Ismael Bennacer scored the only goal of the game as AC Milan produced one of the narrow football scores of the weekend in the Champions League. Bennacer scored a first-half winner, hammering past Alex Meret to set Milan on line for their first Champions League semi-final since winning the competition in 2007. Napoli, who lead Serie A by 22 points but were missing injured star striker Victor Osimhen for the first leg, dominated at the San Siro, having an attempt saved off the line in the first minute and hitting the crossbar in the second.
Anguissa had two yellow cards in three minutes and 45 seconds before being sent off in the 74th minute, halting their momentum, but Giovanni Di Lorenzo saw a late chance brilliantly saved by Mike Maignan. Milan, who also hit the crossbar in first-half stoppage time, will carry a slim lead to Naples for the return leg on Tuesday, with Luciano Spalletti’s side missing both Anguissa and Min-Jae Kim, who was booked in the second half. The winner will face either Inter Milan or Benfica in the semi-finals, with Inter leading after a 2-0 first-leg victory in Portugal.
Napoli, who are in the final eight of the Champions League for the first time, maybe 16 points clear at the top of Serie A and on course for their first title since 1990, but they were defeated 4-0 at home by AC Milan earlier this month. They started well at the San Siro, coming close to scoring after only 53 seconds as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s shot was saved off the line by Davide Calabria, with Mario Rui blazing over the rebound.
Rafael Leao burst through on goal for Milan in the 25th minute, but his effort sailed wide of the far post. However, Leao played a significant role in Milan’s opening goal 15 minutes later, collecting from Brahim Diaz’s excellent run and sending it across for Bennacer, who fired home despite Meret’s interference. In first-half stoppage time, Milan nearly extended their advantage when Simon Kjaer’s header from a corner hit the underside of the bar. Five minutes into the second half, Eljif Elmas’ flicked header was deflected against the woodwork by Maignan for Napoli.
Napoli’s star striker Osimhen, who leads Serie A with 21 goals this season, has yet to play this month due to a thigh strain suffered against Milan. However, Napoli manager Luciano Spalletti has stated that his talisman would be available for the return game next week.
“Because the work schedule was designed in that approach, the possibilities of him being accessible are 100 percent,” Spalletti said. “He was rested today, and anything might happen in Saturday’s game to finish the work done by the physicians.”
“It’s still 50-50, and while the outcome is undoubtedly a plus, it doesn’t change anything; there’s still everything to play for. We’re halfway up the mountain, but the last few bends are always the most difficult. We have a tough match in Naples, and none of us think we’re done yet,” AC Milan head coach Stefano Pioli said. “Above all, I am delighted to spend evenings like this with our followers. Milan’s history is littered with Champions League triumphs, but recent years have seen us realize our aim of reaching this stage, and we wanted to savor it. We didn’t start well from the back, allowing Napoli to harm us, but we got our first home win over Napoli in three years.”
Milan has won the opening leg of seven of their last nine two-legged UEFA Champions League knockout rounds, only failing to advance in 2003-04 v Deportivo de La Corua (quarter-finals) and 2012-13 v Barcelona (last 16). Napoli’s defeats this season have been 40 percent against Milan (2/5), with Stefano Pioli’s side the only one to beat them more than once in 2022-23. Indeed, Milan is the only team this season to have prevented Napoli from scoring on several occasions (4-0 in Serie A and 1-0 tonight).
Milan has preserved five consecutive clean sheets in the UEFA Champions League for the first time since Carlo Ancelotti’s 2004-05 season (a record of seven in a row). In 2022-23, Napoli has conceded six goals against Milan in all competitions, which is twice as many as they have conceded against any other team (three against Cremonese, Ajax, and Liverpool).
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