Between exciting matches, stunning goals, double penalty saves and unruly teenagers, Serie A certainly had you covered this weekend. As is often the case, the action was glorious and chaotic, and in the case of the two Milan giants, the result was quite the opposite. The matchday began with Inter making light work of Salernitana, before closing with a historic defeat for AC Milan at the U-Power Stadium. So let’s recap the events as we identify the best and worst players from Serie A Round 25 in our latest edition of the Tops and Flops series.
Top (Player): Dany Mota
Dany Mota might be one of the most versatile players in the league. The Portuguese can play as a centre-forward, second striker or even as a full-back as he did against AC Milan on Sunday. But more importantly, it can deal damage even when lurking relatively far from the opposing target.
On Sunday night, the Monza star gave his side a crucial advantage late in the first half, first smartly winning a spot-kick converted by Marco Pessina and then doubling the home side’s lead with a clinical shot that beat Mike Maignan.
even though the Rossoneri managed to overturn Monza’s two-goal lead in what turned out to be one of the most exciting encounters of the Serie A season, it should not overshadow Mota’s valuable exploits.
Flop (Player): Malick Thiaw
From one of the heroes at the U-Power Stadium to one of the main culprits in Milan’s defeat. Perhaps Luka Jovic deserved more of the mention after being sent off for the infamous Armando Izzo but that moment of madness followed when the team was behind and frustrated and Malick Thiaw’s blunders had a lot to do with it.
The German has just returned from injury and looked pretty rusty, as evidenced by how he insisted on giving away a penalty by taking down two opponents in a matter of seconds. The defender then set up Andrea Colpani, who provided the assist for the second goal.
Although his form improved in the second period when he was credited with the assist for Christian Pulisic’s goal, it remains a night to forget for the youngsters. Rossoneri star.
Top (Manager): Simone Inzaghi
Although he doesn’t really possess the acclaimed footballing philosophy of Pep Guardiola or the charisma of José Mourinho, Simone Inzaghi is slowly but surely becoming a genuine teacher in his own right.
Even with his side sitting comfortably at the top of the Serie A table, the 47-year-old opted for only a limited rotation when hosting an ironically bottom-of-the-table Salernitana side, thus retaining his core core.
This strategy worked perfectly, with the Nerazzurri putting the game to bed early while playing champagne football, allowing the manager to rest some of his key players ahead of a big Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid on Tuesday night.
Inter are now peaking just before the crucial part of the season and a lot of the credit must go to Inzaghi.
Flop (Manager): Stefano Pioli
Instead, Stefano Pioli inexplicably dropped his main attacking trio at a time when Milan had a golden chance to usurp Juventus in the standings and perhaps retain hope of catching Inter.
This confusing rotation strategy comes ahead of Thursday’s second leg of the Europa League play-off round, with Devil already put one foot in the next stage after beating Rennes 3-0 in the first leg.
So why Pioli changed his formation against Monza instead of delaying it until Thursday was as complicated as it was ominous.
The manager almost managed to salvage a point thanks to the star players he kept on the bench in the first half, but their numerical disadvantage ultimately doomed them to their first defeat at Monza.
Top (Team): Atalanta
If there is one Serie A team that can match Inter’s rampant form at the moment, it can only be Atalanta. La Dea they continue to lead the Top-four race thanks to another dominant display, this time at the expense of hapless Sassuolo.
The club’s stats at the moment are simply terrifying. In their last five games in Serie A, Gian Piero Gasperini’s men have collected 15/15 points while scoring a total of 17 goals and conceding just twice.
Let’s see if they can maintain this great form when their Europa League campaign resumes.
Flop (Team): Salernitana
Although nobody expected them to prevail over Inter at the San Siro, Salernitana are showing no signs of life at the moment, with repeated managerial changes no longer doing the trick, with Fabio Liverani unable to spark any reaction, at least with based on his maiden exit.
In fact, even the performances of reliable veterans Antonio Candreva and Guillermo Ochoa are starting to wear thin as they can clearly read the writing on the wall.
Apart from being a genuine miracle, the Grenade bags will be spent for Serie B at the end of the season.
Top (Goalkeeper): Marco Karnesecki
Here’s something you don’t see every day. Atalanta goalkeeper Marco Carnesecchi saved Andrea Pinamonti from the spot, but the referee called for the penalty to be replayed. The Sassuolo forward opted for the opposite corner, but the result was similar, with the custodian prevailing once again.
A well-earned clean sheet indeed.
Flop (Goalkeeper): Ivan Provendel
In the “Guardiolan era”, goalkeepers are supposed to acquire some technical skills that allow them to integrate into passing patterns.
However, this is always a dangerous game and Ivan Provedel explained why with a poor pass that gifted Bologna the equalizer in a crucial battle for a Top-Four place.
Thiago Motta’s men continued to beat the Aquile at the Stadio Olimpico thanks to Joshua Zirkzee’s winner, extending their heroics.
Perhaps emptying the ball widely should not be completely dismissed as an old-fashioned trick, as it can certainly help you avoid unnecessary blunders.
Top (Super-Sub): Christian Pulisic
Even though Milan still left the field empty-handed, Christian Pulisic is certainly the Super-sub of the weekend after guiding a 10-man side that were two goals down back in the competition.
The American provided the assist for Olivier Giroud before cracking a superb strike to restore parity, if only for two minutes.
Top (match): Monza – Milan
This epic contest had so many subplots that they almost threatened to overshadow the big picture. This six-goal thriller had it all: great strikes, a red card for an off-ball tackle (and who doesn’t love those?!), a late 10-man comeback, followed by an extremely late counter-attack.
To add insult to injury, Milan academy products Daniel Maldini and Lorenzo Colombo came off the bench to contribute the late goals that tipped the scales in Monza’s favor, who now claimed their first win over Milan, who it must have been bittersweet. occasion for their CEO Adriano Galliani.
Flop (match): Empoli vs Fiorentina
While Berlusconi’s Derby was disappointing, the Tuscan derby left a lot to be desired. Fiorentina took the lead through Lucas Beltran in the first half, before M’Baye Niang responded with a penalty after the break. However, neither side really showed the desire to win the victory.
Overall, the action on the pitch lacked the intensity of Derby day.
Top (Goal): Dean Huijsen
If you think modern defenders have developed impressive ball skills compared to their predecessors, then wait until you see what the next generation has in store.
For example, 18-year-old Dean Huijsen decided to make a raid, casually crossing the lines and dribbling past an opponent before finding the far corner with a superb strike.
Well, take a bow, Dean!
Or don’t mind the bow, just don’t celebrate by silencing the Frosinone faithful who are mocking you for snubbing their club last month and picking up a booking in the process.
He really smelled like teen spirit.
Top (Sportsmanship): Sardar Azmoun
If Huijsen is the villain, then his Roma team-mate Sardar Azmoun has played the role of hero in the Stripe… maybe the odd kind of hero, the one who dashes your hopes by scoring a second goal against your team before apologizing profusely to part of the younger partner who was a little less polite.
Obviously, the Canary would have liked more if the Iranian had missed his chance to score, but it was a nice gesture nonetheless.
Top (Gamesmanship): Armando Izzo
Instead, here is a man who is anything but good on a football pitch. For the second year in a row, Armando Izzo helped Monza secure a historic victory over a Serie A giant in his own special way: by challenging an opposing player and earning himself a red card defeat.
Luka Jovic is certainly disappointed with himself, but at least he has joined a prestigious club that boasts the elusive Angel Di Maria.
Flop (President): Aurelio De Laurentiis
This is not about Napoli’s newest manager, Francesco Calzona, who can produce better work than his two predecessors (in fact it would take something very special to do worse), but rather about a president who destroyed his own masterpiece with a number of rashes and diseases. recommended decisions.
Calling it Partenopei the defending champions sounds like an odd statement now, as Luciano Spalletti’s campaign to win the Scudetto feels like the kind of thing that followed years ago.
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