AC Milan vs. Chievo: Score, Grades and Reaction from Serie A Game

Sulley Muntari and Keisuke Honda scored second-half goals as AC Milan defeated Chievo 2-0 on Saturday at the San Siro.

Following a quiet first half in which the teams combined for a single shot on target, Milan went ahead in the 55th minute through Muntari's well-taken half-volley. Honda then sealed the points with a classy free-kick 12 minutes from time.

With the win, Milan moved 11 points through six matches, four behind leaders Juventus and Roma, who play each other on Sunday. Filippo Inzaghi's side now sits in fourth place, level on points with Sampdoria and Verona but ahead of both on goal differential and goals scored.

Up next for Milan is a match at Verona on Oct. 19, following the upcoming international break. Chievo, who still have never won at the San Siro, face a daunting trip to Roma on Oct. 18.

Following the defeat, Chievo are 16th in the Serie A table with four points.

Antonio Calanni/Associated Press

Milan's Jeremy Menez dragged a first-time shot wide in the eighth minute following good work by Mattia De Sciglio. Ten minutes later, Giacomo Bonaventura redirected a Fernando Torres shot-cross narrowly wide.

Honda curled a left-footed drive just wide of the top corner in the 20th minute, following a good spell of pressure by Milan.

Chievo recorded the first half's lone shot on target in the 32nd minute, Ivan Radovanovic trying his luck from more than 35 yards. AC Milan goalkeeper Christian Abbiati saved easily.

Torres had a big chance in the 39th minute, finding the ball at his feet inside the box after Chievo failed to clear a short corner. But the Spanish striker sliced his shot high and wide from a tight angle, sending the match into half-time scoreless. OptaPaolo provided a significant match stat:

The second half quickly brought more life to the San Siro, Menez volleying off target in the 49th minute as the home side chased the opening goal.

In the 55th minute, that opener finally arrived. Chievo failed to clear a Honda cross, with a headed clearance falling into the path of Muntari along the edge of the box. With his first touch, Muntari hit a half-volley into the ground, bouncing the ball past Francesco Bardi for a 1-0 lead.

The breakthrough gave Milan an obvious boost, and with Chievo now forced to attack, space began to open up throughout the pitch. In the 63rd minute, Nigel de Jong picked out Ignazio Abate on the right with a raking pass from the middle. Abate volleyed into the middle, where Honda was lurking dangerously, but the Japanese international was unable to latch onto the pass with the crucial final touch.

Bardi then saved with his face in the 67th minute to keep out Menez's deflected shot. Three minutes later, Chievo's Dejan Lazarevic burst free in Milan's half following a giveaway, but with a three-on-one advantage upon reaching the box, the substitute passed weakly into Abbati's arms.

In the 78th minute, Honda sealed Milan's victory with a goal direct from a free-kick, curling his shot around the wall and into the net off Bardi's hand.

Now in need of two goals, Chievo tried to exert pressure in the closing moments, but the away side never came close to troubling Milan.

Grades

Starting XI	Rating
Substitutes	Rating
Christian Abbiati	6.9
Ignazio Abate	8.1
Alex	7.5
Adil Rami	8.0
Mattia de Sciglio	7.2
Sulley Muntari	7.5
Nigel de Jong	7.5
Keisuke Honda	7.9
Giacomo Bonaventura	7.7
Jeremy Menez	7.7
Fernando Torres	6.5
Stephan El Shaarawy (for Torres, 74')	6.5
Andrea Poli (for Honda, 81')	6.8
Michael Essien (for Muntari, 89')	6.2

Starting XI	Rating
Substitutes	Rating
Francesco Bardi	6.1
Nicolas Frey	6.4
Dario Dainelli	7.0
Ervin Zukanovic	7.2
Cristiano Biraghi	6.1
Valter Birsa	6.0
Isaac Cofie	5.9
Perparim Hetemaj	6.8
Ivan Radovanovic	7.5
Alberto Paloschi	6.0
Maxi Lopez	6.1
Dejan Lazarevic (for Birsa, 66')	5.9
Riccardo Meggiorini (for Lopez, 72')	5.9
Nicola Bellomo (for Cofie, 82')	6.1

Post-Match Reaction

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