AC Milan 1, Feyenoord 1: Too Little, Too Late

AC Milan have completed their Champions League performances for this season. After an unlucky 1-0 loss in Rotterdam last week, not even an early goal could rescue Milan's fate. A 1-1 draw with Feyenoord at the San Siro saw the Dutch club progress to the knockout rounds with a 2-1 aggregate score from both legs. And Milan were sent crashing out before the Round of 16 for the second year in a row. This should not surprise, as this management have taken the Milan DNA out of this team. But every time it seems that maybe they are learning from their mistakes, it becomes painfully clear that it is too little, too late.

One goal was just not enough.

The match started off as flawlessly as we could have hoped for... with a Santiago Gimenez goal in the first minute. Gimenez earned the corner, Theo Hernández whipped it in, Pulisic crossed it, Thiaw headed it into the area, and Santi Gimenez headed it home. 1-0 Milan. Gimenez did not celebrate against his very recently former club, but it seemed like a perfect comeback story in the making.

His third goal in four starts at Milan, beautiful.

In the ninth minute, something happened that I think was seriously overlooked. Thiaw sent a longball forward for Walker, who controlled it, sent it back, and Reijnders sent a shot over the crossbar. That's not the part that was overlooked, though. The part that went unnoticed was that Pulisic came storming in, also looking for the ball, apparently, and absolutely bulldozed into referee Szymon Marciniak from behind, knocking him over. 

Marciniak stood up with his arms in the air, much like players do, seemingly asking, "What the hell?!" And, because there was a shot involved, the cameras did not show us the full aftermath of incident, but we do know that certainly, immediately, Pulisic did not apologize or even help him up, which is pretty rude. Personally, and I really only say this half jokingly, I think this "foul" on the referee may have – at least subconsciously – conditioned his decisions against Milan for the rest of the match.

Did Pulisic's collision with Marciniak condition the ref's decisions toward Milan?

In the 23rd minute, João Félix took a decent shot through traffic, but Wellenreuther managed to save it. Theo, however, took the shot from the rebound, and actually hit the outside of the post. We have seen Theo score so many amazing goals. In fact, this year, he actually broke Maldini's record for the Milan defender who has scored the most goals. Unfortunately, this shot would be the closest Milan came to scoring a second goal all match.

João Félix continued to create and take chances, but most of his shots did not have a lot of power on them and were easily saved. One of the match's defining moments came in the 44th minute. João Félix was down, and not only was Hadj Moussa continuing to play, he was running directly toward the fallen player. And even though his teammate managed to get up at the last second as the Feyenoord player approached, Theo Hernández grabbed him by the shirt and and threw him around to the other side, away from João Félix. 

Dumb foul? Or protecting his teammate?

There has been so much judgment and criticism of Theo Hernández this week. "What a stupid yellow card," people have said. But I have watched these actions many times, and it seems very clear that he was trying to protect João Félix. Particularly since he was not even trying to recover the ball as the whistle blew. Ironically, Marciniak should have been the one protecting João Félix, who seemed to have already taken a bit of contact to the face, but instead, he ignored it and punished Theo for trying to protect his teammate. Yes, it was a yellow card offense, obviously. But I do not agree with fans who claim that it his actions were not well-intentioned.

The second half started out, and Theo had a give-and-go with Leão, using his speed to race in and take the shot, which took two defenders to block and clear. And Milan regained possession immediately, sending the ball over to Walker, who also had a great shot, forcing Wellenreuther into a good save. And still, the next minute, Theo was back threatening again, with another attempt at a give-and-go, this time with Gimenez, but his pass was just a bit too much. Then Walker had a perfect slide tackle on Smal. I must admit that I do enjoy a perfectly timed tackle.

Walker showing up big at both ends.

What happened next was the focus for most media and fans, because people like to have someone or something to focus their blame on for a team's or club's collective failure. Theo was running into the box pretty fast, and the ball was intercepted by Read, and Theo went flying. From the main camera angles we were shown, from behind, people claim that there was definitely no contact, and it was an "obvious dive." And Marciniak was even further away, and saw the whole thing from a worse angle, actually. (Also, remember back in the ninth minute, when Pulisic knocked Marciniac down? I'm just sayin'.)

However, from the replays from the opposite side, it looked to me as though Read's boot may have just clipped Theo's boot enough for him, at that speed, to have lost his balance. And while Theo is known for his theatrics, and he certainly enhanced any contact if there was any, this was an incredibly harsh second yellow. Additionally, Read was the player talking trash in the media this week about Leão and basically acting like a douchebag all match, so it stung even worse that Marciniak was doing this.

Who made the bigger error here? Marciniak or Theo?

So Theo was sent off, leaving Milan on ten men. Despite the numerical advantage, Milan still had enough more talent on the pitch to see this through, and perhaps capitalize on a counter attack or something. But Theo's red card was like popping a balloon. For the first time I can remember since Conceiçao arrived, the mentality visibly dropped. Not even when Musah was sent off in Zagreb, which was 20 minutes earlier in the match, were they so immediately affected. And the fans were, too. As the rest of the match continued, the Curva Sud also faded away in their support, after not having even traveled to Rotterdam for the first leg. It is wrong for fans to abuse the players for not showing up when they refuse to do the same.

Marciniak is one of the best referees out there, but he can still miss things. And in the 55th minute, he did miss a Moder handball just outside the area, which would have given Milan a free kick in an incredibly dangerous area. Had it been just inches away, on the other side of the line, VAR could have intervened and it actually would have been a penalty. But that was never going to be Milan's luck. 

Was Conceição too distracted by his grief?

After about ten minutes or so, Conceição decided to go ahead and bring on another defender, so he pulled Pulisic off and sent Bartesaghi into the fray. Then, less than ten minutes after that, he brought on Fofana to shore up the midfield, pulling Gimenez off. This is the opposite of what he usually does, especially when a goal was needed. I don't know if his head was still in mourning for the loss of the man who was like a father to him, Pinto da Costa, whose services he attended on Monday, or if he just saw the threat coming. But I do know that this is the first time I remember us being in need of a goal that he went defensive since he arrived at Milan.

And so the goal came. After Bartesaghi had headed away a shot from Bueno, a minute later, Bueno sent another ball in. This time, Carranza was in front of the young defender, and headed it in out of Maignan's reach. 1-1 all, but 2-1 on aggregate for Feyenoord. That was all they needed to go through, so now they just had to prevent a ten man Milan from scoring for 20 minutes. And with Conceição having taken off Milan's most dangerous scoring threat as well as another important attacker, Feyenoord knew that all they had to do was maintain possession and wait it out.

A tough match for a young defender to be thrown into.

For a bit of comic relief here, it should be said that around this time, I noticed that Gimenez, having been subbed off, was apparently on his phone on the bench, reposting tweets and pictures of his goal from the Milan and Champions League accounts. I feel like this is not within Conceição's rules, as he is quite strict about cell phone usage, but I also was quite amused by it. I think he knew it would be inappropriate to post them should Milan crash out, so he was getting them sent now, before it looked bad. Or maybe it was his way of continuing to fight against Feyenoord from the bench. Either way, my hat is off to his social media use.

João Félix was shown a yellow card in the 76th minute. After having been dispossessed by Paixão, he fouled the Feyenoord player in frustration. Obviously, no one is talking about that card, which was far more ridiculous and less well-intentioned than either of Theo's cards, because the card is not seen as having any impact on the match.

Thiaw may have been the player with the most shots on target for Milan.

With fewer attackers on the pitch, it was time for our defenders to get into the action. From a Reijnders free kick, Thiaw sent a header in on goal, but Wellenreuther managed to save it. It is of note that Wellenreuther made six saves in this match, as Milan had seven of their 18 shots on target, while Feyenoord scored with their solitary shot on target from only six shots in all. Depressing.

Again with the well-timed tackles, my warrior Pavlović tackled Hadj Moussa in the 81st minute, and I didn't mind that the Feyenoord player was down for a bit in pain. If that makes me a terrible person, then I accept your judgment with a smile at the memory of that tackle. Conceição woke up and subbed on Tammy Abraham and Chukwueze for Reijnders and Musah just two minutes later, knowing a goal was desperately needed, and at this point, there was nothing to lose, either.

Pavlović the Warrior showing up again.

But these subs were too little, too late. Milan were able to get a few more shots off, but Feyenoord were being incredibly unsporting with the timewasting. Perhaps my favorite moment in the match, after the goal, obviously, was in the 87th minute, as Bosschaart was making a final substitution. Hadj Moussa was taking his sweet time exiting the pitch – he literally took a full 40 seconds just to walk off. But the part I loved was Walker running over and trying to "escort" him off more quickly. Marciniak stopped him, but did not caution Hadj Moussa, which was disappointing.

In stoppage time, Thiaw was once again our biggest scoring threat, when he was denied twice back to back after a free kick. And Maignan came way off his line, almost up to the halfway line, to clear a Piaxão threat, because Milan were pushed so far forward trying to get the goal. Milan were denied another handball when Carranza both stopped and controlled the ball with his arm, but it was nowhere near the box, so it wasn't really a gamechanger, even if it was a matter of possession in stoppage time, as they won the throw in instead.

João Félix is all of us after this match.

The final whistle blew, and Milan were out of the Champions League, while Feyenoord had produced a miracle. However, there was actually more action that was not shown on camera, because they were showing the Feyenoord celebrations instead. Some sort of altercations took place, and Read was shown a red card for violent conduct after the final whistle, which tracks, given his behavior on and off the pitch this week, while Leão was also shown a yellow card.

On Blaming Theo Hernández...

The Theo blame had started during the match, and has continued since, which was expected, but is also disappointing, especially from the likes of Zvonimir Boban. First of all, football is a team sport. Milan had the opportunity to go through to the Round of 16 of their own accord in the first eight matches. Theo is hardly the only player to have made errors, let alone big, costly errors. Maignan's error last week, for example is why Milan were down at all in this tie. Or Musah's early red card in Zagreb is one of the reasons why Milan were even in the playoffs to begin with. And the club is apparently fining Theo for his red card, while they did not fine Musah for his, which was just as impactful.

Theo apologized to his teammates immediately for his costly behavior, and then also issued a public apology on social media. But with Theo, the fans are heartless. Lacking in all humanity whatsoever. They cite "poor performances" all season long, while prior to this, he was often referred to as "the best left back in Europe" by fans. So which is it? How can one player be the best and now be completely worthless and needing to leave the club? And if he leaves and returns to form, will these fans cry about it? Of course.

Theo draws attention to himself, but falsehood and exaggerations make people forget his worth.

During a season where, on the pitch, he was benched mercilessly by Fonseca, he was then gaslighted in the media as much as or more so than Leão. And yet the instant Conceição arrived, he returned to form. As a human being, he has been dealing with so much in the public eye off the pitch, and that is just what we know about. Who knows what he has been dealing with that we don't even know about?

First, there were the alleged sexual assault accusations from June of 2017, of which he was never actually arrested for or even officially charged with. These accusations have stuck with him for nearly eight years now, even though the woman who accused him was actually arrested and finally convicted and sentenced this year for submitting a false police report. She lied. In fact, he was reportedly going to need to testify at trial in October, but the trial was postponed and she eventually entered a plea bargain instead. She was charged, not him.

What the hell? It's been 8 years, and he's still being wrongfully accused while she just goes on with her life?

She created the entire story, but was caught in her lies due to both texts she had sent him and camera footage outside the club showing the harm she claimed he caused her had occurred when she stumbled and fell on her own. Absolutely disgusting and beyond despicable, and all she got was a fine and a six month suspended jail sentence. But no one bothers to find the truth about her, they just believe the worst of the rumors she created about him. Meanwhile, Theo has been labeled a rapist, even by Milan fans, and probably will be forever, though he was always innocent.

Then there were the false claims from the lowlife ex-con tragic attention whore excuse for a human being Fabrizio Corona, who has ruined more than enough people's lives in his attempts at fame and money. He formerly briefly dated Theo's partner, Zoe Cristofoli, who dumped him. So, in jealous revenge for her happiness with Theo, and capitalizing on the media surrounding the trial of the girl in Spain this year, he publicly accused Theo of assaulting a woman in a night club in Italy, using some grainy, undated footage of someone who is not even convincingly Theo shoving a woman. 

Zoe's jealous ex, the pathetic excuse for a human who profits from ruining other people's lives.

Although the owner of the night club has offered an official statement that Theo never did this, and there is no woman who has brought charges against Theo, either, that has not stopped the media (and fans) from labeling Theo as an abuser. Especially those who already considered him a rapist. While there is very little coverage of this outside of Italy, as people quickly discerned the truth, apparently, it is still a big topic in Italy. So he has been dealing with the public consequences of this since the end of November as well. Not so coincidentally, I'm sure, just shortly after Theo and Zoe made an important personal matter public.

While those things alone would be more than enough to account for any drop in performances, on top of that, his partner Zoe is pregnant with their second child, a girl. Going through a pregnancy is difficult enough, but I have heard that there have been complications with this pregnancy, which is even more stressful for a father. The baby should be due within the next four to six weeks, I believe, so, if true, and depending on what the complications are, this could remain a stressor until mom and baby are (hopefully) safe and healthy.

Theo has family concerns, too, although soulless fans spew abuse on her Instagram page, too.

Dealing with all of this was so much, especially after what they went through two years ago this past October. Their home was robbed while Zoe and then 6 month old Theo Jr. were home. The media reported that Zoe was robbed at gunpoint, but Zoe later published that it was worse than reported, saying that she was fortunate to not have any fractures or broken bones. His family have been through hell, and the fact that he has stayed at Milan through all of this should tell fans something about where is heart is. Yet fans still criticize him mercilessly.

Theo is known for having a hot head. But this season, he has actually done quite well at keeping it together. He received a red card after the final whistle for something he said to Pairetto as captain following his horrific refereeing in the insane Fiorentina match. The same Pairetto who was recently suspended following an even more horrific reffing display in our match vs. Empoli. Other than that, he only received two yellows in Serie A and two in the Champions League before this match.

Theo recently assisted both of Tammy Abraham's goals vs. Roma in the Coppa Italia.

He also has four goals and six assists in all competitions, despite having been benched so many times, which is one more assist than he had in the entire 2022-23 season. His overall average performance rating is a 7.2 so far for the season, which is comparable to all his other seasons at Milan, barring the Scudetto season, when he had a 7.6 overall rating. So statistically, he is not even underperforming as much as fans make him out to be.

But there is one more stressor that may affect his performances the most, as it is directly related to his career: his lack of a contract renewal. The last report I read from his agent was that Milan have not even extended an actual renewal offer to him. (The same was true for Calabria, actually.) While Chukwueze, Loftus-Cheek, and Pulisic were all apparently brought in on the same wages as he is earning and Fofana and Tammy Abraham are making even more, after he has spent five and a half years sweating blood for Milan, is a complete slap in the face to such a loyal servant of the club. And now there are even rumors of a Pulisic extension before he has been renewed, which just adds insult to injury.

Ibrahimović keeps saying Theo Hernández is happy and staying instead of letting Theo speak for himself.

During the Euro Tournament last year, Ibrahimović confidently said that Theo was happy and would be staying at Milan. Within 48 hours, Theo himself was asked if that was the case, and he responded that he was unsure what his future held. This was one of the first signs of how completely out of touch Ibrahimović was with reality at Milan.

Amidst all the other gossip and rumors and online abuse from fans that Theo is enduring, this week, Ibrahimović confidently said once again in a press conference that Theo was happy and would be renewing his contract. Not long after, Theo posted an Instagram story with an Italian song called "Contro la camionette" by Samuele Nisi that talks about people who gossip and hate, and about aiming high in spite of all the talk. I originally thought this was about the overall gossip, but now I am wondering if it is specifically in response to the gossip around his contract renewal and Ibrahimović's remarks, because this is about the third time, I think, that he has responded in some way to a statement like this.

Where the Blame Actually Belongs...

Which brings me to where I believe the blame for the Champions League exit actually belongs: the management. That they agreed with or even talked to Como about selling Theo Hernández in January is insane. We don't even have a backup for him as is, and there is no replacing such a world class talent. Ibrahimović boasted on air that this squad is twice as strong as the one he won the Scudetto with, while Boban corrected him and pointed out his delusions.

Not that it would be their first time misjudging talent (dumping De Ketelaere basically at cost, who won the Europa League with them and now is scoring like crazy for Atalanta, for example.) So many of them who were pushed out for little or nothing are thriving elsewhere, more painfully as Milan struggled in those positions. Even Gabbia, whom they had shoved on loan,  has proved himself after they were forced to bring him back due to injuries in the squad last season. They have dumped so many players for little to nothing, while spending insane amounts of money on players with much, much lower resale value.

Some clowns don't need makeup or wigs to show their tragic  incompetence.

Now they still have yet to renew Maignan or Theo, and every time the media brings these issues up, we see errors like each player made in both legs of the Feyenoord tie. But the second rumors arose that Pulisic was somehow unhappy (which I had not even heard,) the club made an official statement to reassure fans. They never make statements like this for anyone else, despite the insane news cycles surrounding them. And it would not surprise me if Theo's issue was with management or especially Ibrahimović, given how many people Ibrahimović has pushed out or fired because he did not get along with them already. This management is a complete disgrace, and the team's results reflect it.

They chose the wrong manager last summer, and they also waited too long to course correct with Fonseca after their error, allowing him to bench players, publicly gaslight them, and actually cost the team points for months before finally sacking him. Their transfer targets were off last summer as well, with both the transfers in and pushing important players out things that should have happened last summer instead of midseason. They literally changed the manager and five players last month, but expect consistency. Also, in four transfer windows, they have still failed to bring in a proper defensive midfielder, and have now let both Tonali and now Bennacer go as well.

Ibrahimović's ninth career Tapiro d'oro, at least he accepted it with a smile.

Ibrahimović was rightfully given some responsibility for the loss by the show Striscia la notizia, who awarded him the Tapiro d'Oro (Golden Tapir) award, which is a joke award given to people who have humiliated themselves or been defeated. He has shown that he is trying, but his learning curve is bigger than his ego, which is massive. However,  the award really belongs to Cardinale, who is beyond clueless as to how poorly things are being managed, because he himself is completely clueless about football or how to run a football club, let alone how to succeed in the Champions League.

Cardinale did not even know about Milan's Champions League heritage until just under two years ago, well after he had purchased the club. He removed the man who had won five Champions League trophies and he chose to replace him with someone who has never won the Champions League to "guide" the club. He took a team that went to the semifinals just two years ago, and after removing Maldini, Milan have not even made it to the knockout round since. You can deflect the blame to individual players, you can try to make excuses. But everything he has tried to do to make up for that cardinal sin, including hiring Ibrahimović, is too little, too late.

Ten Men Primavera Draw 1-1 Away to Cagliari Primavera

Red was a popular color for Milan players midweek.

On Wednesday, Guidi's Primavera had an eerily similar 1-1 result away to Cagliari. Having conceded a goal in the 26th minute, Bonomi thought he had scored in the 32nd minute, but it was disallowed as he was offside. Milan bounced back and Turco score the equalizer in the 41st minute, assisted by Victor Eletu. However, in the 59th minute, Nissen was shown a straight red card for fouling a player in an obvious goal scoring opportunity, and was sent off, leaving Milan on ten men. Milan Primavera were able to hold out for the rest of the match, but unable to score again. Highlights are available. The Primavera will be in action again on Monday.

This post inspired by the music of The Cure's "A Night Like This"

Our next matches are:

Serie A Week 26

Torino vs. Milan

Saturday, February 22, 2025 • 18:00 CET (12noon EST)

In the U.S., this match can be streamed on Paramount+,

or use a VPN to access better coverage

Serie C Week 28

Milan Futuro vs. Pescara

Sunday, February 23, 2025 • 12:30 CET (6:30am EST)

This match is not being televised in the U.S.

Primavera Campionato 1 Week 27

Milan Primavera vs. Atalanta Primavera

Monday, February 24, 2025 • 18:00 CET (12noon EST)

This match is not being televised in the U.S.