Milan 0, Sampdoria 0: Empty Handed

Hope had returned to Milan on January 2nd in the form of a tall, brilliant Swedish forward. That hope was not fulfilled this afternoon as Milan left the San Siro with our goal tally empty handed.

The wait was over, but we'll have to wait longer for goals

Fans showed up in masses to witness the long-awaited return of Zlatan Ibrahimovic. They had to wait until the 55th, when he was subbed on alongside Leao. The first half had been a physical battle, with very few shots from either side. The second half opened up with back to back shots from Bonaventura and Calhanoglu, then one of several Gabbiadini opportunities that was saved by Gigio then cleared by Hernandez, who twisted his ankle in the process.

After Ibra and Leao came on for Piatek and Bonaventura, Gabbiadini would have a couple of other opportunities, but then Ibra had a couple of chances that were saved as well. In all, Milan would total 19 shots with eight on target, leaving Audero with a busy day at the office. We also dominated in possession, at 68%, but once again, failed to score.

The storyline of the second half

All was not completely lost. Milan came on much more lively in attack even before Ibrahimovic came on. He was absolutely both a catalyst and a threat, but it was also clear that it may also take a bit of time before he and his teammates develop more understanding.

Another clean sheet, from our other 6'5" player

Hope is not lost, but another two points were dropped. A shame that we could not have celebrated the return of Ibrahimovic with all three points, but once again we saw that since the fall of Milan took more than ten years, the rise again will not be instantaneous. As Boban said in the press conference on Friday, we cannot hide behind Ibrahimovic’s broad shoulders. It will take the entire team. So despite gaining one point, Milan’s hopes left empty handed.

This post inspired by the music of Stone Temple Pilot’s “Big Empty”

Our next match is

Serie A Week 19

Cagliari vs. Milan

Saturday, January 11 • 15:00 CET (9am EST)