AC Milan vs. Atalanta: Winners and Losers from Serie A Game
AC Milan’s three-match winning run came to an end on Saturday evening as they drew 0-0 at home to Atalanta.
In what was a disappointing performance, Milan were perhaps fortunate not to lose the match considering the opportunities they offered to their visitors, and their failure to engineer many scoring chances of their own.
Atalanta were well organised by their coach Edy Reja and, were it not for Milan’s 16-year-old goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, they could easily have left San Siro Stadium with all three points.
Sinisa Mihajlovic’s side had chances later on, with Luiz Adriano having a header blocked on the line before a counter-attack led to Alessio Cerci rounding Marco Sportiello before hitting the side netting with his shot.
Milan were without key players such as Giacomo Bonaventura and Andrea Bertolacci, which didn’t help their attacking play.
It was nowhere near enough, however, as the Rossoneri receded with a display that looked similar to their below par performances from several weeks ago in a match they were expected to win.
Here are our winners and losers from the game.
Winner: Alejandro Gomez
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Alejandro Gomez was his lively, inventive self on Atalanta’s left wing, tormenting Matti de Sciglio in the first half and Davide Calabria in the second.
Per Squawka, Gomez had been the third-best performer in Serie A going into this fixture and the Argentinean was always looking to open up Milan’s defence in the hope of continuing his good form.
Cutting in from the left onto his favoured right foot, his nimble feet, pace and directness were a constant thorn for Mihajlovic’s men.
Loser: Mattia De Sciglio
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Mattia De Sciglio just did not get going against Atalanta. Given a yellow card for a full-on sliding challenge, he then risked a second yellow when missing the ball and kicking Mauricio Pinilla.
The Italy international, in for the injured Ignazio Abate at right-back, also looked nervy in his distribution throughout the game and, as well as a poor defensive showing, failed to offer adequate support going forward.
BeIN Sport analyst Matteo Bonetti mentioned De Sciglio’s display and reasons for his half-time substitution, saying: “De Sciglio on a yellow, risked getting another one. Time for the teenage…(Davide) Calabria.”
Hooked at half-time, De Sciglio watched on as his 18-year-old replacement put in a more assured performance in his place.
Winner: Gianluigi Donnarumma
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Gianluigi Donnarumma has transitioned smoothly into life as Milan’s first-choice goalkeeper and this continued with a match-defining individual performance against Atalanta.
Were it not for him, Milan could easily have been staring at their fifth league defeat of the campaign; on several occasions Donnarumma made crucial saves to deny clear goalscoring chances.
His strong hands denied Maximiliano Moralez at his near post from close range, before good decision making saw him stick out a leg to prevent Mauricio Pinilla from passing Atalanta into the lead.
Atalanta's Gomez discussed Donnarumma after the match, telling Mediaset Premium (h/t Football Italia), “Their goalkeeper was excellent this evening and the only thing we were missing tonight was the goal. Donnarumma was really impressive, as it’s not easy at the age of 16 to wear the Milan jersey."
For his efforts Donnarumma was deservedly awarded WhoScored’s man of the match award. With another strong line of saves under his belt, the youngster continued to prove he is worth his No. 1 spot.
Loser: Milan's Distribution
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In a match in which they created so few chances, Milan’s distribution was questionable. The Rossoneri tried to play the ball out from the back but were unable to do so effectively.
Meanwhile, in the attacking third, there was a real lack of connection between the front three of M’Baye Niang, Carlos Bacca and Alessio Cerci.
Milan only achieved 72 percent pass success and had a mere 40 percent of possession per WhoScored. In both cases, this was lower than their less-prestigious visitors
Part of this problem was down to Atalanta’s solid defensive play and pressing, but Milan’s passing game was also severely lacking in connections and, perplexingly, confidence.
Winner: Atalanta's Defensive Organisation
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Per Opta Paolo, Milan’s six shots (excluding those that were blocked) was a joint-low for them this season. While this doesn’t say much positive for the Rossoneri’s attacking play, it is worth noting that Atalanta’s defensive organisation was excellent.
Playing in their usual 4-5-1 system, Atalanta were extremely difficult to break down and often pressed Milan well in their own half to limit the home side’s ability to create.
Per WhoScored, Reja’s men won 32 tackles, 15 more than Milan, while also winning 57 percent of their aerial duels.
Such defensive rigour will only serve them well as they look to stay away from another relegation dogfight.
