Reijnders decides while the Rossoneri fight

AC Milan returned to winning ways in their last game before Christmas with a goal from Tijjani Reijnders to beat Hellas Verona on Friday evening.

Leading up to the game, there were conflicting reports about what impact a failure to win would have on Paulo Fonseca’s position, but anything other than a win would certainly put pressure on the Portuguese, even if he admitted he wasn’t feeling the pressure before the game.

Apart from the fact that Filippo Terracciano came into the starting eleven as a midfielderThere were no real shocks to the team, but it seemed clear from the start that Milan were missing something – a spark in midfield.

This game won’t be remembered for much longer in the first half, at least not fondly, as the Diavolo struggled to assert themselves in the game and neither team showed any real quality.

Pretty worrying considering what’s at stake for everyone…

Things seemed to be similar at the start of the second half, but Tijjani Reijnders took the lead 10 minutes after the restart. Youssouf Fofana again showed his fantastic vision and played an incisive pass to the feet of Reijnders, who fired a powerful shot into the far corner, putting the Rossoneri in the lead.

A story that has been told so many times this season: Reijnders is the key for Milan and the news about him upcoming contract extension will only be more appreciated after another impressive performance.

Milan’s first really noticeable attack came a few minutes into the game – Tammy Abraham spread the ball wide and Samuel Chukwueze finally got the chance to attack down the line. Terracciano came back but the Italian was nowhere near the ball.

The next five minutes were dominated by a lot of possession by Verona, although the Rossoneri did not have much influence on the game; he was sloppy in defense and failed to pass the ball with much conviction.

A theme of the first 15 minutes was that both sides tried to do things earlier than necessary – perhaps to catch one of the two goalkeepers – but neither team had success, with Milan attempting some early crosses and Verona trying to get in from distance to shoot.

Fonseca had a bit of a scare shortly afterwards when Youssouf Fofana went down after a late foul holding on to his calf, but there were no problems and the Frenchman fortunately returned to the field.

Shortly after returning to the pitch, Fofana tried to pass Tammy Abraham through the middle but the hosts were aware of the danger and it was quickly negated.

The Diavolos’ first shot of the game came in similar circumstances, with Chukwueze again trying to make an early move. After some of his early cross attempts failed to score, he decided to give it a try himself by firing a shot attempt from 25 yards, but Montipo easily grabbed the ball.

Just before half an hour, Verona had the first big chance of the game. Chukwueze carelessly missed his pass, the ball fell into the path of Suslov who shot towards Mike Maignan’s penalty area, the midfielder hit towards the goal but the Frenchman coped well.

Then, after half an hour, Rafael Leao went down unopposed and was replaced by Theo Hernandez, who was unable to continue the game. A big loss for Fonseca considering how big Leao has been in recent weeks.

Still, there is a chance for Theo to put his best foot forward again as the Rossoneri need someone to step up.

In the ten minutes after the substitution there was not much to complain about from either team, but as was usual in this game, the situation changed with a long-range shot as Terracciano shot from distance which Montipo had to direct over the crossbar. Certainly almost a dream goal on his return.

The half-time whistle was certainly welcomed as Milan did nothing of note in the first half. All in all, it was a really hot 45 minutes that you won’t quickly remember.

Immediately after the first whistle of the second period, the Diavolo tried to make the first difference with a bunch of white shirts rushing forward before Emerson Royal tried from distance. Unfortunately the ball flew over the goal and he was met with ridicule.

More stories about it Tijjani Reijnders

Then, after 55 minutes, Reijnders made the difference again, like so many times this season. Fofana played a more advanced role, putting the Dutchman in a good position and the midfielder scored with his first touch. A massive goal from Milan’s increasingly important midfielder.

The goal seemed to galvanize the Rossoneri as Fonseca’s side moved forward with more purpose in the moments after the goal, with Alex Jimenez having a good shot from distance but which the goalkeeper had to parry for a corner – more of what Fonseca saw wanted.

With 20 minutes to go, Fonseca made his second substitution of the game, bringing on Davide Calabria for Samuel Chukwueze, moving Milan into a back five and moving Emerson to the right-centre-back position.

As we approached the 80th minute, Theo showed some impressive signs by pushing forward before releasing Alex Jimenez on the left, but the Spaniard couldn’t do much with the ball in the box, instead passing it on the edge of the box to Emerson, who shot wide again.

After twisting his ankle a few minutes earlier, Matteo Gabbia went to the ground to receive treatment but continued until the final minutes, while Fonseca opted to bring in Fikayo Tomori as Emerson’s replacement.

There was no real drama in the final minutes, apart from a red card for a Verona staff member as the Rossoneri saw the result. A disappointing performance, as you can feel again and again after the game, but the three points that were urgently needed.