Victory and little else. Milan beat Sampdoria 1-0 and get back up in the standings, at least until this afternoon. It certainly wasn't a transcendental success, but these days in the Rossoneri house there's really no need to be picky. “It was a difficult race because winning was very important – admitted Massimiliano Allegri. – And then, finally, we didn't concede a goal. We defended well and put our heart into the field, the boys did an excellent job in a moment of fatigue and numerical difficulty". True, and it is no coincidence that the hero of the match was Valter Birsa, one who, in the summer, seemed destined for the role of an extra, if not even a loan. And instead the Slovenian, thanks to the numerous absences, has become a loyalist of Allegri. On the other hand, the Tuscan coach has a predilection for quantity players, especially if they combine insertion times and a few goals. Exactly what he did, becoming man of the match in the second half that has just begun.
“He's a good player with good technique – said Allegri. – Already with Naples and Bologna he had shown his qualities, he can easily stay in the Milan squad ”. Especially in the current one, which he certainly doesn't shine in quality. In this hubbub of low rhythms and horizontal plays, Robinho's class emerges, one who certainly doesn't kill himself with fatigue during training, but undoubtedly knows how to give the ball a personal touch. Inspiration, imagination and vision, after the good performance in Bologna the Brazilian also repeats himself at San Siro, just a pity that, in the house specialties, there is no sense of goal. Incredible the wrong one in the 50th minute, when Robinho, instead of depositing the ball in the unguarded goal, actually gave it away to Da Costa. And then so much fear, to the point of safeguarding the 1-0 as if it were a rare and precious commodity, and certainly not due to the merits of Sampdoria. Understandably, however, Allegri takes it and takes it home: “After a first half in which we got various situations wrong, we did well in the second. It wasn't a problem of commitment, but of being able to find a victory that we already deserved against Napoli and Bologna”.
The Tuscan coach is also satisfied because the accident emergency is about to end. Montolivo and El Shaarawy are ready to return and yesterday there was also a pinch of turnover useful for Abate and, for a time, Muntari to catch their breath. Also thanks to the inconsistency of Sampdoria, Zaccardo and Constant (certainly not two full-backs) played almost as added wingers, allowing the team to find a few more outlets. In the end, glory also for Niang, who seems to have done very well on the benches in recent times. The Frenchman doesn't score, but he comes close, and he also fights, fights and runs. The evening was more difficult (but more generally the moment) for Matri, who was always forced to play with his back to goal and to play games with the opposing defenders. For the purposes of the manoeuvre, it undoubtedly proves useful, but San Siro wants the goals, otherwise they'll get impatient.
Speaking of the stadium, any reports from the Lega inspectors should be carefully monitored. Yesterday the Rossoneri ultras met outside the gates to protest against the closure of the curve. So far nothing new, and even the chants against Naples, although avoidable, were at least predictable. However, what happened inside San Siro was different, this time in the first blue tier. Who, replacing the curve, sang an anti-Naples chorus immediately stigmatized by the speaker. The result? The chant was repeated. Mind you, nothing transcendental, but with the new rules Milan risk closing the stadium. One more problem, for a team that certainly didn't need it.
