It was not the most brilliant version of Milan, the one seen tonight at the San Siro. But a lone goal from Pierre Kalulu was enough for the Rossoneri to dispose of Aurelio Andreazzoli’s Empoli and spend the night five points clear at the top of the Serie A table as they wait for Inter to take on Torino tomorrow.
After losing points to Salernitana and Udinese, the Rossoneri came back to winning ways against a mid-table side but run a few risks towards the end as the Toscani gained courage and put the home side to the ropes.
Empoli are now winless in 12 games but their display at the San Siro gave coach Andreazzoli a few reasons to be optimistic. The drop zone is still ten points away.
Kalulu Goal Out of Nowhere Gets the Job Done for Milan
Milan’s dominance was evident from the get-go and their pressure bore fruit 20 minutes into the game. A free-kick from Olivier Giroud was pushed back by Empoli’s wall but center back Kalulu appeared out of nowhere and beat the hapless Guglielmo Vicario with a clinical shot to the bottom left corner.
There was little else to report in the first half, except for Rafael Leao’s usual accelerations along the left flank and a Giroud header that Vicario scrambled to defuse. Mike Maignan was inactive for the whole first period.
However, Magic Mike was called to action early after the restart as Empoli’s approach became more dynamic. The French goalie had to dive to the right to palm away a tricky header from Sebastiano Luperto. He then stayed alert as Nedim Bajrami tried to catch him by surprise as he drove the ball right to the goal from a corner kick.
With 20 minutes to go, Andreazzoli had already fully reshaped his lineup with five changes, adding a second striker in former Rossonero Patrick Cutrone to support Andrea Pinamonti and then a third one in Federico Di Francesco.
The Toscani had much initiative but none of their offensive changes had much of an impact and, despite increasing the pressure by the minute, Empoli didn’t manage to seriously trouble Maignan again.
Stefano Pioli’s choice was to weather the mild storm rather than really look for a second goal. He maybe ended up running a few more risks than necessary but, as referee Daniele Chiffi blew for full time, could preserve his view from the top of the table for at least one more week.
What’s Next for Milan and Empoli
Milan can sit back and relax as the pressure is now on Inter and Napoli who will both play tomorrow. The Rossoneri‘s next test is away at Cagliari on Saturday, March 19. For the occasion, they will recover left back Theo Hernandez who was serving a one-match ban tonight.
Empoli will face Verona at the Carlo Castellani Stadium on Sunday. The Scaligeri are one of the most in-form side these days and will surely give a hard time to Andreazzoli’s Azzurri.
MATCH SCORECARD
March 12, 2021 – Serie A 2021-2022 Round 29
MILAN – EMPOLI 1-0
SCORERS: 19′ Kalulu
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MILAN (4-2-3-1): Maignan; Calabria, Kalulu, Tomori, Florenzi; Tonali, Bennacer (43′ st Krunic); Messias (72′ Saelemaekers), Kessie (72′ Brahim Diaz), Rafael Leao (83′ Rebic); Giroud (83′ Ibrahimovic) (Tatarusanu, Mirante, Ballo-Toure, Gabbia, A. Romagnoli, Castillejo, Maldini) Coach: Pioli |
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EMPOLI (4-3-2-1): Vicario; Fiamozzi (63′ Stojanovic), S. Romagnoli, Luperto, Cacace (63′ Parisi); Zurkowski, Asslani, Bandinelli (71′ Benassi); Bajrami (71′ Di Francesco), Henderson (63′ Cutrone); Pinamonti (Ujkani, Ismajli, Tonelli, Viti, Stulac, Verre, La Mantia) Coach: Andreazzoli |
REFEREE: Mr. Chiffi from Padua
NOTES: Yellow Cards: Tonali (M); Added Time: 1st Half: 2′, 2nd Half: 5′