THAT IS A POINT-SECURING SAVE FROM DONNARUMMA! Milik is through on goal with only the keeper to beat, but Donnarumma somehow flies to his left to get a fingertip on the ball to send it out for a corner which is immediately cleared by the Milan defence. I'm still unsure how the Milan keeper got a touch to it! It remains 0-0 at the San Siro with only a minute left to play!
90' +1
H. Çalhanoğlu gets yellow.
The referee indicates there will be three additional minutes at the end of the match - can either of these sides use these final precious seconds to snatch all three points?
Yellow card Hakan Çalhanoğlu
90'
K. Koulibaly gets yellow.
Koulibaly is shown a yellow card in the last minute of regulation time after putting in a crunching tackle on Andre Silva in midfield.
89'
Suso whips the corner in which is quickly repelled. The ball comes out to Calhanoglu who collides with Insigne immediately and the referee gives the benefit of the doubt to Napoli, who have a free-kick deep in their own half.
87'
M. Rog enters the game and replaces Allan.
Napoli use their third substitution to bring fresh legs to the midfield, with Marko Rog replacing Allan.
85'
Suso sends a perfect ball across but the outstretched leg of Calhanoglu is unable to steer the ball past Reina and into the net. Koulibaly should be relieved that his side did not concede, as it was the centre-back who caused the problems with a poor defensive header.
82'
Insigne throws out a leg to control a high ball over the top and the Italian does so brilliantly with a magnificent first touch. After settling the ball, Insigne attempts to beat Donnarumma at his near post, but the keeper does well to get his body in the way to block the shot.
80'
M. Locatelli enters the game and replaces G. Bonaventura.
Giacomo Bonaventura is withdrawn with 10 minutes left in the match, with Manuel Locatelli entering the game in his place.
77'
Suso sends a pass through Hysaj’s legs on the wing for Kessie to run onto, but the Ivory Coast international’s cross inside the penalty area for Andre Silva is easily intercepted by Raul Albiol.
72'
The introduction of Milik will provide Napoli with another method of attack - crossing from wide. Dries Mertens provides little in terms of aerial ability, a facet of the game that Milik excels at. With Hysaj getting into great positions all match, Napoli now have an effective outlet.
Minute
Description
70'
André Silva enters the game and replaces N. Kalinić.
Gattuso answers Sarri’s changes with an alteration of his own in the attack. Nikola Kalinic has had a poor match and will be replaced by Andre Silva.
66'
A. Milik enters the game and replaces D. Mertens.
P. Zieliński enters the game and replaces M. Hamšík.
Captain Marek Hamsik is the first to depart the match, with Maurizio Sarri sending Piotr Zielinski on in his place.
Napoli also make a second substitution, with traditional striker Arkadiusz Milik replacing Dries Mertens.
64'
E. Hysaj gets yellow.
Elseid Hysaj is given the second yellow card of the match after taking down Suso.
62'
The free-kick is taken short to Suso whose cross is unable to beat the first man. Milan retain possession however and the ball once again goes to Suso - but his aerial pass once again fails to find Kalinic.
61'
Bonaventura sends a cross into the box but Kalinic was unable to get there before Albiol. The ball is cleared but Mertens commits a foul in midfield, giving Milan the chance to send a ball deep into the penalty area from a central position.
58'
Milan have possession and are circulating the ball from left to right before an over the top ball that Suso gives chase for ends in the hands of Pepe Reina.
55'
C. Zapata gets yellow.
Cristian Zapata is shown a yellow card for a clumsy challenge on Christian Maggio in midfield.
51'
Hamsik fires in a ball for Callejon who continues his run past the Milan centre-backs and into the six-yard box, but the pass from the Napoli captain has too much power and flies over the head of the diminutive Spaniard.
48'
Hamsik gets into the box and sends a pass across the six-yard box but there are no Napoli players attacking the ball. Had there been one, it surely would have been 1-0 for the away side but it remains a tie early in the second half.
46'
Milan get the second half underway!
45'
The referee indicates there will be one minute of extra time at the end of the first half.
44'
Maggio wins a free-kick just inside the Milan half after a clash of knees with Rodriguez sends the Napoli full-back to the floor. The visitors take it short, looking to get past the Milan defence quickly.
41'
Napoli now have a corner which is swung in well but Kalinic gets a defensive foot to the ball to clear it. Possession falls again to the visitors with Mertens who flashes the ball across the face of goal for Insigne who gets his shot all wrong and sends it well wide.
39'
Kessie wins his side a corner which is taken by Suso. The ball comes out of the 18-yard box for Calhanoglu who hammers his effort towards goal. Reina makes the initial stop but Musacchio puts the rebound into the back of the net with a neat tap-in. The referee blows his whistle immediately however and chalks off the goal - as the Argentine centre-back was offside. It remains 0-0.
36'
Calhanoglu bends in a cross from the left-hand side for Kalinic but Koulibaly gets the initial touch on the ball. The defender is unable to clear it, however, and the ball pings around in the penalty area for a moment before going out - with the last touch coming off of the Milan striker.
33'
Napoli appear to have taken a full grip on this match after a start which saw Milan control the tempo and fashion a number of attacking chances. Since then, the away side have settled well, holding possession and draining time from the clock.
30'
Insigne once again tries to find the run of Hysaj who was racing down the left-hand side, but Calabria’s strong tackle puts the ball out for a throw-in. Hysaj has gotten free on a number of occasions and caused chaos in the Milan penalty area, so cutting that supply will be vitally important if Milan want to maintain the clean sheet.
27'
Kessie aims a cross into the penalty area, but the pass goes over the head of Kalinic due to a crucial touch from Albiol. The ball instead falls to the back post for Calhanoglu, but the Turkish creative forward puts his shot wide of the target.
24'
Calhanoglu takes a corner to the back post where Kalinic and Kessie are waiting. The ball pings around in the 18-yard area before falling to the feet of Suso just outside the area. The Spaniard takes a touch to settle and then strikes a weak effort which rolls past the post and out for a goal-kick.
21'
Milan are holding onto the ball in their half of the pitch, looking to evade the famed Napoli press. The visitors are applying the requisite amount of pressure, forcing Milan to constantly turn back to avoid a costly turnover. A rushed attack due to the Napoli intensity causes Milan to relinquish the ball just outside Reina’s penalty area.
18'
Callejon is once again involved as he sends a pass across the outside of the 18-yard box for Hamsik who is open for a strike. Hamsik receives the ball and immediately shoots on Donnarumma, but once again for Napoli - the final shot is wayward and does not trouble the Milan goalkeeper.
15'
Wide from Callejon! Mertens pushes the ball past both Musacchio and Zapata, sending it across for Callejon who gets the better of Rodriguez. The former Real Madrid forward recognises the space he has to shoot and puts an effort on goal but the strike heads wide of Donnarumma’s left-hand post.
12'
Suso sends a wonderful cross into the box but Kalinic is late to react and can only put his headed effort wide of the post. The service is fantastic, and the striker must do better in that situation. It really should be 1-0 Milan.
9'
The second effort is taken short and recycled by Milan who are now holding possession, looking to work an opening but the Partenopei force the home side to go all the way back to Donnarumma to reset.
7'
Kessie floats a ball into the box but Albiol comes across to clear it before it falls to Kalinic. Suso takes his corner short but it is put out first time by Hamsik for another try.
5'
Bonaventura takes a shot from distance and forces Reina to make a diving save down to his left. The ensuing corner is taken to Zapata who heads it over the bar but there seems to have been a collision between Zapata and Raul Albiol - leaving both players on the ground in some distress.
2'
A fantastic one-two pass gets Hysaj free down the right but the defensive help comes across and puts the ball out for Napoli’s first corner of the match. Callejon whips it in but it goes right to the hands of Donnarumma who catches easily.
1'
Napoli get the match underway at the San Siro!
Good afternoon and welcome to our live text commentary of the Serie A fixture between Milan and Napoli from the San Siro.
Having played Juventus two weeks ago, Milan now host the other team still in the running for the Scudetto - Napoli. The Rossoneri have been unable to keep up their incredible form as of late, with only one win in their last five matches. Gennaro Gattuso’s side currently sit sixth in the table, eight points back of Lazio, Roma and Inter who are all tied with 60 points.
Scoring seems to be the primary concern of late for the home side. They have scored more than once in a match one time since February - with Patrick Cutrone, Nikola Kalinic and Andre Silva all seemingly out of form at the same time.
Milan also have a defensive issue today, as both Alessio Romagnoli and Leonardo Bonucci are unavailable for the match this afternoon. Napoli have scored 66 times in 31 matches - only behind Juventus and Lazio - and will certainly test this makeshift back line on multiple occasions.
Napoli are still in touching distance of defending champions Juventus, but with only seven matches left in the season, they can ill-afford to drop any more points. It has been a herculean effort domestically this year from Maurizio Sarri’s squad, but they are running out of time to close the gap. A fixture with the Bianconeri still awaits, which could be an opportunity to seize momentum back one final time.
Undefeated since the beginning of March, the form table would not explain the full story of Napoli’s recent performances. Two goals in the last four minutes of their match against Chievo last weekend clinched an unlikely three points - a match that was preceded by a draw with Sassuolo thanks to an 80th minute Jose Callejon equaliser. They have been picking up results, but this is a small squad with comparatively limited resources, and the tired legs have been showing recently.
Despite the negatives, Napoli’s form away from home is blistering. They are undefeated on their travels this season, winning 12 of their 15 matches outside of the San Paolo. Interestingly, the Partenopei are also better defensively as the visitors, which is a bad omen for a Milan attack that has been out of sync as of late.
With fifteen minutes to go before kick-off, the team news has been confirmed! Let’s begin with the home side!
Milan substitutes: Marco Storari, Antonio Donnarumma, Gustavo Gomez, Ignazio Abate, Luca Antonelli, Jose Mauri, Riccardo Montolivo, Manuel Locatelli, Andre Silva, Fabio Borini, Patrick Cutrone.
Milan Starting XI (4-3-3): Gianluigi Donnarumma; Davide Calabria, Cristian Zapata, Mateo Musacchio, Ricardo Rodriguez; Franck Yannick Kessie, Lucas Biglia, Giacomo Bonaventura; Suso, Nikola Kalinic, Hakan Calhanoglu
Napoli substitutes: Rafael, Luigi Sepe, Vlad Chiriches, Lorenzo Tonelli, Hrvoje Milic, Piotr Zielinski, Zinedine Machach, Marko Rog, Adam Ounas, Amadou Diawara, Arkadiusz Milik.
Napoli Starting XI (4-3-3): Pepe Reina; Elseid Hysaj, Kalidou Koulibaly, Raul Albiol. Christian Maggio; Marek Hamsik, Jorginho, Allan; Lorenzo Insigne, Dries Mertens, Jose Maria Callejon.
Maurizio Sarri also keeps his traditional 4-3-3 but makes three changes from the starting XI that narrowly beat Chievo their last time out. Mario Rui is unavailable at right-back due to a red card, so Christian Maggio will take his place, while in the heart of the defence, Lorenzo Tonelli is withdrawn for Raul Albiol. In midfield, Jorginho will anchor the centre of the park instead of Amadou Diawara, who scored the winning goal last weekend.
Gennaro Gattuso sticks to a 4-3-3 formation but makes four changes from the side that drew 1-1 with Sassuolo last weekend. Alessio Romagnoli’s thigh injury and Leonardo Bonucci’s red card render them ineligible for today’s fixture, with Cristian Zapata and Mateo Musacchio occupying the centre of defence. At right-back, Davide Calabria is preferred to Ignazio Abate and the final alteration comes in the attacking third, with Nikola Kalinic given the start instead of Patrick Cutrone.
HALF-TIME: Milan 0-0 Napoli.
With Milan needing a win to stay in touching distance of a Champions League spot, and Napoli requiring three points to maintain pace with leaders Juventus who play later on today, both of these sides will inevitably make a host of attacking changes if the match remains deadlocked deep into the second half. Milan have both Andre Silva and homegrown talent Patrick Cutrone to rely on, while Maurizio Sarri can call upon creative midfielders Piotr Zielinski and Adam Ounas, as well as target-man Arkadiusz Milik.
Despite the lack of goals, it has been an extremely enticing first half of action from the San Siro. Both teams have put together impressive attacks and had spells of domination. Nikola Kalinic has spurned a couple of great aerial chances, while at the other end, Callejon has looked the danger man - getting the better of Rodriguez on a number of occasions. Both sides look likely to score, and a couple of second-half substitutions could really open up the flow of this match.
That is all for our coverage of the Serie A fixture between Milan and Napoli from the San Siro. We hope you enjoyed the commentary and we look forward to seeing you again soon!
Next up for Milan is a trip to Torino this Wednesday, before returning home to host Benevento next Saturday. As for Napoli, the Partenopei return to Naples to face Udinese next Sunday; a fixture which will be a warmup for Napoli’s potential title-decider in Torino against Juventus in two-weeks’ time.
Despite not having their two first-choice centre-backs, Milan performed relatively well. The Rossoneri successfully beat the press on a number of occasions and fashioned decent chances from wide positions. Franck Kessie did not look at his attacking best, but the Ivory Coast international was as destructive as always, constantly popping up in good positions to win the ball back for the home side. This may not be the result either team wanted, but both sides played well and cancelled each other out - hence a draw being a fair result.
Two matches in four weeks in the city of Milan against Inter and Milan have brought with it no goals and only two points for Napoli. They threatened on a number of occasions but lacked the final touch required to beat Donnarumma. Callejon looked dangerous all match but Dries Mertens and Lorenzo Insigne were anonymous for large spells. The midfield and defence remained resolute all match, though Kalinic really should have ruined Pepe Reina’s clean sheet after having a number of close-range opportunities - all of which he sent wide. The best chance for Napoli came just seconds before the final whistle, but Gianluigi Donnarumma somehow managed to palm Arkadiusz Milik’s point-blank shot around the post.
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