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Milan 3-1 Club Brugge: Underwhelming Rossoneri get first Champions League win against 10 men

Milan finally got their first points of the 2024/25 Champions League campaign. It was an underwhelming performance from the Rossoneri, but they got the job done eventually.

Club Brugge impressed early but lacked clinicality in their finishes. A poor goal was conceded in the first half and a red card soon after for the Belgian side made their night’s work difficult.

It looked like Club Brugge could have taken a result at San Siro, and an early second-half goal gave the travelling Belgians hope, but the Italians would punish them with the extra man eventually thanks to a Tijjani Reijnders brace.

As it happened

Club Brugge had a handful of chances to take the lead early on at the Giuseppe Meazza. Christos Tzolis forced a good save from Mike Maignan, and Joel Ordóñez hit the crossbar, both chances within the space of a minute.

Milan took control of possession after those early chances, however they were left frustrated by the visitors’ mid-block. Rafael Leão was the only outlet for the home side on the few occasions they progressed into the final third in the opening 20 minutes.

It took until the 26th minute for Paulo Fonseca’s side to create a good chance. A short corner routine eventually found its way to Matteo Gabbia, who should have directed his header better as he missed the target.

However, it didn’t take long for another good chance to come for the home side. A driving run inside from Leão after separating himself from Joaquin Seys was followed by a quick one-two with Álvaro Morata, the pass back to the winger not brilliant, leaving Leão struggling to control the ball. But the ball found its way to Christian Pulisic, who forced Simon Mignolet’s first save of the night from a tight angle in the six-yard box.

After a long period without the ball, Club Brugge finally got a chance to get forward on the counter. Tzolis dribbled down the left side and gave it to the overlapping Ferran Jutglà, who shot low across goal only to be denied by the leg of Maignan.

Despite the underwhelming start, it was Milan who took the lead; Christian Pulisic with a goal straight from a corner to continue his fine start to the season. Mignolet should have done better, but he was waiting for a touch by Morata or Gabbia. Instead, the ball went straight past him.

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There was a lengthy VAR check not long after the goal for a red card, which compiled the misery for Club Brugge, as Raphael Onyedika was sent off for his challenge on Reijnders. It was a 50/50 ball and the Nigerian was unfortunate that he stood on the Dutchman’s shin.

Club Brugge would have been disappointed in themselves at halftime. The Belgian champions could have had a multi-goal lead in the opening 10 minutes alone, then the goal they conceded was one they should have dealt with. To add insult to injury, they were soon reduced to 10 men.

Milan, on the other hand, were fortunate to be ahead. The home side had 61% possession, but only challenged Mignolet once outside of the fortuitous goal. A lot of the possession was on the halfway line with the defenders as they struggled to give options to advance past Brugge’s mid-block.

Milan continued to underwhelm as the 10 men of Club Brugge equalised less than 6 minutes into the second half, the Belgians playing like they had 11 on the pitch still. Tzolis put a low cross towards halftime substitute Hugo Vetlesen, who held the ball up before laying it off to the other substitute, Kyriani Sabbe, who shot home back across the goal into the bottom left corner. It was beautiful football from the Belgians.

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Paulo Fonseca, already under pressure for his bad start, was met by disgruntled whistling from the fans as he substituted Rafael Leão after 60 minutes. The Portuguese winger had been one of the few bright sparks for Milan in the first half, so it appeared a strange substitution.

However, Noah Okafor instantly helped put the Rossoneri back ahead. He beat his defender on the outside of the touchline before cutting it back to Reijnders on the penalty spot, who finished it off with ease. Mignolet, once again, probably could have done better as the shot was relatively central in the goal.

Ten minutes later, fellow substitute Samuel Chukwueze created Milan’s third. He beat his man, chipping the ball over a sliding challenge, and in a similar fashion, but from the other side of the pitch, he cut the ball back to Reijnders who was unmarked in the centre of the box. He went on to place his shot in the bottom right corner. From an early red card at the weekend to a Champions League brace: it was quite the week for the Dutch international.

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Fonseca gave 16-year-old Francesco Camarda, an extremely exciting young striker, his first Champions League appearance, making him the youngest Italian in the competition’s history. His every pass and touch was applauded by the San Siro.

One of those touches was briefly Milan’s fourth goal, Camarda looping a header over Mignolet. The youngster was almost deified by his teammates to an erupting San Siro; it was a great moment for the 16-year-old. But, VAR ruled he was offside, a brutal feeling for Camarda who slammed the ground in frustration.

Despite the underwhelming performance and bitterly disappointing ruled-out goal, it was to be a 3-1 victory for AC Milan. It wasn’t a vintage performance by any stretch, but an important first win of their Champions League campaign.

For Club Brugge, this was a frustrating game. They definitely could have taken points from this game if not for the red card. They’ll begrudgingly take positives from a disappointing result.

The lineups

MIL: Maignan; Hernández, Tomori, Gabbia, Emerson; Reijnders, Fofana, Loftus-Cheek; Leão, Morata, Pulisic

CLU: Mignolet; De Cuyper, Mechele, Ordóñez, Seys; Onyedika; Tzolis, Vanaken, Jashari, Talbi; Jutglà


Milan 3-1 Club Brugge: Underwhelming Rossoneri get first Champions League win against 10 men – FromTheSpot