If it wasn’t for the incredible Mexican keeper Guillermo Ochoa who denied at least a handful of clear-cut chances, AC Milan would have marched through Salerno with one of the most brutal wins of the season.This way, the opening Serie A game after the World Cup hiatus ended with only two goals in the back of Ochoa’s net, 2-1, and almost resulted with a draw that would be anything but deserved.Milan había sido MUY superior, pero Ochoa sostuvo la portería y después de una doble atajada suya al 82′ (tremenda la segunda a Giroud 🥵), Salernitana se acerca 1-2 al 83′.Primer partido y Ochoa ya es factor para su equipo 🔥🇲🇽🔥 pic.twitter.com/Z49W3p8VsE— xGoalsMX (@xGoalsMX) January 4, 2023 Eager to prove their quality and return to the championship battle, the defending champions were furious straight from the starting blocks. After Ochoa saved Leao’s first attempt, Olivier Giroud was close, too, but it stayed 0-0 on the scoreboard until the 10th minute. But then Tonali launched a fine through ball that found Leao dashing into the box. He went past the Mexican keeper and finished it casually from anything but a promising position.Rafael Leão 🫣pic.twitter.com/Ee68wARY1l— GonçaloDias17 (@goncalo_diass17) January 4, 2023 Only five minutes later, the hosts conceded another one after the second of Tonali’s back-to-back shots went in low from inside the penalty area. This two goal-lead inspired Rosonerri to demonstrate some impeccable, exciting football in the next fifteen, or twenty minutes, creating many more goal-scoring opportunities. 🎥 | Tonali’s goal against Salernitana pic.twitter.com/H3iukUdVE8— CHAMPIONS OF ITALY 🏆 (@MilanEye) January 4, 2023 Still, Brahim Diaz and Giroud were slightly off in terms of finishing and the score remained the same.After the break, Salernitata did improve a bit, but it was not enough for the high-flying reigning champions, as Milan kept pushing for the third. It eventually came through Diaz, whose mild and unnecessary touch to Tomori’s shot ruined it all – the ball was already going in, and Diaz was offside, which resulted in voiding the goal after the VAR check.¡EL VAR ANULA EL GOL DEL MILAN!Guillermo Ochoa no pudo atajar el tercer tanto del Milan, pero Brahim Díaz estaba en posición adelantada 😰https://t.co/6b3kyCjgJN pic.twitter.com/3BYhYM4Vzs— Futbol Picante (@futpicante) January 4, 2023 The underdogs used this to change the game’s momentum a bit, and Sambia had more than a promising chance to reduce the margin, but his effort went inches off the right post.And then (again) Ochoa came along! His sensational saves prevented Giroud and De Ketelaere from scoring in back-to-back volleys. The ball went to the other end of the pitch, and out of the blue, Bonnazzoli squandered it on the far post for a shocking 2-1.🇮🇹 Salernitana 1️⃣ 🆚 2️⃣ Milan 🇮🇹⚽️ Federico Bonazzoli🎯 Coulibaly 🏆 SERIE A 🇮🇹#SALxMIL (16ª rodada) pic.twitter.com/ThTXvpr563— Fut New’s BR (@futnewsbrasil1) January 4, 2023 We’d got ourselves a dramatic match all of a sudden. Seginho Dest found himself totally forgotten and unmarked in the middle of the penalty area, but Ochoa excelled once again, just like he did a minute or two later, preventing Radovanovic from scoring a clumsy own goal.The stoppage lasted eight long minutes, but except for one De Ketelaere’s missile – denied, of course, by the hero of the day – we didn’t see any more action worth mentioning.SERIE A – Matchday 16Wednesday Salernitana – Milan 1-2 (0-2)/Bonnazzoli 83 – Leao 10, Tonali 15/Sassuolo – Sampdoria IN PROGRESSSpezia – Atalanta IN PROGRESSTorino – Verona IN PROGRESSRoma – Bologna IN PROGRESS18.30: (4.00) Lecce (3.20) Lazio (2.15)20.30: (1.70) Fiorentina (3.80) Monza (5.70)20.30: (5.20) Cremonese (3.70) Juventus (1.70)22.45: (2.45) Inter (3.40) Napoli (3.05)22.45: (1.70) Udinese (3.90) Empoli (5.50)***odds are subject to change
