How substitutions won the game quickly: Tactical analysis of Genoa 1-2 AC Milan | OneFootball

AC Milan beat Genoa 2-1 on Monday night to do something they had not previously done under Sergio Conceicao: win a third game in a row.

Genoa went ahead in the second half through substitute striker Vitinha, who had not scored a single league goal all season until he volleyed a cross in having been left all alone inside the box.

However, the Rossoneri scored twice in three minutes to turn the game on its head. The first came from Rafael Leao after Santiago Gimenez’s assist, and the second was an own-goal from a dangerous Leao cross.

While a late charge towards the European spots still appears very unlikely,  it was another comeback that should build more belief in view of the Coppa Italia final next week, which will be the season-defining game.

Sergio Conceicao made two alterations to the XI that beat Venezia, with Ruben Loftus-Cheek replacing Rafael Leao and Luka Jovic – who recovered from back pain – taking the spot of Tammy Abraham. Below is Rohit Rajeev’s tactical analysis from the victory at the Marassi.

Change in shape

Conceicao deployed a slight tweak to the three-man defence, more specifically a 3-4-2-1 system, this time with Loftus-Cheek as an inside forward instead of Leao.

What the coach essentially did was play Pulisic as a left winger and Loftus-Cheek as an extra mezzala, giving Milan a midfield overload as seen below. With Gabbia inverted into the double pivot, it allowed Maignan to push up as an extra man, giving central dominance.

Pressing traps

Milan pressed Genoa high and used a man-to-man marking system when pressing.

Milan would pull Genoa to one flank by sucking their press and then use either Reijnders or Loftus-Cheek to switch flanks to the other side of the pitch, with Theo Hernandez the target.

Genoa would set pressing traps against Milan. They would leave Milan’s wing-backs alone so they did not have a marker. When the Rossoneri would try to pass the ball to the player (in this case Jiminez), they would surround him and press very aggressively, in what was at times a 3v1.

Genoa’s first goal came down to Pavlovic not staying close to his man. Once again, his overzealous behaviour pulled him to try and win a header, only for it to find an unmarked Vitinha, who finished the ball with virtually his first touch.

Impact subs

Conceicao made some changes, and the impact was instant. Gimenez made an off-the-ball run into space to receive possession, but the ball was not played first time. This meant that he was out of his marker’s range and made a run into space.

While he was getting into a position to cross, Leao checked his run and curved his run inside to meet the ball, which Gimenez made to mark his assist for the game.

While the second goal was officially awarded as an own-goal, the goal was a piece of brilliant movement from Milan.

They create an overload in the buildup phase with Loftus-Cheek in front of the defence. RLC – who is now free to receive the ball – spots Reijnders. João Félix, meanwhile, made an off-the-ball run to clear a passing lane for Reijnders to run and create the transition.