It could have been worse. In other times, no one at Milan would have welcomed a 1-3 draw, not even at the Camp Nou against Barcelona, but today we need to think differently. Given the premises, the risk of boarding was quite concrete, instead an honorable defeat arrived, which however does not change anything in terms of qualification. Yes, because Ajax took care of giving the Rossoneri a hand by executing Celtic and leaving them in last place in the group. Allegri and his team thus find themselves in second place without the shadow of Barça in their path, which leads us to think positively in view of the final rush. Having said that, yet another defeat comes from the Camp Nou, the first in Europe but the sixth this season. Not even the most optimistic however thought that the turning point would come in Barcelona, which is why, all in all, it is better to think about Chievo without making drama. “I am satisfied with the team's performance – thought Massimiliano Allegri. – At 0-0 we missed a lot of balls on the way out, but in the second we did better. We're sorry because we conceded two goals in unclear circumstances." The coach refers to the first two, who both arrived in the first half thanks to at least dubious decisions by the referee and assistants. In the 29th minute, with the result 0-0, the Serbian Mazic conceded a penalty to Barça for an alleged hold by Abate on Neymar, difficult to identify even by seeing and reviewing the replays from various angles. Messi, criticized on the eve of the Spanish newspapers for a 4-day fast in Liga, didn't need to be asked and made it 1-0. A few minutes later (40') Barcelona doubled their lead through Busquets, who was able to put Abbiati in with a header following a free kick from Xavi.
Even in this circumstance, however, the error of the assistant weighed in, who did not show off the offside position of the Spaniard. Milan thus found themselves down by two goals, with the very real risk of letting go and being overwhelmed by the Blaugrana storm. Luck (it really should be said!) that in the 45th minute a cross shot by Kakà was awkwardly deflected by Piqué into his goal, thus allowing the Rossoneri to shorten the distance. Invigorated by the goal, Allegri decided to risk a little more by inserting Balotelli in place of the impalpable Robinho. In fact, initially the coach had surprised everyone by leaving Mario on the bench, opting for a 4-4-1-1 from the all-Brazilian attack (?). With Balotelli, however, it's another matter, and Milan almost didn't collect the sensational draw. The blue striker first engaged Valdes with a shot from an angled position (50'), then served a splendid assist to Kakà who narrowly missed the blaugrana goal (64'). But the draw would have been too much, because for the rest we only saw Barça. Abbiati finished on the shields, able to avoid the debacle with two great saves on Iniesta and Sanchez. The goalkeeper, on the other hand, remained immobile on Neymar's personal action (which ended with a shot just wide) and was unable to do anything on Messi's, which ended instead with the final 3-1 goal (83'). Milan thus came out of the Camp Nou without points, but, albeit slightly, restored in morale. On Sunday there is Chievo with Thereau and Pellissier, not exactly Messi and Neymar. In Via Turati they sincerely hope that the team will notice the differences.
