AC Milan Takes First Leg of Champions League Quarterfinal Against Napoli.
1. Introduction
AC Milan earned a significant victory against Napoli in the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals with a score of 1-0 at the San Siro stadium on Wednesday.
The match saw Serie A leaders Napoli make their first appearance in the quarterfinals of Europe's most prestigious club competition against seven-time European champions Milan. With this victory, Milan is now one step closer to their first Champions League semifinal appearance in 16 years.
This win also marks the fifth consecutive clean sheet in the Champions League for Milan, a feat they have not achieved since 2004-05.
Milan's Counter-attack Proves to be the Key to Victory Against Napoli
2. Napoli’s Missed Opportunities
Napoli started the game strong, looking to avenge their 4-0 home defeat by Milan in Serie A earlier this month. However, Napoli was missing their top-scorer, Victor Osimhen, due to an injury. Despite dominating most of the first half, Napoli failed to capitalize on their opportunities.
Milan's defence blocked Khvicha Kvaratskhelia's attempt on the line after the Milan defence failed to clear a low ball across the goal. A powerful strike towards the goal was unleashed by Napoli's midfielder, Piotr Zielinski, only to be deflected over the crossbar by Milan's goalkeeper, Mike Maignan.
3. Milan’s Counter Attack
Milan had a chance to score when forward Rafael Leao made a solo run into the Napoli box before shooting just past the far post.
4. Bennacer’s Goal
With merely five minutes left to the first half, Milan succeeded in grabbing the lead as Brahim Diaz supplied a pass to Ismael Bennacer, who sent a well-placed low shot inside the far post.
5. Disallowed Goal
A golden opportunity presented itself to Milan to increase their lead as Simon Kjaer's header made contact with the crossbar, then landed on the goal line.. However, the referee signaled It can be inferred that the ball did not pass over the goal line.
6. Napoli’s Worsening Situation
With just 16 minutes remaining on the clock, Napoli's predicament took a turn for the worse as midfielder Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa was shown a second yellow card for forcefully shoving Theo Hernandez. The Romanian referee, Istvan Kovacs, issued ten yellow cards - four to Milan and six to Napoli - with Napoli's Kim Min-Jae's booking ruling him out of the second leg along with Anguissa.
7. Conclusion
Milan is the only team to beat Napoli more than once this season in all competitions, putting them in a favorable position ahead of the second leg of the quarterfinal on April 18. AC Milan manager Stefano Pioli expressed his joy after the match, stating that "The history of Milan speaks to many Champions League victories, but the recent years saw us We had dreamt of reaching this point, hence we aimed to relish every moment of it.
