EMPOLI (ITALPRESS) – Conceicao got the changes right and Milan expelled the Empoli field 2-0. It was Leao and Gimenez, initially on the bench, who solved a challenge started underwhelmingly by Maignan and his teammates. An important success for the ranking and for morale, but also and above all for the first goal in Serie A of the Mexican who started his adventure in the Rossoneri in the best possible way.
It started and after a few minutes, Cacace intervened with his hammer foot late on Walker’s right leg, but the referee, who did not caution the New Zealander, was not called back to Var. On the quarter-hour mark, Grassi is freed to shoot after an insistent move by Esposito on the right, but his attempt is blocked with his foot by Tomori. The Tuscans came very close to taking the lead on 33′, when Colombo freed himself well with his left and tried a looping conclusion that was printed on the inside post and went wide. It will be the last chance of the first half. Conceicao, evidently dissatisfied with his team’s game, immediately put in Leao, Pulisic and Gimenez. The match took a turn at 10′, when Tomori picked up his second yellow for a foul on Colombo thrown into the net, leaving his team in ten.
The Rossoneri’s protests were vibrant, however, as the action seemed vitiated by an alleged initial offside by the home striker himself. Ten minutes later, it was Marianucci who made himself the protagonist of an ingenuity, committing a reaction foul on Gimenez. After Var review, Pairetto sent off the defender, thus restoring numerical parity. The guests galvanized and at 23′ found the lead. Pulisic takes off down the right and puts in a kiss-perfect ball for Leao, whose header anticipates Goglichidze and scores to make it 1-0. The 7-time European champions close out the scoring on 31′. Maignan relaunches from his area, Pulisic controls great and frees Gimenez on the right, who gets back on the left-hand side and slips it past Vasquez at the second post for 2-0. It is the first Serie A goal for the Mexican, on his debut day in our league. At 37′ it was Joao Felix who came close to scoring his third, but his close-range dig was stopped by Vasquez on the way out. In the final there is still time for one last chance for D’Aversa’s team, with Konate sending wide by a whisker a right-footed shot from a central position. The result would not change again. Thanks to this victory, Milan climbs to seventh place at 38. Empoli, on the other hand, remains in fourth-last place with 21 points to their credit.
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(ITALPRESS).
Leao unlocks, Gimenez closes, Milan wins 2-0 in Empoli
