is useless, I’ve rarely rated him, our midfield needs a revamp! Bring in Ganso and/or Lucas Marcelinho and our creativity is solved! I genuinely feel confident Abate can handle Bale, what a long way he’s come in improvement!!
Hey Peregrin, You know what you said is the key to beating Spurs at WHL. Take the game to us, do not sit back in the typical Italian Style, go forth, push, attack. This approach gives you the chance to beat us. What I question is your statement on Abate handling Bale. Pinnear and even Krancjar are nothing on bale in terms of pace, skill and consistency. The only hope he has of handling bale is if bale does not recover from his back spasm which has kept him out for 4 games. From my opinion, Abate was one of… Read more »
@ this idiot White Hart Lane
Get the fuck out of here, leave us alone in our own mess.
U knw what gattuso banned for next game is a blessing I just hope flamini also gets a ban this way allegri has no choice but to play merkel and strasser and not to forget boateng should be back for this weekends game. so TOT fans should just take a chill pill and RE..LAX am confident milan can turn this around REMEMBER ALL U STUPID F**** THAT THINK ITS ALREADY OVER ITS NOT! THERE IS STILL 90+ MINS TO BE PLAYED AND THERE IS ONLY A 1 GOAL DIFFERENCE yes 1!! not 5 like everyone is making it out to… Read more »
play @home with 3 defensive midfielders + 1 fuckin big ass…..allegri..you’re insane!!!!!
For 2nd leg either a
4-4-2
Abbiati
abate-nesta-yepes-vila
merkel-boateng-t.silva-robinho
ibra-pato
Or a 4-3-2-1
Abbiati
abate-nesta-yepes-vila
Boateng-t.silva-merkel
robinho
ibra-pato
Hey Zvone09?
Why would I do that? This is an open forum and while I do not want to rub salt into the wound you now carry if you call me an idiot because I can articulate an arguement and highlight faults in your squad the idiot I am :)
Booya, I agree with you. a 1 goal difference means nothing.
I just hope you and your fellow fans now show Spurs the respect we deserve rather than dismissing us prior to the match.
Roll on White Hart Pain :D
i watched the game… was so pissed with the teamwork.. u noe spurs pressing us hard, u need to pass the ball quick, which means the team-mate need to come close…but hell no..when we get the ball, noone come close,, how to pass then? then how to create chances?
thiago silva tbh, he sucks on mid.. has no vision of pass n dribble n hold the ball
what the hell to put seedorf in the 1st team!!..he can’t play even 1 minute!!!..plzz..do something at white hart lane!!!..kick all the players spurs and the staff too!!!..
This fucken team is a disgrace – the whole team with stupid idiot Allegri. He is responsible for this lose – he is the coach and he suppose to motivate team and get the best out of players. We start the game and get outplayed by a average team. He has no clue how to get the best out of our players and I hope he is gone soon so maybe we can still win something this year. Good thing we didn’t play team like Barca because they would kill us 10:0. Flamini is a moron and so is Gatusso.… Read more »
Well all I can say about Milan is that they played much better thin the second half. They sure miss the injured MDs, there was a lot of tension especially with Spurs playing rough but I guess Flamini has responded. Gomez is an incredible goalie and at the same time we were unlucky upfront. With our injured we don’t have a proper replacement as our other players are cup tied. All respect to Sedorf but he was slow and looked old in front of these youngsters. Even if Pato started from the beginning nothing will change, they would have injured… Read more »
Milano Q8, thank you sir, you are a gentleman and I appreciate your honesty. People like you and SupaPipa who give AC fans respect despite the bile and drivel from others on this thread. I thought it was a very exciting game. One that Spurs bossed in the 1st half, then the first 20 minutes of the 2nd AC took control of wiht the very good replacement of Seedorf with Pato. The fastest player on the pitch for Spurs was Lennon. I said in our previous chats he is not world class because he is inconsistent and that is still… Read more »