AC Milan secured a 4-1 win over Torino on Saturday night, as we made it two wins in two to start the new Serie A season.
Goals from Christian Pulisic, Olivier Giroud and Theo Hernandez sealed the victory, as the Rossoneri showed more promising signs from an attacking perspective, as well as a better balance in the side as a whole compared to our win over Bologna last time out.
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That in turn resulted in a relatively comfortable three points, as although Torino hit back immediately after falling behind the first time and had periods of pressure, it wasn’t enough to really trouble us.
Stefano Pioli will be pleased with what we saw as a result, with the focus soon set to switch to Roma next Friday night as we look to extend our impressive start to the campaign.
AC Milan player ratings vs Torino:
Mike Maignan, 6.5 – Will perhaps feel disappointed he couldn’t keep out Schuurs’ effort having got a hand to it, but he was solid throughout when called upon and his distribution was excellent as always.
Davide Calabria, 6.5 – Good defensive performance as he kept things tight on our right side, and he was accurate in his distribution to help us build out from the back.
Malick Thiaw, 6.5 – Could have done better to prevent the goal, but he put in a positive shift overall as he looked assured in his defensive work and composed in possession. Burst forward into space on a number of occasions too in a bid to find an opening for our attackers.
Fikayo Tomori, 6.5 – A good display as he kept things tidy and error-free, both in and out of possession. Pressured well with his aggressive style for the most part, and played a key role in an overall solid defensive effort.
Theo Hernandez, 7 – Defended well and capped off his performance with a brilliant run and finish for our third goal. Showed real quality with the dink over the goalkeeper, while he used his pace and explosive bursts forward well to add a threat.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek, 7 – Broke out of his shell a little more in this one as he started off reserved again and looking to keep things simple, before expanding his influence. Did well as part of the team’s defensive shape to add balance to the performance, and showed great quality to provide the assist for Pulisic’s goal.
Rade Krunic, 6.5 – Does the scrappy job in the heart of the midfield really well as although he didn’t stand out with his performance, it was still an important shift to allow the team to play the expansive football that we did at times.
Tijjani Reijnders, 7 – Another impressive outing as although he wasn’t as influential with his passing in this one, he did well to help set the tempo for us in possession and has the ability to break the lines and speed things up when needed.
Christian Pulisic, 7.5 – Excellent again after scoring on his debut last week, as he grabbed another goal and looked a real threat with his movement and technical ability in the final third. Hopefully with this consistent run in the side, we’ll see the best of him as he’s having a really positive influence on our attacking play.
Olivier Giroud, 7 – Two superb penalties as he made no mistake from the spot to help us build a commanding lead. Impressed again with his link-up play with his back to goal, as he helped string things together in the final third.
Rafael Leao, 7 – Continued to chip away and try to make things happen down our left flank. Didn’t come off for him in the early stages and he was visibly becoming frustrated, but he didn’t stop trying and eventually made his presence felt with the assist for Theo and winning the second penalty to play a decisive role in the win.
Substitutes:
Noah Okafor, 6 – Good movement up top to give his teammates an option, but the rhythm and consistency of our play fell off in the latter stages and it was difficult for him to make a significant impact.
Yunus Musah, 6.5 – Added an impressive burst of energy and impetus from midfield after coming on. Albeit a brief sample size, a positive first impression.
Samuel Chukwueze, 6 – Similar to Okafor in that he showed good intent and movement to find space, but couldn’t really get going as the game petered out as we looked comfortable and content to just see out the win.
Simon Kjaer, N/A
Alessandro Florenzi, N/A