Chievo vs. AC Milan: Winners and Losers from Serie a
AC Milan failed to get back to winning ways on Sunday morning, drawing 0-0 away to Chievo as their hopes of reaching Serie A’s top three faded further into the distance.
For the third season running the Rossoneri shared a goalless game with their hosts at the Stadio Marc’Antonio Bentegodi. It was a frustrating match for Sinisa Mihajlovic’s men, who struggled to create serious chances up against a stout defence.
Chievo had the better of the first half, with Rolando Maran’s well-organised side denying their visitors scoring opportunities.
Christian Abbiati was brought on to replace Gianluigi Donnarumma after the 17-year-old clashed heads with Fabrizio Cacciatore, and he pulled off some important stops to keep the score at 0-0.
Milan threatened more in the second half and almost found the net in a bizarre sequence in the 74th minute. Surging down the right flank, Ignazio Abate shot as he entered the home side’s penalty area, only to hit the bar with his effort. Andrea Bertolacci then hit the post on the rebound.
In second half stoppage time, Cacciatore got on the end of a Chievo free-kick, channelling it into the back of the net with an accurate header, only to see his strike ruled out for offside. It was a huge let-off for Milan, whose marking from the set piece was poor.
Ultimately, with both teams wasting their best chances, the match unsurprisingly ended scoreless. Here are our winners and losers from a scrappy game of football.
Winner: Valter Birsa (Chievo)
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In a match that featured few spectacular individual performances, Chievo’s Slovenian attacking midfielder Valter Birsa stood out.
Playing at the tip of a midfield diamond, behind a strike duo of Riccardo Meggiorini and Antonio Floro Flores, he showed some nice creative touches.
Per WhoScored.com, he contributed four key passes, more than any other player on the pitch, before being substituted on 72 minutes.
As he once again showed today, Birsa will be crucial to the team's cause as they chase a top-half finish.
Loser: Giacomo Bonaventura (Milan)
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He may have been Milan’s best and most consistent player this season so far, but Giacomo Bonaventura was completely ineffective against Chievo.
Facing a tough, cohesive and, at times, crowded defence, the 26-year-old Italy international was unable to influence the game as he normally would.
Even when given space, he made poor decisions with the ball at his feet. The most glaring example of this came in the second half when, with an opportunity to cross, he dallied, twisting and turning several times before finally seeing his pass blocked by the first man.
Carlos Bacca is a top-class finisher, but there is only so much he can do without adequate supply. Bonaventura must do better in future to provide this.
Winner: Keisuke Honda (Milan)
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In contrast to Bonaventura, Keisuke Honda put in a strong display on the right-hand side of Milan’s midfield in Sunday’s draw.
The Japanese playmaker has impressed with his form in 2016, and his technical qualities and work ethic were again on show here.
He almost broke the deadlock with a well-struck free-kick on 43 minutes, only to watch his strike curl just wide of the target.
On top of that, Honda completed five dribbles and two key passes to earn WhoScored’s man of the match award.
Performances like these can only further cement his turnaround in fortunes from fringe squad player to integral first-team member for the Rossoneri.
Loser: Jeremy Menez (Milan)
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With Juraj Kucka injured in the warm-up, French forward Jeremy Menez was drafted in to play just behind Bacca in a 4-4-1-1 formation for Milan. Unfortunately, he failed to make any real impact on the game.
Prior to the match he addressed speculation linking him with a move to China. Speaking to L’Equipe (h/t Football Italia), he said:
“I'll be frank: Mine is a beautiful job, and I played in some great clubs, but not all of us were born rich, so when an offer comes through of the type that the Chinese are making, it's only human to think about it. But last summer (joint-CEO Adriano) Galliani told me I wasn't going to leave. He was having none of it.”
Of the Milan players that started against Chievo, only Donnarumma—who was brought off after just 18 minutes—had less touches than Menez. In short, he was almost absent.
With more showings like this one, Milan may be more open to selling him come this summer.
Winner: Bostjan Cesar (Chievo)
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Chievo put in a sound defensive display to shut out Milan. Rarely did they allow any space to their visitors in attacking situations and, even when they did, they snuffed out the attacks well.
While this was a collective effort, Bostjan Cesar deserves credit for his individual contribution. He made four interceptions and six clearances, per WhoScored, to ensure his side kept a clean sheet.
The Slovenian stopper may not be particularly refined, but on Sunday he again showed himself to be a solid centre-back.
