AC Milan did it. Paulo Fonseca did it. Yesterday, the Rossoneri finally secured their first victory of the season, and as a result, it was also the first win for the Portuguese coach as manager of the Rossoneri team. In just under half an hour, the crisis was dispelled, though the work is just beginning. With upcoming matches against Liverpool and the Derby, Milan will face a tough challenge this week. However, the fans got the response and reaction they were asking for, and a 4-0 win without question will undoubtedly boost morale.
A fast and strong start to the match at the San Siro
As Gazzetta dello Sport wrote this morning, after three weeks of poor play, lack of results, off-field controversies, and discontent, there couldn’t have been a better start. Motivated by a dreadful start to the season and spurred on by the fans, who greeted the team bus in large numbers with an ultimatum ("No more excuses, last call"), Milan took just over a minute to break open the match against Venezia. Of course, it was the two most criticized players from the last 14 days who made it happen: Theo Hernandez and Rafael Leao. The Frenchman won the ball in the opponent’s third and played a one-two with the Portuguese, who backheeled it into space for him.
With no angle, the fullback finished, with some help from Joronen, shaking off the dust at San Siro and putting the game on the right track. Certainly, a 4-0 win against newly promoted and still very naïve Venezia isn’t the final test for this Milan, who now face two truly challenging matches. Nevertheless, winning like this instills confidence and morale for the future.
Milan coach Fonseca drew some valuable insights last night
Moreover, over the course of the 90 minutes, Fonseca was able to draw some valuable insights to build on in the coming matches. Besides the hunger shown by Theo and Leao, there were also encouraging signs from the midfield. The Portuguese coach pushed Reijnders a bit higher up, dropping Loftus-Cheek almost in line with Fofana. The Dutchman, closer to the goal, became a different player, contributing to two of the four goals.
His understanding with Pulisic was excellent, with the latter consistently being one of the best players on the pitch. Further forward, despite scoring the first goal from a penalty, Tammy Abraham performed well, both tactically and emotionally engaged. The defense kept a clean sheet, and Gabbia showed good concentration, but with all due respect to Venezia, the real crash test will be against Liverpool, followed by the clash with Inter.
Some players, however, still struggled, such as Emerson Royal, who was shaky at the start on the right and gave the ball away to Zampano for Venezia’s disallowed goal by VAR. In summary, Milan leaves the match satisfied and reinvigorated, but it would be a mistake to think all problems have been solved: the tough part is yet to come, as relayed via Milan News.
