Milan dazzles and wins with its star players: 3-0 over Lecce, now two points behind the leader
Milan bounced back in style after two setbacks against Juventus and Milan and following their disastrous Europa League debut, convincingly defeating Lecce on a night when their star players shone. The 3-0 victory at San Siro was secured by goals from Christian Pulisic, Adrien Rabiot, and Diego Moreira, who is becoming increasingly pivotal to Ruben Amorim’s lineup. The Rossoneri reclaim fifth place in the standings, but more importantly, they are just one point away from a Champions League spot and only two points behind the top of the table, currently shared by Roma, Inter, and Lazio.
With a lineup that returned to fielding its starters from the opening whistle after the controversial rotations against Benfica, Milan showed they were in great form right from the opening minutes, stifling Lecce’s early attacks and taking the lead in the 14th minute with a masterful play by Pulisic, who collected a great pass from Pavlovic and, after a wonderful first touch to beat Siebert, fired a left-footed shot that left Falcone helpless. Throughout the rest of the first half, the Rossoneri also offered plenty of flashes of fine play, even though Saelemaekers, Chukwueze, and Ramos were unable to find the net to double the lead.
The second half confirmed the positive vibes from the first: Estupiñan squandered a brilliant pass from Rabiot, earning only a corner (and San Siro groaned), then an offside call prevented Pavlovic from doubling the lead on a header where Falcone fumbled the rebound. A Rossoneri goal was in the air, and it came in the 61st minute from Rabiot himself, capping off a play started by Pulisic that the Frenchman finished after a give-and-go with Ramos. Estupiñan makes amends by denying Pierotti a goal, then in the 73rd minute, glory comes for the “usual” Moreira, who had just come on for Saelemaekers and did well to make it three by capitalizing on a blunder by Siebert.
This victory takes on special significance given the circumstances in which it was achieved. In recent days, Gerry Cardinale had reaffirmed his confidence in Amorim despite the boos at San Siro following the loss to Benfica, but the RedBird owner had also made it clear that he was not satisfied with the team’s performance—so much so that he summoned the Portuguese coach for a face-to-face meeting. Amorim himself, on the eve of the match, had tried to defuse the controversy: “The team is ready for the game; we can’t change the past, but we can change the next game. My approach to soccer isn’t based on the formation, but on principles—that’s what matters,” he stated at a press conference, adding that the meeting with Cardinale was part of the club’s normal management routine.
Gonçalo Ramos, signed this summer for approximately 70 million euros—a club-record fee—was under particular scrutiny; so far, he has scored only one league goal, against Venezia. The former PSG player didn’t find the back of the net tonight either, but he put in a more convincing performance than in recent outings, playing a key role in the build-up to Rabiot’s goal that made it 2-0. Amorim had laid out the plan in recent days: “We need to help him and put him in a position to score,” and tonight the team stepped up, at least partially easing the pressure on the Portuguese striker.
