A perfect start for Massimiliano Allegri’s Milan...
At San Siro, the Rossoneri win 2-0 against Bari in the Coppa Italia Round of 32. The next opponent for the red and black faithful in the competition will be Francesco Camarda’s Lecce. Below is the story of the match at San Siro.
Milan - Bari: first half...
After the presentation of the new signings and a minute of silence in memory of the premature passing of Matthias Verreth’s son, the Meazza welcomed referee Arena’s opening whistle. The first chance fell to the visitors with Moncini, whose strike from outside the box went wide. Milan’s reply came quickly in the 4th minute through Fofana: his left-footed shot from inside the area was well saved by Cerofolini. The most anticipated player wasted no time making his mark, and in the 14th minute he put his team ahead: Tomori delivered a cross from the right, Rafael Leão rose to head home, and it was 1-0 to Milan. That, however, was the end of the night for the number 10, as he soon felt a calf problem that forced him off, replaced by Gimenez, as pointed out by MilanPress.it.
Christian Pulisic had the clearest chance in the 25th minute: a counterattack well put together by the Rossoneri freed the American for a shot, but his effort clipped the crossbar. Before halftime, Mike Maignan produced a stunning save to push away Sibilli’s long-range effort destined for the top corner. In stoppage time, Saelemaekers tried his luck from the edge of the area, but his slightly deflected effort drifted just wide.
What about the second half of the match?
The second half started in the best possible way for Milan, as within three minutes they doubled their lead. A one-two between Gimenez and Pulisic inside the box allowed the American to control, turn, and finish past Cerofolini. In the 48th minute, it was 2-0. Not much else happened until midway through the half, when San Siro erupted for Luka Modric’s debut: a roar of applause greeted his entrance and every touch of the ball. Ardon Jashari and Yunus Musah also came on, with the former making his first appearance at the Meazza. The match saw no further drama, aside from a few forward bursts from Modric in the number 14 shirt, warmly welcomed by the Rossoneri faithful.
Milan wrapped up the Bari test with a 2-0 win (Leão and Pulisic the scorers) and now turn their focus to the Serie A opener against Cremonese on Saturday, August 23, at 8:45 PM CEST.
