In one of their best displays of the season, Serie A top-four hopefuls Milan dismantled relegation-bound Sampdoria 5-1 on Saturday. A one-sided affair at the San Siro saw Stefano Pioli’s men run riot in the wake of a heartbreaking Champions League result on Tuesday.
Without the distraction of Champions League football following a lackluster 3-0 aggregate loss to Inter in the semi-finals, Milan took the field to make amends to their fans and keep their faint hopes of securing a third consecutive top-four finish in Serie A alive. And they couldn’t have hoped for a more promising start to the game.
Rafael Leao broke the deadlock in the ninth minute with a delightful finish before veteran striker Fabio Quagliarella drew Sampdoria level in the 11th minute. After six straight scoreless appearances in Serie A, Olivier Giroud stole the show in the remainder of the first half, netting a brace to give Milan a 3-1 cushion at halftime.
After providing two assists in the first half, Brahim Diaz put the cherry on the cake with the simplest of tap-ins following Sandro Tonali’s layoff to increase the gap in the 63rd minute. Only five minutes later, Giroud wrestled Bram Nuytnick off the ball to complete his first hat-trick in the Rossoneri colors, helping Milan score five times in a single Serie A game for the first time this season.
Sampdoria had to thank their goalkeeper Nicola Ravaglia for pulling off numerous impressive stops to prevent further humiliation. Dejan Stankovic’s men looked up the creek without a paddle all night, making it easy for Milan to reduce the gap on fourth-placed Lazio to one point. But the Rossoneri must hope Maurizio Sarri’s men won’t win at Udinese on Sunday to bring their top-four bid back on track.
Milan (4-2-3-1)
Mike Maiginan – 6
There was nothing he could’ve done to stop Quagliarella’s goal. But other than the veteran’s strike, the Frenchman had a relatively quiet night for a change. Kudos to Pioli’s backline!
Theo Hernandez – 7
After a keenly-contested battle with Inter’s Denzel Dumfries, flying past Mehdi Leris time and time again came effortless for one of the best left-backs in the world. Despite failing to get on the board, he delivered another top-class performance.
Malick Thiaw – 7
Defensively spot-on and could’ve even scored if it weren’t for Ravaglia’s spectacular save to thwart his towering header in the first half.
Fikayo Tomori – 6.5
Another defensive masterstroke from the ex-Chelsea flop saw him cope with Manolo Gabbiadini without breaking a sweat.
Davide Calabria – 6
Not as effective as his teammate on the left, but still held up his end of the bargain at the back while trying to open up spaces for Junior Messias with constant movements up top.
Sandro Tonali – 7
One of the rare Milan players that looks better with each game passing. The Italian bossed the midfield tonight with pace, energy, and precision and even found a pocket of space to set Diaz on a silver platter to put the game to bed midway through the second half.
Rade Krunic – 6.5
Not as influential as Tonali, but did much of the heavy lifting in the middle of the park, winning back possession time and time again. Refused to give the ball away, always opting for a safe pass.
Junior Messias – 6
Despite Milan’s dominant performance, the Brazilian wasn’t at the top of his game tonight. Lost possession one too many times and failed to impact his team’s attacking set-up the way Pioli expected from him.
Brahim Diaz – 8
Alongside his match-winning performance against Juventus earlier this season, this was Diaz’s best showing for Milan in 2022/23. In addition to delivering two first-half assists, he was in the right place at the right time to score for the first time since early April.
Rafael Leao – 8
Well, Milan fans must have hoped to see this version of Leao on Tuesday. But after an underwhelming display against Inter, the Portuguese forward picked Sampdoria’s clueless defense apart tonight.
Olivier Giroud – 8
Vintage Giroud performance! It takes something special to bag a hat-trick in Serie A at 36, but the former Chelsea strike made it look easy. Man-of-the-match display from the veteran.
Substitutes
Alexis Saelemaekers – 5.5
Replaced Messias but followed in his footsteps, failing to do anything noteworthy since coming on at the hour mark.
Charles De Ketelaere – 3.5
What a waste of money this guy has proved to be. Another toothless showing from the out-of-sorts Belgian.
Tommaso Pobega – N/A
Simon Kjaer – N/A
Fode Ballo-Toure – N/A
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