AC Milan secured a 4-1 win over Cagliari on Sunday night, with the likes of Olivier Giroud and Brahim Diaz impressing for the Rossoneri.
Milan had to dig in and battle to a hard-fought victory over Sampdoria in our season opener, and that ultimately showed a different side to Stefano Pioli’s men as they effectively won ugly.
READ MORE: Five key talking points as Milan seal win over Cagliari with Tonali coming of age
However, with an expectant home crowd back at San Siro this past weekend, we turned on the style with four first-half goals and showed more of our quality going forward.
Two things stood out though which made it possible for us to get at Cagliari so quickly and so often in the first 45 minutes, and that was a major influence in the outcome.
Movement off the ball key in cutting through Cagliari
Our third goal last night. Crucial run from Theo after initiating the counter in our own half, pulls two defenders towards him, Giroud peels off & has time + space before producing a superb finish.
Really good team move to open Cagliari up.#ACMilan #ForzaMilan #MilanCagliari pic.twitter.com/RvSadjZKW7
— Talk Milan (@talkmilan1) August 30, 2021
It’s no secret that when Milan play at a higher tempo and zip the ball around the pitch quicker it makes it more difficult for the opposition to stop us.
Equally as important though is the desire and ability to make smart runs off the ball, and that was evident in our third goal which really turned the game in our favour and put us in control of the game.
As seen in the image above, after initially leading the counter attack from our half, Theo Hernandez continued his run off the ball and drags two defenders towards him with a run through the middle.
That in turn opens up the space for Brahim Diaz to find Giroud with a perfectly weighted pass, and the Frenchman does the rest with a lovely curled finish into the corner. His awareness to peel off and make that space for himself on the far side is also key, and so it was just a really good goal all round from Milan.
Brahim Diaz and breaking the lines
Lead up to two of our goals last night. Brahim Diaz has been really effective in finding space between lines in first two games, teammates break lines with key passes & sets us up for dangerous opportunities.
Positive stuff from our No.10.#ForzaMilan #ACMilan #MilanCagliari pic.twitter.com/qJNw2coIum
— Talk Milan (@talkmilan1) August 30, 2021
Another key factor in our first two games has been Brahim Diaz’s movement and positioning on the pitch.
As seen in the two images above, the Spanish playmaker was really good at finding space between the lines of the opposition, in between their defence and midfield.
That pocket of space allows him to turn and run directly at the backline, with runners like Giroud and Rafael Leao giving him options in the final third as we set up dangerous situations.
However, credit must also go to the likes of Sandro Tonali and Rade Krunic, who both played those crucial passes to find their teammate, thus wiping out the Cagliari midfield with one pass and moving the ball quickly up the field to give us more of a threat.
Naturally, others impressed too and the team as a whole played really well, but these were just two stand-out points from our goals on Sunday night and it was both fascinating and enjoyable to watch.
