Milan failed to make it through to the Coppa Italia final as we played out a goalless draw against Juventus on Friday night, with our rivals advancing on the away goals rule.
Ante Rebic was sent off after just 17 minutes in Turin, just moments after Cristiano Ronaldo saw his penalty strike the post. Neither side were able to find a breakthrough thereafter, which ultimately suited the Bianconeri as they held the advantage heading into the encounter.
READ MORE: Five key talking points as Milan crash out of Coppa Italia after Juventus stalemate
They’ll now face either Napoli or Inter next week, while Milan must switch their focus to the conclusion of the Serie A season, starting with a trip to Lecce on June 22.
Milan player ratings vs Juventus…
Gianluigi Donnarumma, 6.5 – Good to have him back between the posts after an injury blow prior to the lockdown. Looked assured throughout, dealt with danger when called upon and appeared to get a touch on Cristiano Ronaldo’s penalty as it hit the post.
Andrea Conti, 5 – Disappointing outing as he looked vulnerable defensively up against the pace of Douglas Costa and gave away the penalty. Didn’t offer much going forward, and so he’s still struggling to convince.
Simon Kjaer, 6.5 – Barring one sequence of play where he was left badly wrong-footed by Costa as Juve threatened, it was a solid performance from the Dane as he showed signs of being able to offer a reliable presence next to our captain. Made one stand-out intervention in particular to deny a seemingly certain Matthijs de Ligt goal.
Alessio Romagnoli, 6.5 – Similarly to his defensive partner, put in a great shift defensively as they kept things tight at the back and played a key role in shutting Ronaldo and Co. out. Also had a stand-out moment of his own as he raced across the line to perform a perfectly-timed sliding tackle on the Portuguese superstar to deny him a potential one-on-one situation.
Romagnoli excellent tackle on Ronaldo
pic.twitter.com/rKygS7YVqG— Karim (@Futball_Karim) June 12, 2020
Davide Calabria, 5 – Unfair on him to an extent as he didn’t look comfortable being shifted onto the left, and he’s either not learning from his mistakes or is cracking under pressure and repeating them. Either way, it’s a shame to see as he is struggling to dismiss concerns over his defending.
Franck Kessie, 6.5 – A top performance from the combative midfielder considering he put in a superb shift despite the lack of football in recent months, while he was one of the last to return to Milanello too. Offered defensive coverage with his tenacity and work-rate, and provided some much-needed penetration going forward too.
Ismael Bennacer, 6.5 – Not at his usual best, but not far from it. Showed class in possession as he got himself out of trouble regularly and kept moves alive. Similarly to Kessie, was also key in giving us a foothold in the game, especially as we were outplayed in the first half and looked miles off the pace.
Lucas Paqueta, 6 – While it was nowhere near a perfect display, given the circumstances, it’s a step in the right direction for the Brazilian ace. Showed the right attitude and commitment which is the minimum expectation but it’s important to see, just needs to pair that with more quality on the ball.
Giacomo Bonaventura, 6 – Adapted well to playing in more advanced role after Rebic’s red card, and almost provided a brilliant assist but Hakan Calhanoglu headed wide. Was arguably rightly aggrieved to be replaced in the second half, but it was a positive display while it lasted.
Hakan Calhanoglu, 6 – Similarly to Paqueta, he had to help his teammates and put in a shift off the ball which he did. Missed a big chance and needs to be more influential in the final third, but given the circumstances it was hardly a performance worthy of too much criticism even from his most ardent of detractors.
Ante Rebic, N/A – It could be argued that our chances of going through ended when he was dismissed. His reckless foul left us with 10 men for over 70 minutes and with no focal point in our attack. It made life much easier for Juve to contain us, as we had no-one spearheading our front line and that lack of physical presence was a big loss.
Substitutes
Rafael Leao, 5 – Bitterly disappointing effort from the 21-year-old as he continues to showcase a lack of effort and desire off the ball with his almost non-existent defensive work. Fails to use his strengths to his advantage as he didn’t use his pace or movement to stretch the defence. Instead, he often dropped back in front of them and just made life easy to nullify his threat from the minute he stepped on the pitch.
Rade Krunic, N/A
Lorenzo Colombo, N/A
Diego Laxalt, N/A
Alexis Saelemaekers, N/A