Free-flowing Milan tore Rennes apart in a one-sided first leg of their Europa League knockout playoff tie at Stadio San Siro. Stefano Pioli’s side went on a rampage to demolish the French outfit 3-0 and put one foot into the round of 16.
Buoyed by a 1-0 home win against Serie A title holders Napoli at the weekend, Milan embarked on their Europa League campaign in a confident mood. Already out of the Coppa Italia and significantly off the Scudetto pace, Rossoneri solidified their hopes of avoiding a second consecutive trophyless season with a scintillating performance.
Milan dominated proceedings from top to bottom but had to wait until the 32nd minute to break the deadlock. Alessandro Florenzi whipped in a delightful cross, with Ruben Loftus-Cheek’s glancing header ricocheting off the post and in to give the Italians a well-deserved halftime lead.
Loftus-Cheek continued his sublime form early in the second half as he headed home a loose ball inside the Rennes six-yard box to double Rossoneri’s lead only two minutes after the break. Moments later, Rafael Leao put the game to bed with a superb first-time finish from the edge of the box.
Though it’s not over yet, Milan are now in cruising control of this tie as we look at our player ratings.
Milan (4-2-3-1)
Mike Maignan – 7.5
Heavily criticized for a downturn in form in recent weeks, the French goalkeeper silenced his doubters with a vintage performance, making several impressive stops to keep a second clean sheet in a row.
Alessandro Florenzi – 7
Took Davide Calabria’s place at right-back and excelled, especially in attack, as he grabbed a vital assist to help Milan break the deadlock while holding up his end of the bargain at the back.
Simon Kjaer – 7
Providing assists is not part of the Dane’s job, but he picked up one tonight. As far as his defensive contribution was concerned, everything was spot on.
Matteo Gabbia – 7
Pioli can be pleased with the Milan returnee’s showing, though he lacked conviction at times, particularly when trusted to give a hand in the build-up play.
Theo Hernandez – 7.5
There’s a reason he wore the captain’s armband tonight. Brimming with confidence and energy, one of the world’s best left-backs bossed the left flank and chipped in with an assist to put the icing on the cake.
Yunus Musah – 7
The USMNT midfielder’s burst of pace was too hot to handle for Rennes players as he impressed on his return to the starting XI after falling behind Yacine Adli in the pecking order.
Tijjani Reijnders – 6.5
While no one can argue about the Dutchman’s technical prowess and commitment, there’s a feeling he sometimes forgets about passing the ball to his teammates.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek – 8
Such a dominant figure! Let’s put his immense contribution in terms of goals aside – the Englishman was at least two levels above everyone today. Strong on the ball and slik in his movement, he was a refreshing sight tonight.
Rafael Leao – 7.5
Unlucky to hit the crossbar in the opening stages, the Portuguese superstar broke his scoring duck with an excellent finish to cap off an electrifying performance.
Christian Pulisic – 6.5
Despite failing to put his name on the board, the quicksilver forward gave Rennes defenders a run for their money, using his fancy footwork and blistering pace to create all sorts of problems on the right wing.
Olivier Giroud – 6
It was an atypically quiet evening for the veteran striker.
Substitutes
Noah Okafor – 6
Malick Thiaw – 6.5
Ismael Bennacer – 7
Filippo Terracciano – 6
Yacine Adli – 6
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