Another fine performance by the Italian

What a fantastic victory! The result was a tremendous one but what is even more impressive than the result is the performance of the team and the players. The team play was nothing short of exceptional, especially in the first half hour, and there is not one individual performance that warrants any great criticism. It was the greatest performance by the side this season and it is one of the better performances in recent memory.

What really stands out from this performance is how ruthlessly the team went about establishing the early advantage. Ronaldinho was again instrumental setting up Borriello for the opener and Seedorf for the second. Pato’s strike following some good work by Borriello effectively sealed the match. Following this three-goal blitz all in the space of just half an hour, Milan went on to control the game and completely dominate possession. The match turned into something of training match following the break as Samp continued to be dominated, unable to gain possession let alone get any decent attempt on goal.

Whilst Milan were, in Leo’s words, ‘marvellous’, it has to be admitted that Samp were poor, very poor in fact. But this does not take anything away from a Milan performance that did not allow Samp any way into the match.

Considering the rather dismal performance last week against Catania, it begs the question….what was different this week? Well, one difference was on the team sheet where Pirlo was brought back in place of Flamini. And like many times before, Pirlo has again shown just how valuable he can be to this team. Against Catania, we missed his passing that links the midfield to the attack as Ronaldinho and Pato were forced to drop deep to get the ball. But against Samp, Pirlo showed just why he is so valuable for us as he pulled the strings in the midfield, kept the ball moving for Milan and played some class balls forward to our attackers.

Pirlo was exceptional and he really showed his worth. But whilst I heap praise on the Italian international, I still stand by my position that he lacks the defensive capabilities needed as one of our two centre midfielders. Against tougher opposition, like Marseille or a Real Madrid, his deficient defensive capabilities are highlighted where the battle for midfield is tight. Again, Samp were poor and there was really no battle for the midfield and this enabled Pirlo, with the ball so often at his feet, to show his offensive capabilities that are really second to none.

The individual performances across the park were outstanding. Up front Ronaldinho provided a master class with two fantastic assists that set us on our way. Leo’s decision to pull him from the park after we established a three goal lead was smart conidering the Zurich match in a couple of days. Pato was also great and though he scored one goal, you get the feeling that if he can brush up his finishing then he really will make goals rain from the sky.

It was another week another goal for Borriello. The Italian is in fine form and though I am one of his staunchest critics still believing he is not quite good enough for our great club, if he continues to score and help his teammates to score as he did with Pato’s goal, then he might just prove me wrong in the long run. I hope he does, as it will save Milan alot of money in buying a new striker and also perhaps provide the Azzurri with the target man they so desperately need. So though I may not be convinced fully by him, yet, this week I lavish praise on the Italian for another stellar performance, another goal and for another all round great contribution to the team.

One individual performance that I was particularly impressed by was the of Antonini. He was impeccable at left back, making some vital and timely tackles and barely put a foot wrong all match. For a player that does not receive consistent playing time, against Samp, he played like a regular. Abate also put in a stellar performance and I was impressed with Leo’s decision to play him as one of our more attacking players as it is clear that Abate feels more comfortable in such a role. He just needs to improve his crossing and maybe when Beckham arrives he will have just the mentor.

Credit needs to be given to our backline too as we earnt another clean sheet and our second in a row. Thiago and Nesta really have become a formidable central pairing. I was even impressed with Zambro. The Italian international has been really putting in 100% efforts in recent weeks and his upturn in form warrants some praise.

With another fine performance, the finest in a long time, and another great result Leo has really justified the praise I lavished on him in my recent article, All Hail Leo. He deserves so much credit for the upturn in the team’s fortunes and his decisions against Samp were again spot on. If I could have any complaints it would be that KJH should have been introduced into the game earlier, even at half time. I really want the Dutchman to be given a chance in our now flying Milan side. But apart from that, it was another great day at the office for our Brazilian tactician.

Not for a long time have I, and so many others, been so satisfied with a Milan performance. Such a performance warrants us Milanisti having the belief that this side can do well this year and win something, the UCL or the Serie A or even both. After such a dismal start to the season, the recent achievements of our Milan are even more profound. Another test awaits us in Zurich, a very important one too, and off the back of our demolition of Samp, there is every reason to believe that the round of 16 awaits us.

All Hail Leo