The Gods of Football love Milan. There is no other possible explanation for tonight’s crazy drama at the Estadio do Arcos in Vila do Conde as the Rossoneri overcame Rio Ave at the end of an incredible penalty shoot-out sequence to sneak into the Europa League Group Stage.
Milan were on the verge of being eliminated at least four times as they were trailing the Portuguese side until the very last extra time minute, when a terrible blunder by defender Toni Borekovic gift-wrapped a penalty to Stefano Pioli’s side.
After Hakan Calhanoglu buried the spot, the two sides engaged in something that could be arguably defined as one of the craziest penalty lottery ever seen on a football pitch, with Milan making three additional mistakes that put them with one foot and a half out of the Europa League.
But Mario Silva’s Rio Ave – who need to be complimented in any case – managed to do even worse and ultimately bowed out when Gianluigi Donnarumma pushed back Aderllan Santos’ 24th penalty in the sequence.
Milan thus put their heads into the Group Stage but for the first time since many months appeared vulnerable and without any fuel left in the tank. They were virtually eliminated until Borekovic’s incredible mistake as Rio Ave had managed to come from behind to cancel Alex Saelemaekers’ lead – turning what seemed to be a pretty boring game into a heart-breaking thriller.
Stefano Pioli’s rumored lineup choice materialized as the Parma-born coach deployed Daniel Maldini rather than Lorenzo Colombo in attack. It was the senior debut as a starter for the 19-old-son of the legendary Paolo – the current Rossoneri director of football.
The Portuguese were a tough side – they had eliminated Besiktas one week ago – and Pioli knew that. But Mario Silva’s side mostly thought about defending and Milan couldn’t find the key to unlock the game. There were basically no chances for the initial 45 minutes except for a couple of Hakan Calhanoglu shots from sidereal distance as he tried to take advantage of the strong wind in Vila do Conde – which blew in the Rossoneri‘s favor in the first half.
Pioli had to change something and gave space to Brahim Diaz in place of Samu Castillejo right after the half-time break, switching Alex Saelemaekers from the left to the right side.
That seemed to be a right move. The former Real Madrid and Manchester City winger had a decisive impact, producing an acceleration and a shot that earned Milan a corner kick. From the subsequent action, Saelemaekers found the right corner with a right-foot shot from outside the box to break the deadlock.
The second move from the Milan coach was sending in Rafael Leao, returning after his post-coronavirus quarantine, in place of Daniel Maldini. The illustrious figlio d’arte struggled to find his space in his debut match.
Rio Ave, however, had already showed against Besiktas that they were not to be underestimated. Their equalizer came out of nowhere as they made the best out of their very first shot into Gianluigi Donnarumma’s goal. A fine one-touch action was finalized by substitute Francisco Geraldes with a lightning-fast shot into the top right corner.
That basically changed the face of the match as the Portuguese started to become more dangerous and turned the ball possession in their favor. Milan’s legs were shaking now as Brahim Diaz’s progressively lost his momentum and Leao failed to make an impact. In such situations, Hakan Calhanolgu had been the added value in the past few weeks but the Turk appeared uninspired tonight. At full time, the score was still set at 1-1 and 30 additional minutes were required.
Milan had a shocking start in the extra time and conceded the second right after the referee’s whistle. It was another substitute – Gelson Dala – to put the ball past Donnarumma with a sharp left-foot conclusion, after winning a tackle with Frank Kessié.
Pioli went all in by sending in Lorenzo Colombo and then Sandro Tonali but the Rossoneri seemed not to have it anymore and the Portuguese side managed to control the game for most of the extra time. Only in the last five minutes did Milan manage to show their faces into Rio Ave’s final third, attacking desperately and with confusion.
It took an incredible mistake by Croatian defender Toni Borekovic, who committed a handball on the very last desperate ball whipped into the box by Milan, to send Hakan Calhanoglu to the penalty spot and resuscitate the Rossoneri.
The penalty shoot-outs were a story within a story. There were no mistakes from the first 14 shots. Then Lorenzo Colombo felt all the pressure put on his 18 years as he made his shot crash above the bar. But, as we said, the Gods of Football took a fond of Milan tonight: Nelson Monte’s next effort hit both posts before bouncing back into the pitch!
Rafael Leao scored, then Donnarumma managed to touch Ivo Pinto’s shot but failed to hold the ball. Milan’s goalkeeper was the next one to try and his conclusion went terribly out of the target. Good for Milan that his fellow colleague Pawel Kieszek’s shot was equally poor.
Twenty penalties were not enough to break the tie so the sequence started again: This time, Kieszek stopped Ismael Bennacer’s effort, delivering another match-point to Rio Ave. But goalscorer Francisco Geraldes wasted it by hitting the post.
After Simon Kjaer buried his spot for the second time, Gigio Donnarumma finally made an end of it as he dove to his right to push back Aderllan Santos’ second attempt. The thriller was over. But, gentlemen, what a night and what a game!
MATCH REPORT
October 1, 2020 – Europa League 2020-21 Play-Off
RIO AVE-MILAN 2-2 after extra time 10-11 on penalties
SCORERS: 51′ Saelemaekers (M), 72′ Geraldes (R), 91′ Dala (R), 121′ Calhanoglu (M, pen.)
PENALTY SEQUENCE: Bennacer (M) goal, Geraldes (R) goal, Kjaer (M) goal, Aderllan Santos (R) goal, Hernandez (M) goal, Jambor (R) goal, Brahim Diaz (M) goal, Lucas Piazon (R) goal, Calhanoglu (M) goal, Filipe Augusto (R) goal, Calabria (M) goal, Dala (R) goal, Tonali (M) goal, Gabrielzinho (R) goal, Colombo (M) out, Nelson Monte (R) post, Rafael Leao (M) goal, Ivo Pinto (R) goal, G. Donnarumma (M) out, Kieszek (R) out, Bennacer (M) saved, Geraldes (R) post, Kjaer (M) goal, Aderllan Santos (R) saved
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RIO AVE (4-2-3-1): Kieszek; Ivo Pinto, Borekovic, Aderllan Santos, Nelson Monte; Tarantini (74′ Jambor), Filipe Augusto; Lucas Piazon, Diego Lopes (65′ Geraldes), Carlos Mané (108′ Gabrielzinho); Bruno Moreira (84′ Dala) (Vieira, Pedro Amaral, André Pereira) Coach: Mario Silva |
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MILAN (4-2-3-1): G. Donnarumma; Calabria, Kjaer, Gabbia, Hernandez; Bennacer, Kessié (106′ Tonali); Castillejo (46′ Brahim Diaz), Calhanoglu, Saelemaekers (94′ Colombo); Maldini (66′ Rafael Leao) (Tatarusanu, Laxalt, Krunic) Coach: Pioli |
REFEREE: Gil Manzano (Spain)
NOTES: Yellow Cards: Borekovic, Aderllan Santos, Filipe Augusto, Tarantini (R), Hernandez, Rafael Leao, Kjaer (M); Red Card: Borekovic (R); Extra Time: 1st Half 1′, 2nd Half 2′, 1st Extra Half 0′, 2nd Extra Half 1′