The semi-final first leg in the Coppa Italia between Milan and Inter ended goalless. The result favours the Rossoneri in the second leg due to the applicable away goals rule, which did not allow the Nerazzurri to score one.
For Inter, winter newcomer Gosens (from Atalanta Bergamo) was on the bench for the first time, while Giroud, who had turned the game around with his two goals in the league derby three weeks ago, started for AC.
In the first half, Milan controlled the game, but were only dangerous twice: first through Krunic, who returned an errant pass from Handanovic straight into the box (11th), and through Hernandez, who also failed to beat Inter’s goalkeeper (12th).
Gosens makes his Inter debut
The second half started furiously, but could not hold out hope for more: After just 15 seconds, Dzeko had a good chance with a long-range header, his counterpart Leao on a direct counterattack from around 20 metres. As the game progressed, however, neither Milan club created any further good chances. Defensive control was more important than offensive risk and creativity.
Leao, who was probably the best player up to that point, was taken off after 66 minutes – probably with an eye on Milan’s clash with Napoli on Sunday (8.45pm). Therefore, it remained a rather dull affair with few scoring chances. There was at least one highlight for Gosens: He made his debut in the 88th minute.
The fact that Inter failed to score an away goal favours AC in the second leg, as the away goals rule still applies in the Coppa Italia. This, by the way, will not take place for another 50 days, on 20 April.
