Milan captured their second Serie A win in a row as they easily disposed of Torino in Serie A Round 2. It was an impressive team performance on the Rossoneri‘s part as newcomers Christian Pulisic and Tijjani Reijnders confirmed the good impression they made on their debut. Rossoneri regulars like Rafael Leao, Olivier Giroud, and Theo Hernandez also shone in the San Siro night, powering the home side to a convincing 4-1 success.
Here are our player ratings for the Milan vs. Torino showdown at the San Siro:
Milan (4-3-3)
Mike Maignan – 6.5
Magic Mike was efficient as usual, leading the back line with confidence and distributing the ball with his feet whenever needed. Other than that, he didn’t have much to do.
Davide Calabria – 6
The Rossoneri captain enjoyed a quiet night as the Milan defense was almost never tested.
Fikayo Tomori – 6.5
Like the whole Milan defensive line, it looked like he was caught by surprise in the occasion of Schuurs’ goal, but the rest of his game was spotless. He had the task of guarding Pietro Pellegri and managed to get the young striker at bay despite his aggressiveness.
Malick Thiaw – 7
More than for his defensive skills, the German center back stole the stage for his forays past the midfield line, which offered the Rossoneri more offensive options.
Theo Hernandez – 7.5
Same old Theo. He played more central than usual and tried to shoot multiple times, turning once again into one of the Rossoneri‘s primary offensive weapons. Gave life to a nice duel against Milan’s youth club product Raoul Bellanova, which he ultimately won. The chip that gave Milan the third goal was the cherry on the top of another impressive performance.
Rade Krunic – 6.5
The usual midfield watchdog. Krunic is not very visible, but terribly effective in disrupting the opposition’s play.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek – 7
The former Chelsea man was almost unnoticed until he put his stamp on Milan’s opener, keeping his cool to serve Pulisic an easy chance to find the net. Came close to scoring in the second half, but was denied by Vanja Milinkovic-Savic.
Tijjani Reijnders – 7
The young Dutchman confirmed to have vision and fantastic distribution skills. Just like Loftus-Cheek, he seems to have found his edge in Milan’s midfield in no time.
Christian Pulisic – 8
Another great display for the U.S. international. His feeling and understanding with both Rafael Leao and Giroud looks fantastic. He literally invented the first goal via a brilliant exchange with Loftus-Cheek, and kept pushing even when the score was 4-1…
Rafael Leao – 7.5
The mercurial winger continues to give the impression that he can wreak havoc in any team’s area every time he gets the ball on his feet. Tonight he did his job by assisting Hernandez for Milan’s third goal with a visionary pass. He didn’t make it to the scoresheet himself, but not for lack of trying.
Olivier Giroud – 7.5
The Frenchman had a rough start. He was marked by Alessandro Buongiorno, who didn’t go easy on him. The penalty gave him the chance to step up and, from then on, it was all easy for him. With three goals in two games, he is the current capocannoniere of the Serie A.
Substitutes
Noah Okafor – 5.5
Still seemed a bit bewildered in Giroud’s role at the center of the Rossoneri front line.
Samuel Chukwueze – 6.5
Showed glimpses of his talent with a couple of interesting dribbles, forcing the Torino defenders into fouling him multiple times to stop his forays.
Yunus Musah – 6
Made his debut in red-and-black, but didn’t have enough time to make an impact.
Simon Kjaer – N/A
Alessandro Florenzi – N/A
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Milan played entertaining football. But those two penalties were stupid. I don’t know who is more stupid: the rules, or the ref’s interpretation?