And at the 13th Milan falls. The Rossoneri hoped to win in Florence to take advantage of the clash between Inter and Napoli; instead, they have to deal with a defeat, the first of this championship, which turns on an alarm bell that is impossible to ignore. In the pyrotechnic 4-3 of the Franksin fact, there have been some worrying errors which have frustrated the team's excellent offensive performance, but which above all confirm that, in the long run, we cannot do without certain players.
Tatarusanu, after dressing up as a hero in the derby, returned to committing a duck, Gabbia, chosen by Pioli to replace Tomori, showed all his inexperience, Hernandez, as usual, was as good from the waist up as he was limping in phase defensive. In short, after 12 days of an (almost) clean run, the Diavolo ends up knocked out, knocked out by an excellent Fiorentina, but also, if not above all, by his own mistakes.
“We have to feel the pain of this defeat and make sure it doesn't happen again – commented by Pioli – It's a strong disappointment, we've never lost in the league so far, but this defeat will do us good. In any case, despite the result, I saw a team with character, mentality and strong players, I'm sure we will play until the end for our goals."
Crazy match that of the Franchi, difficult to analyze both from a tactical and logical point of view. The Rossoneri ran, pressed, kicked on goal several times, yet they went two goals down at half-time and, in the 60th minute, even lost 3-0. Fault of the imprecision in the shooting phase, but also, if not above all, of some defensive follies, in particular in the 15th minute when Tatarusanu let a comfortable ball slip from his hands and Gabbia, in a beautiful statuette version, did not sweep for a corner, allowing Duncan to score the 1-0.
Milan charged with their heads down for the entire first half, coming close to equalizing with Ibra and Leao (twice), but in the 45th minute they fell again, this time due to a splendid right-footed shot from Saponara who slipped inside crossroads of poles. In the second half, the script didn't change, with the Rossoneri attacking and the Viola scoring…again: protagonist Vlahovic, who burned Gabbia on the edge of offside and deposited the ball into the net for the sensational 3-0. Franchi celebrated, but not for long, because at that moment Ibrahimovic took the chair, author of a brace in the 5th minute (62' and 67') which seemed to be able to reopen the game.
Pioli believed in it, also putting Giroud and Messias in, but in the 85th minute there was a cold shower, again served by Vlahovic, courtesy of an unfortunate Hernandez. Venuti's own goal (96') thus served only to fill the scoresheet, because the 3 points went to the Italian's Fiorentina, back in the running for Europe, against a Milan that seriously risks abandoning the top of the championship.
Very important victory instead for the Juventus, which col 2-0 of the Olimpico catches Lazio in fifth place and stays within 4 of Atalanta, next day's opponent. The success is heavy, because at Di Bello's kick-off the bianconeri were even 7 points behind the Champions area, occupied by the Bergamo players, in turn victorious over Spezia with a 5-2 round. However, the pressure did better for Allegri than for Sarri and not only for the result: the idea of defending and restarting literally nullified the offensive football of the Biancoceleste coach, as evidenced by the only shot on goal, which was not dangerous in any case 90'.
Cataldi thought of making the Lady's plan even more effective, who in the 23rd minute committed a naive foul on Morata, causing the referee to whistle a penalty well converted by Bonucci. And so the bianconeri were able to play exactly the game they wanted, also because Lazio without Immobile never managed to sting, despite having more ball possession.
Then, in the second half, with the pace dropping, the biancocelesti ended up losing their lucidity too, allowing Juve to defend themselves without worries and restart dangerously, coming close to the knockout several times. Who arrived in the 83rd minute, again with Bonucci and always from the penalty spot, this time due to a clear foul by Reina on Chiesa. The bianconeri thus obtain a vital success in the Champions League, while Lazio, once again, fail the final exam.
"The team played a good game, without distractions, even if we didn't take advantage of the chances we had to score and we need to improve on this - the analysis by Allegri – However we made many shots on goal, had many chances and conceded nothing to an excellent Lazio. A satisfaction to beat Sarri? It wasn't Sarri against Allegri, but Lazio against Juve...".
“The first penalty decided the match – thundered the Lazio technician – We played well, only dividing ourselves in the final due to the desire to recover the result, 77% of territorial supremacy is an important fact. They won from Juve: penalty for the lead, low defense and counter-attack, that's how they won games and championships. The chants of the Juventus fans against me? I don't give a damn about them, I worked there but I'm not a Juventus player." Both envy confirms how much Sarri wanted to beat his former team, but also that that marriage, if there were still any doubts, remains one of the most out of tune ever.
