AC Milan – Salzburg 4: 0: Salzburg falls in Milan

Old champions Olivier Giroud (14th, 57th), Rady Krunic (46th) and Junior Messias (91st) secured a well-deserved victory for the hosts, who finished 16th in Serie A for the first time since 2014.

Salzburg, who would have won the second round of the second division with a victory, would have been eliminated from all competitions in the event of a defeat to Dinamo Zagreb who beat Chelsea at the same time, and did not reward themselves with many good opportunities in. In the first half, it became difficult for the defense, the disturbance was punished, and after Milan’s 2-0 win, he had almost no way to turn the tide of the match after the start of the second half. Third place in the group behind Chelsea (13) and Milan (10), and the “Bulls” came third in Group E with 6 points, ahead of Zagreb (4).

About 4,000 fans cheered – and thus a historic number for away matches in the Red Bull era – Salzburg tried to pressure the San Siro stadium, which was packed with more than 70,000 spectators, as in the first leg of the pressure-guided whistle approach. Milan were basically in charge, launching several attacks from the start, including Theo Hernandez’s shot into the far corner (the third) to make Giroud 1-0. The Frenchman took advantage of the misallocation and was able to shake his head from a few meters away as a result of a corner kick.

Almost every attack by Milan radiated danger. Especially when I got off on the left side, where Captain Hernandez and Rafael Leao formed an almost wild tandem. Just as it happened in the 26th minute, when Giroud rejected the supposed goal 2-0 for offside. Or in the forties when Rafael Liao broke off the ball at the last minute.

However, Salzburg presented itself as nothing innocuous, and the available spaces turned into good opportunities several times. Maurits Kjaergaard was banned in the first (11). Immediately after the goal, it was Junior Adamu who first shot goalkeeper Ciprien Tatarusano straight from the turn and then failed with Versler (17). Later, Kjaergaard hit the target with a long-range shot (38 minutes), Luka Susic (38) and Adamo (45) tested Tartarosano. There was also a controversial save in the penalty area against Noah Okafor. However, the VAR saw no reason for referee Matteo Lahoz to study the images (29).

The whistle at the end of the first half also led to the “compensation” of central defender Omar Sollet. The Frenchman, who had a hamstring problem and was in doubt on Wednesday, was Gisley’s only change from their recent 2-1 draw with Chelsea. The thigh should not last, in the first half he had to make room for Bernardo.

The Brazilian had entered exactly 46 seconds into the match when the bell rang in his own net for the second time. Once again, the last line of defense, this time after the wing, looked disorganized. Bernardo himself was not able to head the ball against Giroud, and Didek, the veteran, skillfully passed the ball to the orphan Krunic, who also headed home from a few meters away.

Less than an hour later, memories of March 8 woke up when Salzburg lost 7-1 to Bayern in the second leg of the round of 16. Giroud dusted off Rafael Liao after a failed attempt, and the guests were threatened with another rejection. Rafael Liao, who was very excited about the match, initially only hit the crossbar (66), in extra time the “Joker” Junior Messias was still present after a pass from Giroud. For Salzburg, there was Roller Dijon Kameris on Tartarusanu (ranked 67) and shots from Kjaergaard (ranked 71) and Sucic (ranked 78), the latter being very close.