Underdog Milan tears up the script with shock Barca win
Source: Agencies |
February 22, 2013, Friday
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SEVEN-TIME European champion and 18-time winners of the Italian league, AC Milan is rarely cast as an underdog, yet it thrived in the role on its way to Wednesday's shock 2-0 Champions League win over Barcelona.
Despite playing at home in front of a 75,000 crowd, coach Massimiliano Allegri was clearly aware of his team's limitations and accepted that his side would have to concede most of the possession to Barcelona.
The Catalans had enjoyed 65 percent of the ball before Milan opened the scoring in the 57th minute, just as Allegri had predicted they would before the match.
But, rather like Chelsea in last year's semifinal, Milan managed to nullify Barcelona's attack by pulling all its players back into the last third of the defense, creating an almost impenetrable barrier.
It worked remarkably well and not even the combination of Andres Iniesta and Lionel Messi could find a way through. "It was an extraordinary game from a defensive point of view as we didn't concede anything to Barcelona," Allegri said.
A season which started disastrously has suddenly come good for Milan as Allegri coaxes the best out of a group of players who many thought would struggle to compete both domestically and in Europe.
Allegri's future was the subject of almost weekly speculation back in September and October, yet the unflappable coach is now the hero of the hour after his side became only the second this season to prevent Barcelona from scoring.
"We did very well and I have to say that our coach was very, very good in my opinion," said chief executive Adriano Galliani, who has stood by Allegri from the outset. "We played a perfect match. We did well to prevent them from getting inside the box."
Wednesday's rapturous celebrations were a far cry from the opening Champions League match of the season when Milan was booed off the pitch at a half-empty San Siro after being held 0-0 by Anderlecht.
Forced to sell players such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic to cut costs, Milan failed to win a home game in its group and its total of eight points was the lowest of any of the teams in the last 16.
Yet the club appears to have spent wisely in the transfer market and players such as Kevin Constant, playmaker Riccardo Montolivo and teenage forward M'Baye Niang have all turned out to be astute signings.
Despite playing at home in front of a 75,000 crowd, coach Massimiliano Allegri was clearly aware of his team's limitations and accepted that his side would have to concede most of the possession to Barcelona.
The Catalans had enjoyed 65 percent of the ball before Milan opened the scoring in the 57th minute, just as Allegri had predicted they would before the match.
But, rather like Chelsea in last year's semifinal, Milan managed to nullify Barcelona's attack by pulling all its players back into the last third of the defense, creating an almost impenetrable barrier.
It worked remarkably well and not even the combination of Andres Iniesta and Lionel Messi could find a way through. "It was an extraordinary game from a defensive point of view as we didn't concede anything to Barcelona," Allegri said.
A season which started disastrously has suddenly come good for Milan as Allegri coaxes the best out of a group of players who many thought would struggle to compete both domestically and in Europe.
Allegri's future was the subject of almost weekly speculation back in September and October, yet the unflappable coach is now the hero of the hour after his side became only the second this season to prevent Barcelona from scoring.
"We did very well and I have to say that our coach was very, very good in my opinion," said chief executive Adriano Galliani, who has stood by Allegri from the outset. "We played a perfect match. We did well to prevent them from getting inside the box."
Wednesday's rapturous celebrations were a far cry from the opening Champions League match of the season when Milan was booed off the pitch at a half-empty San Siro after being held 0-0 by Anderlecht.
Forced to sell players such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic to cut costs, Milan failed to win a home game in its group and its total of eight points was the lowest of any of the teams in the last 16.
Yet the club appears to have spent wisely in the transfer market and players such as Kevin Constant, playmaker Riccardo Montolivo and teenage forward M'Baye Niang have all turned out to be astute signings.
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