“The Cup, the Dream and the Big Nightmare” read the huge banner across the Curva Sud. Above it, filling one end of the cavernous San Siro was a Halloween lantern and a picture of seven gravestones, each engraved with the year in which Juventus had lost a Champions League final. The message from the AC Milan Ultras was loud and clear; you might have dominated in Italy but you’ll never match our accomplishments in Europe, rubbing salt into the gaping wound of the visitor’s latest defeat in the UEFA showpiece.
Watching Real Madrid smash Juve in Cardiff was sweet indeed for followers of the Rossoneri and, after watching their own new owners commit to spending almost €250 million on transfers this past summer, they rightly expected to see their team finally challenging the Old Lady once again. It was that hope that made Saturday night’s clash between Serie A’s two most successful sides feel like a hugely significant fixture, one that was deserving of the sheer effort that went into assembling that wonderfully impressive pre-match display.
As the first half progressed, it seemed that – despite their struggles so far this season – Milan would live up to those lofty expectations. They may have entered the weekend already twelve points behind the early leaders, but they played the Bianconeri to something of a stalemate, each side struggling to carve out chances as the game became bogged down in central midfield.
Then it happened. Paulo Dybala fed the ball into the box after 23 minutes and, even with Andrea Romagnoli in close proximity, Gonzalo Higuain took a touch to his right to open up some space and unleashed a powerful right-footed effort. Gianluigi Donnarumma had no chance to stop his powerful drive and the Argentinian sped away to celebrate his emphatic strike.
He had been widely criticised for his performances in previous weeks, but the goal was testament to both his outstanding individual quality and the way he had been managed by Max Allegri. The Juve boss defended his €90 million frontman repeatedly as he struggled in front of goal, praising Higuain’s work-rate and tenacity, insisting that eventually he would begin to find the back of the net.
When that didn’t happen, Allegri dropped him. Sitting out has been rare for Higuain since he moved to Italy, but he found himself on the bench for both the Turin derby and the Champions League clash with Olympiacos. Sent on with 30 minutes to play in the second of those two fixtures, he ended a five-game scoring drought and struck again a few days later in the 2-2 draw with Atalanta.
Good performances against Udinese and SPAL followed, all of which led up to Saturday’s encounter at San Siro. Milan’s defence had no answer for the 29-year-old as he provided constant problems for a backline forced to cope without the suspended Leonardo Bonucci, but they were unlucky to see Nikola Kalinic squander the few good chances they did manage to create at the other end.
Shortly after the hour-mark they would be punished for that profligacy as Kwadwo Asamoah strode forward and played a pass from left to right. Dybala again made a vital contribution, his clever dummy allowing the ball to go beyond him to Higuain who in turn let it run across his body in order to give himself another chance at goal.
He would not waste it either, hitting a low shot hard into the bottom corner that smashed off the inside of the post, once more leaving Donnarumma helpless to keep it out. Smiling broadly, the striker knew he had secured an important win for the visitors, but it was a display that also owed much to Allegri’s tactical acumen.
In fielding Asamoah and the industrious Mario Mandžkić together on the left flank, the Coach neutralised former Liverpool man Suso who had unquestionably been Milan’s most dangerous player so far this term. Allegri also charged Dybala with tracking the forward runs of Ricardo Rodríguez, whose own left foot had been the source of many chances for them prior to this fixture but which was also rendered ineffective here.
It not only marked a complete turnaround from this fixture last season when Montella outfoxed his Juve counterpart, but also piled even more pressure upon the Rossoneri themselves as their campaign continues to unravel. Talk of Paulo Sousa or Walter Mazzarri taking over filled the peninsula’s newspapers on Sunday morning, but it seems the current boss will survive for a few more games at least.
There was perhaps an element of truth to Montella’s suggestion that the only real difference between the two teams was the quality of Higuain, but the striker himself was in no mood to discuss the harsh analysis of his previous performances. “These goals are for the people who have always backed me, my team-mates, the fans and my family,” he told Mediaset Premium shortly after the final whistle. “I never reply to criticism. All I'm interested in is doing my bit to help the team.”
He certainly did that at San Siro, becoming a “big nightmare” for Milan and allowing Juventus to celebrate yet another win. Be careful what you wish for.
