Gattuso's Own-Goal Sinks Milan at the 2008 Russian Railways Cup
August 3rd 2008 04:55
It was a veteran-laden AC Milan side that took the field in Moscow for the first game of the Russian Railways Cup, a friendly pre-season tournament, two days ago. Those who wanted to see Pato or Ronaldinho would be heavily disappointed since both players are currently with their national team, preparing for the Olympics. As such, it was the same old Rossoneris playing with Christian Abbiati in goal; Massimo Oddo, Paolo Maldini, Kakha Kaladze, and summer transfer Gianluca Zambrotta in defense; Gennaro Gattuso, Andrea Pirlo, Clarence Seedorf, Massimo Ambrosini, and Kaká in midfield; Alberto Paloschi being the lone striker in front.
With such a strong midfield on Milan's side, it was surprising to see Sevilla dominating the park early on. The Spanish club had the most possession during the first half, hovering around 60% of possession time, while Kaka and Pirlo were completely invisible save for a few touches here and there. Fortunately for the Italian club, their defenders stood tall with both Maldini and Kaladze making superb work in front of Abbiati who wasn't too shabby himself, making a great stop on Luis Fabiano's shot at the 25th minute. AC Milan would end up with only one shot in the first 45 minutes, a curling screamer from Seedorf that went wide of the net.
Milan would never get a chance to gain control of the game as Sevilla scored just two minutes after the break. What appeared to be an inoffensive free-kick turned out to be a major headache for goalkeeper Abbiati when Gattuso scored on his own net with a perfect header. Milan would never recover from the unlucky event as they were unable to generate any attack save for Cristian Brocchi's header at the 61st minute that hit the post after a cross from Ambrosini. Milan's offensive problems were compounded by their inability to stop Diego Capel on the right flank the midfielder's run forced the Rossoneris to constantly be on the defensive, and prevented Zambrotta from making offensive rushes and Brocchi's expulsion at the 79th minute after receiving a second yellow card.
At the end of it all, Sevilla was the better team. They came out strong and prepared, making them the logical winners even if the goal was a bit of a fluke. Milan seemed to always be one step behind in the play, and the final score could've been much worse if it wasn't for Abbiati's performance who gets my vote for man of the match.
With such a strong midfield on Milan's side, it was surprising to see Sevilla dominating the park early on. The Spanish club had the most possession during the first half, hovering around 60% of possession time, while Kaka and Pirlo were completely invisible save for a few touches here and there. Fortunately for the Italian club, their defenders stood tall with both Maldini and Kaladze making superb work in front of Abbiati who wasn't too shabby himself, making a great stop on Luis Fabiano's shot at the 25th minute. AC Milan would end up with only one shot in the first 45 minutes, a curling screamer from Seedorf that went wide of the net.
Milan would never get a chance to gain control of the game as Sevilla scored just two minutes after the break. What appeared to be an inoffensive free-kick turned out to be a major headache for goalkeeper Abbiati when Gattuso scored on his own net with a perfect header. Milan would never recover from the unlucky event as they were unable to generate any attack save for Cristian Brocchi's header at the 61st minute that hit the post after a cross from Ambrosini. Milan's offensive problems were compounded by their inability to stop Diego Capel on the right flank the midfielder's run forced the Rossoneris to constantly be on the defensive, and prevented Zambrotta from making offensive rushes and Brocchi's expulsion at the 79th minute after receiving a second yellow card.
At the end of it all, Sevilla was the better team. They came out strong and prepared, making them the logical winners even if the goal was a bit of a fluke. Milan seemed to always be one step behind in the play, and the final score could've been much worse if it wasn't for Abbiati's performance who gets my vote for man of the match.
FC Sevilla - AC Milan: 1-0
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